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Last Updated: Feb 13, 2017 - 1:45:37 AM |
 BTC CEO Leon Williams and members of the CANTO board anticipate new initiatives for women and corporate social responsibility at annual telecommunications conference
NASSAU, N.P - In an address to media on Sunday, a panel consisting of members of the leadership of CANTO expressed high hopes for their 30th annual regional telecommunications conference and trade exhibition being held at the Atlantis Resort, on Paradise Island, Bahamas August 10th – 15th 2014, and touted the many new initiatives and goals the organisation is adopting.
The conference – which officially launched later that evening with a grand opening ceremony attended by Prime Minister Perry Christie and 14 other ministers from around the Caribbean – is co-hosted by local market leader BTC and aims to bring together regional stakeholders to facilitate the development of the information and communications technology industry (ICT).
The CANTO panel included Leon Williams, former CANTO chair and CEO of BTC; Regenie Fräser, Secretary General of CANTO; Dirk Currie, CANTO Chair; Julian Wilkins, Director of Marketing and Corporate Social Responsibility at CANTO; and Helma Etnel, Board Director at CANTO.
The CANTO panellists expressed enthusiasm for the upcoming week’s innovative sessions centred on the theme “Strategic Alliances for Sustainable Broadband Development.” Panellists claimed that this year will not only be a milestone year as the pearl anniversary of the conference, but will be a launching pad for stimulating new topics and initiatives the conference intends to introduce, noting that the agenda is packed with “firsts”.
According to Ms. Fräser, this year the conference has decided to highlight the advancement of women as a particularly vital factor for the sustainable development of the sector. Stressing the important roles women play in ICT entities and their underrepresentation within the industry, she expressed excitement for Tuesday morning’s Caribbean Women in ICT breakfast, the first of what is to be an annual forum.
Mr. Wilkins debuted the new CANTO mobile website and previewed the remixed CANTO theme song, to be officially launched at the evening celebrations. He also took the opportunity to announce the initiation of the Corporate Social Responsibility Task Force, in keeping with the theme of sustainable development. Articulating hopes to reduce the environmental impact of the industry, he heralded the creation of best practices for the disposal of old cell phones, which prove a significant source of waste to consumers.
He also noted that the packed CANTO agenda concludes with the 8th Annual Human Resources Forum on August 14th and 15th and the first of what is to be an annual Marketing Forum. Local marketing companies and personnel can register for this Forum which engages marketing professionals across the Caribbean.
In another first, the panel awarded the winner of CANTO’s inaugural video competition for World Telecommunication and Information Day held in May. At the media briefing, seventeen-year-old William Mahler Jr. of Belize ecstatically accepted his prize and expressed thanks to CANTO and BTC for the opportunity and the chance to travel to the Bahamas.
BTC CEO Leon Williams, who also MC’d and brought remarks at the Opening Ceremonies on Sunday evening, expressed his pleasure to host the CANTO conference in the Bahamas once again.
“BTC is a founding member of CANTO and has hosted the conference four times in the past. I am thrilled that CANTO has decided to come back for its milestone 30th anniversary conference. It demonstrates what a major regional player the Bahamas and BTC are for ICT in the region.”
Mr. Williams echoed the panellists expressing high hopes for the conference. “I have been to many CANTO conferences and in my opinion the conference of 2003, hosted right here, was the best to date. So we can expect great things for this year’s conference. The theme is extremely timely, with individual users consuming more data than ever and the demand for broadband rapidly increasing in the Bahamas and worldwide. I foresee a highly stimulating and productive event.”
© Copyright 2014 by thebahamasweekly.com
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