UTech president wants Jamaica to be a leader in technology

WESTERN BUREAU:

Dr Kevin Brown, president of the University of Technology, Jamaica (UTech), says Jamaica needs to prepare to be a leader in technological advancement, arguing that the implementation of robotics and AI is becoming more common in the job market.

Speaking during last Tuesday’s opening day of the Jamaica Teachers’ Association’s (JTA) 2026 Education Conference at the Princess Grand Hotel, in Hanover, Brown said the global growth of smart technology, including AI, is no longer a fictional concept.

“We know about AI, and we hear about robotics, advanced manufacturing, and biotechnology. I don’t know how many of you like sci-fi movies, like Minority Report and I, Robot, where we see a humanoid robot and driverless cars … but my point is that I, Robot is no longer fiction. Technology is reshaping the workforce, and it will redefine the workforce of tomorrow,” said Brown.

“The decisions we make in education today will determine whether Jamaica will lead or follow, and at some point I am desperate for Jamaica to lead in technology.

“I want to one day pick up a Jamaican tablet, to use a phone designed by a Jamaican, not just the app, but the hardware and everything in there. You can make it in China, but we must design it.

“When will we have the courage, the determination, and the vision to lead in technology and not just consume it? The bright students I have at UTech tell me that if given the opportunity, they can lead these industries.”

Brown’s call echoes an earlier declaration in April 2025 by economist Dr Andre Haughton, who said that Jamaica must acknowledge technology’s role in national development in order to avoid repeating the country’s history of missing opportunities for technological advancement.

In March this year, the Jamaica Business Development Corporation urged micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) to move past basic use of AI tools and integrate automation into their core business operations to improve efficiency, responsiveness and long-term competitiveness.

Speaking specifically to technology’s role in Jamaica’s education sector, Dr Brown said that all schools must be digitally equipped and have upgraded science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) laboratories, and that teachers should be trained to use the technology in their classrooms.

“I acknowledge that the Ministry of Education, through e-Learning and other initiatives, are outfitting our classrooms with digital tools, but it needs to be scaled. All schools must have smart-boards, not just one, but every classroom in the school. All schools must have state-of-the-art STEM labs, and I know that is the direction the government is going, and I must ask them to hasten their steps and to put more funding behind it, but I also say to the teachers that you must adapt to these new tools,” he said.

Meanwhile, JTA President Mark Malabver said the Government of Jamaica must reconsider building additional schools specifically for science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STEAM) subjects, and instead direct the resources it has borrowed for that purpose toward upgrading Jamaica’s already-existing school laboratories.

“We are told that the government has borrowed a significant amount of money, I believe the figure is US$133 million, to build STEM and STEAM schools. Why are we seeking to invent the wheel when the foundation already exists in our technical schools, some of which are now being starved of resources in spite of the J$400 million that has been allocated?” he said.

Malabver was referencing the US$113 million which the Government of Jamaica has budgeted to build six STEM schools across Jamaica, and the J$400 million it has invested to upgrade laboratories across 14 existing high schools.

“Every child, regardless of which school he or she attends, must have access to STEAM and TVET (technical and vocational education and training) education,” he said. “That is why we make a simple call, to reprioritise and reallocate these resources and upgrade all existing high schools.

“Let us start with the technical schools and build out from there, and embark on an aggressive campaign to modernise our labs across the system. This thing where you do a lab here, a lab there, and then do a lab over there, it cannot work, because it will not transform anything,” he added.

christopher.thomas@gleanerjm.com