The Kalinago Territory is getting a digital boost as the Council receives an influx of Information, communication and technology (ICT) equipment under the Strengthening Sustainable Livelihoods and Resilience in the Kalinago Territory (SSLR) Project coordinated and facilitated by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean in collaboration under the leadership of the Ministry of Environment, Rural Modernization and Kalinago Upliftment. The hand Over Ceremony took place on May 5, 2022, at the St. Cyr Resource Centre and the Council was gifted with approximately EC$40,000 in IT equipment consisting of computers, a digital camera, a conference speakerphone and a projector which will go a long way to support the functions and performance of the Kalinago Council.
This contribution was made possible through the Government of India and the India-UN Partnership Development Fund and the UN Office of South-South Cooperation. Speaking on the benefits that this intervention has for the Kalinago and the council’s ability to safeguard its knowledge, Mr. Lorenzo Sanford, Kalinago Chief, expressed his thanks, “considering Hurricane Maria dealt a lot of damage and important documents were lost as they were in hard copy form. The equipment received will help the council to preserve information using the many digitalized options”.
Addressing those at the ceremony, the Hon. Cozier Frederick – Minister, Ministry of the Environment, Rural Modernisation and Kalinago Upliftment, spoke to the empowerment and resilience that this capacity-building intervention could bring. He noted, “When we speak of resilience, it is not only buildings and road works, but also about building capacity so the use of the equipment and the use of multi-media in capturing aspects of our heritage is important because I have argued many times that the definition of resilience is Kalinago”.
Also speaking at the Hand Over Ceremony, Luis Francisco Thais Santa Cruz, Head of UNDP’s Dominica Office, reaffirmed UNDP’s commitment to supporting the Kalinago people and collaborating with the Government of Dominica, “We would also like to think of the donation as an additional step to push ongoing efforts to accelerate digital transformation in the Kalinago Territory, which in today’s new post-COVID world, is critical considering the exponential changes that the digital era presents ahead.”
The SSLR project will support the Kalinago community to better access and benefit from the digital economy. The SSLR project is finalizing the procurement of equipment that will further support the enhancement of the Wi-Fi network coverage in the Kalinago Territory, while also supporting the Kalinago Council with the digitalization of archives, the upgrade of the Kalinago webpage and the designing of an online system to manage critical communication and archiving needs.
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