BRIDGETOWN, Barbados. April 25, 2019—For anyone wondering how Internet development is evolving in the Caribbean, an international conference held in Bridgetown, Barbados, hosted by the American Registry for Internet Numbers (ARIN), provided more than a few positive clues.

The second annual ARIN Caribbean Forum attracted Internet policy makers, computer networking and cybersecurity experts and law enforcement officials from across the Caribbean, North America and Europe for high-level talks under the theme “Caribbean priorities for the global Internet.”

ARIN is one of five regional Internet registries that coordinate the development of policies for managing Internet protocol number resources. The Washington DC-based non-profit organisation manages Internet number resources in Canada, the United States and several Caribbean territories. 

“Governments are waking up and realising that the Internet is so crucial to their economy, to their citizens, to their businesses,” said John Curran, president and CEO of ARIN, during his feature address.

“We are entering a new era. The dam has broken and governments are now saying, ‘We’re not going to let the Internet evolve on its own. We’re going to get involved and try to guide it to a productive end that meets our public policy goals.’ Civil society is saying, ‘We’re at the table and we want to protect people and people’s economic interests and social issues.’ So you’re finally beginning to have dialogues that are more than just technical people working on technical solutions,” he added. 

“The ARIN Caribbean Forum provides the environment for these groups to engage in dialogue that defines development priorities, to share experiences and to gain insights into global and regional Internet trends,” said Bevil Wooding, the Caribbean outreach liaison for ARIN and facilitator for the Forum.

Three distinct streams make up the event: an Internet public policy group, a justice sector group and a technical community group. It is organised in collaboration with several Caribbean-based development organisations, including the Caribbean Telecommunications Union, an inter-governmental policy-making body; APEX, the justice technology agency of the Caribbean Court of Justice; and the Caribbean Network Operators Group, a volunteer network of computer experts.

The Forum signifies a notable increase in ARIN’s outreach to the Caribbean since 2017, encouraging regional involvement in global Internet policy development processes, and contributing to higher network resilience and increased regional network autonomy.

It took place on April 10 to 12, immediately following ARIN’s public policy and members meeting, held at the same location from April 8 to 10. It was the second instalment of the forum, first held in Miami in April 2018.  

CAPTION: Left to right, representatives of the American Registry for Internet Numbers, Mark Kosters, Richard Jimmerson, Leslie Nobile, Bevil Wooding, John Curran, Susan Hamlin and Anne-Rachel Inné, at a cocktail during the second ARIN Caribbean Forum, Hilton Barbados Resort, Bridgetown, Barbados, April 10 to 12, 2019. Photo courtesy: ARIN.