Trinidad and Tobago: PM Rowley urges public sector to embrace digital technology

Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago: While speaking during the Public Sector Leadership for Digital Transformation workshop at the Hyatt Regency Hotel on Monday, Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley urged the public servants to adopt technology for improving the lives of people, public service, as well as the economy of Trinidad and Tobago.  

Ministry of Public Administration & the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), in collaboration with the Ministry of Digital Transformation, were the host of this event. PM Rowley outlined the government’s work, stating that the administration embraced technology to cope up with the current difficult times of the COVID pandemic, with the digitization of the public and private sectors advised by the government’s Road Map to Recovery exercise.

“As a Cabinet, we conducted the extensive majority of our house meetings for the last two years via the virtual medium. Court sessions were also being held online, the Trinidad and Tobago Travel Pass was developed & launched, and the facility of the online application process for birth certificates was also made available to the general public”, the prime minister emphasized. 

Following the statement, he added, “We have witnessed some other benefits of harnessing technology in our ministries also and in our ability to serve the general public. While much of the work remains to be done, we have clearly shown in many arms of the State that we can in – fact do it”. 

Trinidadian prime minister pursues the vision of transforming the lives of the citizens with digital technology to be fully utilized in public as well as the private sector to ease and improve the manner of doing business. PM Rowley furthermore added that he is hoping people will grab this opportunity “to serve the nation as – a respected career of choice, honour and privilege.”

Concluding his statement, he cited, “Until and unless we all see ourselves as one service, we will not be able to fully – realize the power of collective action – to achieve our destiny as a nation. Digitalization makes it all possible.”