Rodney Taylor, Secretary General of the Trinidad-based Caribbean Telecommunications Union (CTU), called for the “full and complete elimination” of roaming costs in the area on Monday.
Taylor stated that efforts are ongoing to eliminate roaming charges while speaking at a ceremony where the Barbados government signed an agreement with the British telecommunications company, Cable and Wireless, which trades in the region as Flow, to provide low-income households in Barbados with Internet access.
Taylor’s appeal for full digitisation in the area comes one year after the region gained access to a fixed roaming charge when visiting qualifying Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries.
“I am sure Prime Minister (Mia) Mottley would want me to emphasize that our goal remains the complete elimination of roaming [charges] within the region, and we continue to work toward that,” Taylor said.
“We appreciate Cable and Wireless’ commitment to the Caribbean region and its investment in ICT infrastructure to lay the groundwork for national digital transformation.” “I was pleased to be a part of the process that saw a significant reduction in roaming charges within the CARICOM single ICT space in 2022,” Taylor added.
He stated that, despite advances, there was still a need for regulatory uniformity to push it even farther.
“It is clear that if we are to seriously close the connectivity gap, we must look at the entire Internet ecosystem and devise new ways of collaborating, from policymakers, regulators, the private sector, international organizations, and civil society groups.” “This must be a group effort,” Taylor remarked.
“I am aware of the difficulties associated with the supply of competing services by companies that are not regulated and are not making the same investment that you are. “As you are aware, CTU has begun a process for which you will require the highest level of support – the CARICOM Heads of Government – in order to resolve this issue,” he stated.
Prime Minister Mottley revealed the intention for lower roaming charges during the CARICOM Inter-sessional Summit in here in February last year, stressing that the fees were punitive and bankrupting individuals when they traveled.
Following negotiations with Flow and Digicel, as well as the implementation of new rules, the companies signed the Declaration of St. George’s Towards the Reduction of Intra-Caribbean Roaming Charges last year, paving the way for new fixed roaming charges to become a reality.
Officials also decided to work together to create a roadmap for the envisaged CARICOM one ICT space.
