- Country: Bahamas
- Population: ~402 thousand
- Project timeline: An initial pilot took place from October 2019 - July 2020. The pilot went into production during October 2020-December 2020. Enhancement, support and maintenance for the project is ongoing
- Customer: Government of the Bahamas
- Partner: Cloud Carib Limited is the local partner. They are a local cloud services provider managing the solution for the end-customer.
- Funding: Government of the Bahamas
Project Background
The Caribbean archipelago encompasses more than 7,000 islands in an approximately 1 million square mile area. These small countries and geographically fragmented islands provide an excellent location to pilot e-government related projects. Cloud Carib believed piloting projects in this space could demonstrate the value of interoperability and integration of services across a geographically challenging environment. In 2019, Cloud Carib partnered with Cybernetica to explore these opportunities together via a project in the Bahamas.
The main goal of the project with the Government of the Bahamas was to set up a fault-tolerant and secure data exchange layer in order to increase interoperability and efficiency. The implementation of this layer would improve citizens’ access to public services and the quality of these public services. The project started with an initial Proof of Concept (PoC). In the framework of the PoC, Cybernetica implemented a small-scale e-Government interoperability system. After a successful PoC project, the project moved on to full-scale implementation of a secure data exchange platform in the Bahamas.
Cybernetica’s contribution
Cybernetica is an expert in delivering e-government solutions, and Cloud Carib is a leader in providing secure cloud services within the Caribbean region. In this project, Cloud Carib provided the secure cloud platform while Cybernetica provided the interoperability platform software, based on Cybernetica’s UXP technology.
This was the first fully cloud-based deployment of the UXP technology. During the course of the initial pilot, Cybernetica conducted analysis and testing to ensure a smooth roll-out of the technology. Cybernetica also organised technical trainings during the project to support knowledge transfer and shared capacity building resources to support management and maintenance of the platform.
Following the pilot, a production environment was set-up. The data exchange platform was fully up and running in just over one year. Cybernetica’s secure data exchange framework is now the foundation on top of which public digital services are being built in the Bahamas.
There were some unique factors in this project due to the timing and the geography. As a result of the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the installation and implementation of the platform was done fully remotely by Cybernetica. Also taking into account the unique geographical position of the Bahamas and its vulnerability to the forces of nature, the components of the data exchange system were duplicated to ensure availability around the clock. Cybernetica’s UXP technology also allows support for cross-border data exchange through federation, which means two or more ecosystems can be joined. In the Caribbean, this means there is potential in the future for integration of services across a geographically challenging environment and for setting up cross-border services. In the close-knit region, with a high number of citizens and businesses active in several countries, this would boost efficiency and innovative service delivery.
Cybernetica’s work with the Bahamas is ongoing and the project is currently in a support and maintenance phase.
Project impact
- The secure data exchange layer provided by Cybernetica is mostly used for the government services portal, allowing users to register for services from a number of different departments such as road traffic, pension and passport.
- The technology enabling streamlined interactions within government agencies and between government agencies, citizens and commercial operators has allowed monetary and time savings for all stakeholders as well as transparency gains.
- This was the first fully cloud-based deployment of the UXP technology that is also fully managed. Working with a reputable technology partner like Cloud Carib has shown that it is possible to enable full-scale interoperability within the public sector without the government needing to take on extra overhead tasks for infrastructure or operations.
Want to know more?
For more information about this project, see the following or get in touch!
- Cybernetica news release from 2020: Cybernetica to Deliver Secure Data Exchange to the Bahamas
- Cloud Carib news release from 2020: Cloud Carib & Cybernetica enter agreement to bring digital government to Caribbean
- Presentation from the Caribbean Telecommunications Union (CTU) Conference in 2020: Cloud-Based E-Government Solutions