3.3 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 3.9 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 3.15 3.16 3.17 at raising the level of awareness, confidence and understanding of benefits of ICTs for citizens Proliferate the provision of basic ICT awareness training in the local communities by sustaining the Barbados Vocational Training Board Skills Training programme and the running of the Community Technology Program in the community centres, public and private secondary schools Collaborate with the local hardware suppliers to facilitate the learning experience of te new entrants to the usage of ICT Collaborate with public and private players to propagate the setting up of Internet centres, public Internet access points, including community centres, and public Wi-Fi hotspots, with the aim of offering public access to broadband Internet on a national level Explore and promote the use of alternative service delivery channels (including mobile devices and TVs) as both substitutes and complements to the PC Strive to provide the basic ICT awareness, accessibility and education facilities at the lowest cost to the public, sustaining free access to email services for all citizens Development and deployment of an ICT backbone infrastructure and security enterprise infrastructure (internet, intranet and extranet) to connect all organs for Government and permit an E-government/ Igovernment online multimedia presence for any place, any time service availability for the people of Barbados Engagement of citizens in the ongoing process of national development Strengthen the financial and equity markets to improve the business environment by facilitating the mobilization and development of venture capital to finance national development in particular, ICT, renewable energy initiatives, research and innovation Expanding special economic zones Improve the efficiency of Government, tax collection and expenditure with improved governance Design and implementation of ICT training programmes for disadvantaged persons and persons with disabilities to ensure achievement of the highest possible level of ICT literacy Increase the number of scholarships available in the field of ICT training and research Encouragement of local universities and other educational and research institutions in the engagement of ICT research and development Continuous evaluation and expansion of the Edutech Programme to build capacity and reform the education system Promotion of the digitization of public administrative and historical records Promotion of the production and sharing of local cultural and 37