Bureau Telecommunicatie en Post organizes a symposium celebrated 100 years of existance in the Netherlands Antilles
On the 16th of October, 1908 long distance telecommunication was officially initiated on the Netherlands Antilles. One century later they commemorate the birth of this new era. 100 years telecommunication in the Netherlands Antilles led them from the era of telegraph, to mobile phone and ultimately to the inception of the Internet. This development is taking them to the proliferation of broadband networks. These broadband networks are becoming an increasingly integral part of the economy. As to the economy, broadband facilitates the development of new and improved goods and services, new processes, new business models, and it increases competitiveness and flexibility in the economy. Arguably the smart countries in the world are offering their residents not just the fastest broadband, but at the lowest prices to the widest areas, thus laying the foundation for future economic growth.
In connection with this commemoration, Bureau Telecommunicatie en Post organized a symposium in Sint Maarten on Friday October 17th 2008, with the topic: Broadband access and its influence on economic development. The keynote speaker was the telecommunication expert, Mr. Leon Williams, former Director of the department of telecommunication in Bahamas and former President of CANTO. Other speakers at that symposium was Regional Representative of the International Telecommunication Union Mr. Phillip Cross and Secretary General of the Caribbean Telecommunication Union Mrs. Bernadette Lewis.