Go Lean Commentary
For all the good that the internet brings to the world, there is a lot of bad too. The W.W.W in a web address does not mean Wild Wild West. But it feels like that; the bad old days of outlaws and gunslingers. (The actual WWW initials mean World Wide Web). Let the buyer beware!
The need for a Sentinel in Caribbean electronic commerce has been fully established by this commentary. Someone needs to be “watching the store in the Caribbean”. Electronic commerce now means internet and mobile transactions, encompassing smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices.
While the Caribbean member-states are not as advanced as other North American locations (US & Canada) or many Western European countries, we have fully embraced the internet via broadband, Wi-Fi and mobile communication utilities. The assertion in the book Go Lean…Caribbean, is that any plan to reboot Caribbean economics, security and governance must include promotion and regulation of technological initiatives as well. This Go Lean book serves as a roadmap for the introduction and implementation of the technocratic Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU) to facilitate the growth, stewardship and oversight of electronic commerce in a regional Single Market.
There is therefore the need to be “on guard” for “bad actors” that will surely emerge to exploit Caribbean stakeholders, including residents, businesses and visitors – possibly up to 150 million people, including 80 million tourists. This news VIDEO here reports on a new threat:
VIDEO: Caution: Wi-Fi hot spots run by hackers are targeting tourists – http://www.today.com/video/caution-wi-fi-hot-spots-run-by-hackers-are-targeting-tourists-526433347646
September 16, 2015 – The “Hacking of America” series continues with a new warning: Before you log on to free public Wi-Fi hot spots at popular tourist destinations like New York City’s Times Square, be aware that they could be traps for hackers to steal your identity. One warning sign: The word “free.” NBC’s Tom Costello shares tips to protect your online security with TODAY.
Imagine a Caribbean tourist, disembarking a cruise ship, turning on a smartphone and being enticed with “FREE Wi-Fi”.
The Go Lean book relates regional oversight for the Caribbean Single Market – a lean technocracy – for cross-border electronic media, governance of the Information Technology Arts and Sciences and Grievance mediation. These activities are part –and-parcel of the missions of Go Lean roadmap, whose prime directives are identified with the following 3 statements:
- Optimization of the economic engines in order to grow the regional economy to $800 Billion & create 2.2 million new jobs.
- Establishment of a security apparatus to protect the people and processes (economic engines) of the region from threats and attacks (physical and electronic) that may originate from foreign or domestic sources.
- Improvement of Caribbean governance to support these engines, including consolidation of all Postal operations. The Caribbean Postal Union will deploy a Caribbean Cloud, a Social Media / Electronic Commerce offering for all Caribbean member-states, branded www.myCaribbean.gov.
These prime directives will elevate Caribbean society. With this success comes the emergence of “bad actors”. The foregoing VIDEO relates one such instance. The goal of preparing the appropriate security apparatus – to protect the people and processes – was envisioned in the Go Lean roadmap from the beginning; this was defined early in the book (Page 12 & 14) in the following pronouncements in the Declaration of Interdependence:
x. Whereas we are surrounded and allied to nations of larger proportions in land mass, populations, and treasuries, elements in their societies may have ill-intent in their pursuits, at the expense of the safety and security of our citizens. We must therefore appoint “new guards” to ensure our public safety and threats against our society, both domestic and foreign. The Federation must employ the latest advances and best practices … to assuage continuous threats against public safety.
xv. Whereas the business of the Federation and the commercial interest in the region cannot prosper without an efficient facilitation of postal services, the Caribbean Union must allow for the integration of the existing mail operations of the governments of the member-states into a consolidated Caribbean Postal Union, allowing for the adoption of best practices and technical advances to deliver foreign/domestic mail in the region.
xvi. Whereas security of our homeland is inextricably linked to prosperity of the homeland, the economic and security interest of the region needs to be aligned under the same governance. Since economic crimes, including piracy and other forms of terrorism, can imperil the functioning of the wheels of commerce for all the citizenry, the accedence of this Federation must equip the security apparatus with the tools and techniques for predictive and proactive interdictions.
xxvii. Whereas the region has endured a spectator status during the Industrial Revolution, we cannot stand on the sidelines of this new economy, the Information Revolution. Rather, the Federation must embrace all the tenets of Internet Communications Technology (ICT) to serve as an equalizing element in competition with the rest of the world. The Federation must bridge the digital divide and promote the community ethos that research/development is valuable and must be promoted and incentivized for adoption.
According to the foregoing VIDEO, the threat for cyber-crimes is now exposed to mobile users and those innocently partaking of FREE Wi-Fi services. This should not be so endangering. Wi-Fi communications should be a benign utility. There is the natural expectation that the governmental authorities would protect the innocent and interdict all villainous parties. This “natural expectation” is part-and-parcel of the Social Contract between citizens and their governments. For the 80 million visitors enjoying Caribbean hospitality, this presumed protection should automatically extend to them.
This is the assumption. The region must therefore anticipate these “bad actors” and deploy the counter-measures to monitor, mitigate and manage all identified risks associated with this cyber-threat. All cyber-crimes and threats to electronic commerce must be a constant focus for the “new guards” being proposed for implementation in the Caribbean with this Go Lean/CU roadmap.
The book posits that these are among the issues that are too big for any one Caribbean member-state to manage alone; that there are times when there must be a cross-border, multilateral coordination. So confederating all 30 Caribbean member-states and appointing the CU as a deputized agency to oversee this cyber activity is a wise course of action. In addition, the technical competence for the “guardians” of this new Caribbean economy must be “cutting edge”. Can we truly expect this from the current bureaucratic structures of these small member-states? Hardly.
In a previous blog, the “cutting-edge” readiness of one member-state (Bahamas) was likened to 1985, as opposed to 2015; the blog stated that “they are not reaching for the stars but rather reaching for the lamp-post”. Other blog-commentaries on this subject have detailed the full width-and-breath of preparing Caribbean society for the diverse economic, security and governing issues of managing ICT in this new century. See sample blogs here:
| http://www.goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=6341 | The Need for Online Tourism Marketing Stewardship |
| http://www.goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=5435 | China Internet Policing – Model for Caribbean |
| http://www.goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=5353 | US Presidential Politics and the Internet |
| http://www.goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=4793 | Online reviews – like Yelp and Angie’s List – can wield great power for services marketed, solicited and contracted online. |
| http://www.goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=4381 | Net Neutrality – The need for Caribbean Administration of the Issue. |
| http://www.goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=4337 | Crony-Capitalism Among the Online Real Estate Markets |
| http://www.goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=3881 | European and North American Intelligence Agencies to Ramp-up Cyber Security Cooperation |
| http://www.goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=906 | Bitcoin e-Payments needs regulatory framework to manage ‘risky’ image |
| http://www.goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=308 | Caribbean Communications Infrastructure Program (CARCIP) and the Caribbean Telecommunications Union (CTU) urges greater innovation and protection. |
These commentaries demonstrate that there is the need for a technocratic governing body to better oversee and police Caribbean electronic commerce. This structure will assuage cyber-crimes and illicit activities for the Caribbean neighborhood in the online world.
We have so much more than Wi-Fi decoys to consider – as conveyed in the foregoing VIDEO. Successful execution of the Go Lean roadmap can expect a surge in internet/online activity and transactions; as there is the plan to deploy schemes to facilitate more e-Commerce: Central Bank adoption of Electronic Payment schemes and Postal Integration/Optimization, the Caribbean Cloud portal for www.myCaribbean.gov. So many more challenges – and lawlessness – will emerge.
The Go Lean book therefore presents the series of community ethos, strategies, tactics, implementations and advocacies that must be adopted and executed to elevate this region to be competent with the Worldwide Web. See the following sample here:
| Community Ethos – Deferred Gratification | Page 21 |
| Community Ethos – People Choose | Page 21 |
| Community Ethos – People Respond to Incentives | Page 21 |
| Community Ethos – Economic Systems Influence Individual Choices | Page 21 |
| Community Ethos – Job Multiplier | Page 22 |
| Community Ethos – Privacy versus Public Protection | Page 23 |
| Community Ethos – Whistleblower Protection | Page 23 |
| Community Ethos – Lean Operations | Page 24 |
| Community Ethos – Ways to Help Entrepreneurship | Page 28 |
| Community Ethos – Promote Intellectual Property | Page 29 |
| Community Ethos – Ways to Bridge the Digital Divide – Allow for FREE Wi-Fi | Page 31 |
| Community Ethos – Ways to Improve Sharing | Page 35 |
| Community Ethos – Ways to Impact the Greater Good | Page 37 |
| Strategy – Vision – Integrate a Single Market of entire region | Page 45 |
| Tactical – Fostering a Technocracy | Page 64 |
| Tactical – Separation of Powers – Caribbean Postal Union | Page 78 |
| Tactical – Separation of Powers – Interstate Commerce Administration | Page 79 |
| Tactical – Separation of Powers – Communications and Media Authority | Page 79 |
| Implementation – Year 1 / Assemble Phase – Establish CPU | Page 96 |
| Anecdote – Implementation Plan – Mail Services – US Dilemma | Page 99 |
| Implementation – Improve Mail Services – Electronic Supplements | Page 108 |
| Implementation – Ways to Deliver | Page 109 |
| Implementation – Ways to Impact Social Media – For Residents, Visitors & Diaspora | Page 111 |
| Planning – 10 Big Ideas for the Caribbean Region – Cyber Caribbean | Page 127 |
| Advocacy – Ways to Improve Interstate Commerce | Page 129 |
| Advocacy – Ways to Grow the Economy | Page 151 |
| Advocacy – Ways to Create Jobs | Page 152 |
| Advocacy –Ways to Improve Governance | Page 168 |
| Advocacy –Ways to Better Manage the Social Contract | Page 170 |
| Advocacy – Ways to Improve Libraries – Hi-Density Wi-Fi | Page 187 |
| Advocacy – Ways to Impact Events – Hi-Density Wi-Fi & Mobile Apps | Page 191 |
| Advocacy – Ways to Foster Technology – Public Access Wi-Fi | Page 197 |
| Advocacy – Ways to Foster e-Commerce – Mobile Apps & Hi-Density Wi-Fi | Page 198 |
| Advocacy – Ways to Impact Main Street – Downtown Wi-Fi | Page 201 |
| Advocacy – Ways to Impact Urban Living | Page 234 |
The Go Lean book creates some Great Expectations for the internet. It posits that online facilitations can serve as an equalizing element for the Caribbean to better compete with the rest of the world. So we must elevate the region’s core competence with all-things-cyber, including the security dynamics.
“Bad actors will always emerge to exploit economic opportunities” – Go Lean (Page 23).
So to keep pace with the latest and greatest cyber-criminals, we must do the heavy-lifting of “serving and protecting” the Caribbean online populations. The region needs this technocracy of the CU Trade Federation. Everyone is therefore encouraged to lean-in to this Go Lean roadmap. 🙂