NEWS
World Bank
expert says
Caribbean
can become
a tech hub
AT&T brings 5G technology to
Puerto Rico
Digital Transformation offers the
Caribbean an opportunity to open
new economic sectors to diversify
the economy, create jobs and boost
future growth.
That’s the opinion of Tahseen Sayed,
Country Director for Caribbean Countries,
Latin America and Caribbean, at the
World Bank.
The influential figure says that digital
technology is a great equalizer, providing
a range of opportunities both academic
and economic.
“The potential of digital technologies
extends well beyond payment systems
and can transform every sector of the
economy. Small states have been world
leaders in pioneering digital solutions,”
said Sayed.
“Estonia’s Digital Transformation program,
e-Estonia, is a clear example. Its launch
shortly after Estonia’s independence
from the Soviet Union, when less than
half of the population had a fixed
telephone line, transformed the country
within two decades into one of the
most digitally advanced in the world.”
Working towards this vision, four
countries in the Eastern Caribbean
with the OECS Commission have
launched its first-ever large-scale Digital
Transformation program with World
Bank financing.
This is also the first regional digital
economy project for the World Bank.
The US$94 million Digital
Transformation Project aims to lay the
foundations for an inclusive digital
economy in the Eastern Caribbean by
increasing Internet access, digital
banking, online public services and
digital skills.
AT&T has added 5G to 28 additional
markets including Puerto Rico and a
number of US states.
Some areas of the new markets are using
dynamic spectrum sharing (DSS), in
which the same channel can be used for
4G and 5G.
The majority of the launches are in
Florida (four markets), Puerto Rico (seven
markets) and Texas (five markets).
Arkansas, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois,
Michigan, Missouri, Oregon, Pennsylvania,
Tennessee and Utah have one market
each, while Minnesota has two – one
wholly within the state itself and another
that crosses into North Dakota.
The spectrum sharing capabilities of
DSS enables carriers to offer 4G and 5G
according to demand. This is designed
to create a seamless experience
for customers, while increasing
spectrum use efficiency and creating
an intelligent and robust network,
according to AT&T.
“DSS is an important stepping-stone on
our path to nationwide 5G,” said Igal
Elbaz, AT&T’s Senior Vice President of
Wireless and Access Technology.
“We were the first U.S. carrier to deploy
this technology in our network, and it’s
now playing an important role as we
work toward a nationwide 5G footprint
this summer.”
Earlier this year, AT&T said it was
deploying 5G in 137 additional U.S.
markets. This brought the company’s
total to 327 markets covering more than
160 million people. •
18 INTELLIGENTCIO www.intelligentcio.com