ST. KITTS-NEVIS RISES TO GREAT HEIGHTS IN THE DIGITAL LANDSCAPE UNDER PRIME MINISTER HARRIS’ STRONG, STEADY LEADERSHIP

May 23^rd, 2019

The world took notice in November 2016 when the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis, the smallest independent country in the Western Hemisphere, was honoured at the 14^th World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Symposium with two awards for outstanding improvements in information and communication technology (ICT) development.

Remarkably, St. Kitts and Nevis had climbed 20 spots on the International Telecommunication Union’s ICT Development Index for the year 2016 – by far the most improved country.  The second most improved country on the 2016 index was Myanmar, which jumped 13 spots to 140^th place.

In the ICT Development Index for the year 2017, St. Kitts and Nevis ranked #37 out of 176 countries – the highest ranked country in the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS).

Indeed, Prime Minister Harris’ administration’s steadfast approach to maximizing the use of ICTs has yielded steady gains and strong performance, resulting in other countries in the region looking toward the progress of the St. Kitts and Nevis Government as a model.

Today, Thursday, May 23^rd and Friday, May 24^th, 2019, Prime Minister Dr. the Honourable Timothy Harris will attend a regional conference at the World Bank Headquarters in Washington, D.C. titled Digital Economy Moonshot for the Eastern Caribbean.

The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) and the World Bank invited the Prime Minister of St. Kitts and Nevis to the two-day meeting, which will explore ways to advance the services within the digital economy throughout the Eastern Caribbean by building on the experiences and needs of the countries.  This consultative process will help inform an action plan for a regional project to be supported by the World Bank.

Deloitte defines the digital economy as “the economic activity that results from billions of everyday online connections among people, businesses, devices, data, and processes.”  The multinational consulting firm adds that, “The backbone of the digital economy is hyperconnectivity which means growing interconnectedness of people, organisations, and machines that results from the Internet, mobile technology and the internet of things (IoT).”

Prime Minister Harris’ Team Unity administration has successfully rolled out a number of useful mobile applications (apps), including one for the public to access news and information from the St. Kitts and Nevis Information Service (SKNIS).

The Government has also been engaged in a process of digitizing medical records for in-patients and out-patients who are seen at the nation’s four hospitals, as well as its 17 health centres.  The Republic of China (Taiwan) is providing technical assistance and grant funding.