About 4 months ago, announcements were made that Barbados planned to be the first country in the world to provide free Wi-Fi island-wide, with a target date of 11 November 2011. This post examines how Barbados intends to achieve 100% Wi-Fi coverage, and some of the anticipated benefits of such a project. Your thoughts/comments would be welcomed.
The promise to realise 100% island wide Wi-Fi coverage was first announced by the Barbados Entrepreneurship Foundation (BEF) at its inaugural Summit in November 2010. The BEF is a voluntary, non-profit organisation, established in 2010, which aims to facilitate business development, especially entrepreneurship, in Barbados.
The organisation’s vision is for Barbados to be the #1 entrepreneurial hub in the world by 2020. The free island-wide Wi-Fi initiative, where it is hoped that coverage will be available “from bus stop to rum shop”, a phrase coined by Barbados’ late Prime Minister, Hon. David Thompson, has been dubbed “11.11.11 ON – Wi-Fi Barbados”, and is seen as a major step towards achieving that vision. More
