How the Caribbean Court of Justice Is Going Digital

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad—The Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) is hoping that a set of technological upgrades it recently adopted will trigger a digital revolution in courts across the region, and transform how justice is delivered. CCJ President Sir Dennis Byron, who spearheaded the Court’s adoption of the new digital platform for document-filing, case management and performance measurement, described the switchover as “a major development for lawyers and courts in the region,” with significant potential to make the delivery of justice more efficient and timely.

Byron explained that the electronic filing of case documents, in particular, would save both time and money for all parties.

“The new system will allow judges direct access to case information from any location, including via their mobile phones. It eliminates the risk of misplaced files and enables lawyers to commence proceedings by filing actions over the Internet,” he said in an interview at the CCJ headquarters in Port of Spain.

For the venture, the senior judge enlisted the help of colleagues, lawyers, governments and even one of the region’s leading technology experts. He credited the work of Bevil Wooding, a name well known on the Caribbean technology scene, as being integral to the design of the digital systems over the last two years.

“Beyond overseeing the development of the software, Mr. Wooding has played a vital role in establishing the strategic framework to ensure that justice stakeholders across the region can have an ongoing say in the evolution of our technology-driven approaches to court administration,” Byron said.

Their partnership is already bearing fruit. Courts in Belize, Jamaica and Guyana are preparing to launch pilots of the e-filing and case management systems. Meanwhile, lawyers in Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Guyana, St Kitts and Nevis and St Lucia are preparing to trial a version of case management systems for law offices.

Wooding now heads the non-profit agency, called APEX, which was established in 2016 to support implementation of the new technology in courts across the region.

“The idea of digital courts, electronic filing and automated case management has been on the table in many of our jurisdictions for several years now. With APEX, Caribbean courts will not only have more affordable access to innovative software, they will also benefit from a Caribbean-based support structure that is much more responsive to Caribbean needs,” said Wooding, a longstanding evangelist for regional development and digital innovation.

“The CCJ has had many significant milestones in its 10-year history, but this is one that I am particularly proud of,” Byron said.

“One of the main criticisms of the judiciaries in the Caribbean is the fact that justice seems to move too slowly. These new tools provide a tangible, Caribbean-led approach to improving the efficiency and timeliness of litigation in the region.”

Sir Dennis now hopes that other national courts within and beyond the region will follow the example.

“By championing the use of technology in this way, the CCJ is a working model for judiciaries to emulate. A number of court officials from the Caribbean and further afield have visited our court to see what we do here and this is another one of the ways that we believe the CCJ can add value to the improvement of justice in the region.”

Originally published: Caribbean Journal

Digital Skills Needed For Caribbean To Stay Globally Competitive

The digital era is here to stay but many still lack the skills needed to get ahead in the Internet economy.

A 2017 CIGI-Ipsos survey on Internet security and trust found that a significant percentage of Internet users do not trust the Internet enough to conduct financial transactions online. Even among those willing to embrace digital commerce, many face another barrier: digital literacy.

Rhea Yaw Ching, executive director of the US-based Covela Foundation, points out that the problem is more acute in Latin America and in particular the Caribbean, where an increasing number of citizens and businesses are now coming online.

“There is a direct correlation between digital literacy and financial inclusion,” said Yaw Ching, a former telecommunications sector executive.

“Sixty-five per cent of the Caribbean population is unbanked, meaning that they are predominantly cash-based. And a further 20 per cent are underbanked, meaning that they under-utilise the financial services that do exist,” she added.

What makes the Caribbean’s challenge worse is the persistent gap between the formal financial sector and the hundreds of thousands of small or micro-organisations operating in the informal economy with little access to services such as automated payments, credit cards, online banking, mobile apps or even ATMs.

“The informal economy is a key driver of the economics of most Caribbean nations. Unfortunately, the informal economy is still largely characterised by limited access to ICT services, limited access to formal financial services, and, critically, limited digital skills,” Yaw Ching said.

She added that the Caribbean still has a long way to go before it can realise the benefits brought about by the digital era.

“The key to unlocking true innovation lies in equipping citizens with the digital skills most relevant to the region and developing the financial systems and services to allow them to fully capitalize Caribbean ideas and innovations.”

Why the Caribbean Needs to Strengthen Its Internet Infrastructure

PHILIPSBURG, St Maarten—The Caribbean will have to strengthen its Internet infrastructure if it is to keep pace with the world’s growing digital economy.

That’s the view held by Bevil Wooding, an Internet Strategist with US-based non-profit Packet Clearing House, an organisation providing operational support and security to critical Internet infrastructure around the world.

Speaking to an audience of telecoms sector executives and government officials at the Caribbean Peering and Interconnection Forum in Phillipsburg, St Maarten, Wooding contrasted the high speed of change in the global Internet landscape with the relatively slow pace of Internet infrastructure development in the Caribbean.

He cited he recent Visual Networking Index from technology hardware giant Cisco, which estimates that by 2021, more than one billion new Internet users and 10 billion new devices will more than triple global Internet traffic. Video will account for 82 per cent of all traffic, mobile will represent 20 per cent, and online gaming will be the fastest-growing residential Internet service.  Gamers and other users will enjoy much faster service, as broadband speeds will practically double, from 24.7 Mbps in 2015 to 47.7 Mbps.

But while the rest of the world rushes to cash in on those lucrative markets, Wooding says the Caribbean faces a real risk of being left behind. A major factor, he said, is the persistently slow pace of Internet infrastructure build-out across the region.

“Faster, bolder steps must be taken if the region is to seize the development opportunities that the Internet economy offers. The translation time between talk and action must be dramatically shortened,“ he said.

Telecommunications service providers aren’t the only firms that will need to upgrade their hardware. Government ministries and private companies across the region will also have to invest more heavily and wisely in the technology underlayer that drives modern digital economies as well.

“The cost of infrastructure build-out is too important and the timing too significant to leave to private-sector decision-making alone. Governments and private sector investors will need to form far more fruitful partnerships if the Caribbean is to effectively drive technology-enabled business innovation, social inclusion and economic development,” he said.

He also predicted that the global economy will become increasingly unforgiving to regions with failing and outdated infrastructure, particularly small-island developing states like those in the Caribbean.

“Computer networks, mobile broadband, and Internet-connected services are now an essential feature of the modern digital economy. Neither businesses, governments nor citizens can ignore this reality.  Important decisions about network build-out, human capacity building, and network security are no longer the sole preserve of traditional telecommunications providers. These issues are now the concern and the responsibility of governments, businesses and individuals at every level.”

Hosted by the Internet Society, Packet Clearing House and the Caribbean Network Operators Group, the Caribbean Peering and Interconnection Forum brought experts and execs into a common space to discuss Internet infrastructure from a Caribbean perspective on July 5 and 6.

Originally published: Caribbean Journal