President Tsai attends launch ceremony for St. Lucia Government Island-Wide Network Phase II
On the morning of July 18 local time (evening of July 18 Taipei time), President Tsai Ing-wen, currently traveling on her Journey of Freedom, Democracy, and Sustainability, attended a launch ceremony for the second phase of the St. Lucia Government Island-Wide Network (GiNet). She emphasized that digital infrastructure can spur industrial innovation, and that Taiwan is willing to share our technologies and experiences with St. Lucia to expand their GiNet coverage across the entire island, and work with them to foster their digital development.
Following is a transcript of the president's remarks:
In the digital age, network infrastructure is key to economic development, competitive strength in the global market, and improved quality of life.
Taiwan and St. Lucia have been working together since 2015 on the first phase of the Government Island-Wide Network, or GiNet. During this phase, we installed 63 public wi-fi hotspots in 33 locations across five quarters.
This project is not only helping travelers connect more easily. It is also helping bridge St. Lucia's urban-rural digital divide, and connecting St. Lucians with the rest of the world.
Taiwan has long said that we should turn digital divides into digital opportunities. And we will continue to share our digital success story with the world.
Our Forward-Looking Infrastructure Program in Taiwan places a heavy focus on digital infrastructure. This policy is helping spur Taiwan's industrial innovation, and our economy is going strong.
And we are more than willing to share our technologies and experiences with St. Lucia. We will continue to expand GiNet's coverage across the entire island, and work with you to foster St. Lucia's digital development.
So it is an honor to jointly launch GiNet's second phase today with Prime Minister Chastanet.
Over the years, we have undertaken many major ICT projects together. We have established a national ICT center, ICT resource centers in communities across the island, and an agriculture resource system. All of these help the government work more efficiently.
We are also helping fight crime and improve public safety in St. Lucia through strong digital infrastructure. Our crime management system is helping government and police keep communities safe.
In closing, I want to wish for swift and smooth completion for GiNet's second phase, and every success for this project in the future. Thank you.
President Tsai, Prime Minister Chastanet, and other important guests on hand for the ceremony jointly cut a ribbon, releasing balloons to mark the launch of the project.