Recommendations for CIVIC representation at e-Government Meeting

Here's my response to Hallam's request for approval to represent our virtual community at the second Caribbean e-Government planning workshop.

Hallam said:
The second Caribbean e-Government planning workshop will be held in Barbados on April 21st and 22nd. I am requesting approval by CIVIC members to represent CIVIC at this meeting. I will provide a report on the meeting at its conclusion. I will faithfully represent any CIVIC positions at this meeting. I reserve the right to represent personal views and those of my consultancy CARITEL.

You tell them to go open source, to cancel and stay away from those overpriced proprietary software Service Level Agreements, to install Open Office and Ubuntu too, to think about IT in terms of its use by stakeholders and impact on processes, quality of service and efficiency and not in terms of number of portals, websites, servers or desktop computers installed.

You tell them that integration of ICT in the Curriculum is not the addition of Microsoft Office courses to school activities. Or that if they should choose to do so, Microsoft should cover such expenses. You tell them that there is much more to teach and learn about ICT than parts of the computer, operating system, managing windows and using an Office software package.

You tell them not to buy, implement or launch IT (including IT centers and IT applications) without a clear diagnose of needs, challenges and opportunities and a solid strategy to generate an impact.

You tell them to openly criticize and denounce the restrictive intellectual property model that harms the cultural heritage, wealth and future of Caribbean culture, as rich and diverse as it is, and has a deep, profound negative impact on its stakeholders in favor of benefiting a few.

You tell them that governing is as much about governance as of ruling.

You tell them to enforce Open Access to Information laws and abide by transparency principles, easily executed with the help of IT.

You tell them that transparency and governance is a two-way street, actually a busy highway system with multiple streets intersecting, enabled and facilitated by ICT.

You tell them that farming is as important as broadband access and farmers markets as important as community telecenters.

You tell them, you tell them so many things... things we all agree on... most likely things we all disagree on... things we should all disagree on... things we should all always disagree on... for that is the beauty and value of CIVIC... Or at least it was, before we started with this thing about charters and mandates and approvals...

If I was in need of charter approvals and mandates, I would have joined ISOC or ICANN and abide by corporate policies... But hey, that's just me...

Us in the Caribbean have this unhealthy obsession with European and large country and corporation models where we want to set up Committees and Steering Committees for everything, killing our very own competitive advantage of being small, few, knowing each other and being able to act, respond and preemptively do things without any board's permission or never ending discussion or negotiation (no reference to CARICOM ICT Steering Committee, really).

In any case, Hallam, you tell them... perhaps they'll listen.

And then next year, you tell them again when they meet again... perhaps they will remember you once told them or they heard something about it...
- was it last year? already a year passed and we're meeting again? yes, tell us, please do, this year we will do better, or at least we will do something, yes, this year we will...

In summary, you have my vote, go represent me, all of us :-)

Fair winds to you, Hallam, you have backing from all of us... I mean, I am speaking for everyone... right?

Little Disclaimer though: When Hallam speaks, he speaks for me as well, as long as he says things I agree with and manages to tell them in a funny way as well.

There, that should cover everything :-)

But yes, I hereby pronounce my approval of Hallam reprensenting CIVIC at the meeting.