Jamaican businesses are recognising the potential of the European Union-Latin America and the Caribbean (EU LAC) Digital Accelerator Program to drive growth and innovation in the region.

On Tuesday, May 14, a number business leaders participated in a workshop hosted by the Caribbean Export Development Agency in collaboration with Tenalia Ventures and the European Business & Innovation Centre Network at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel with funding from the European Union.

Held under the theme ‘Digital Innovation Nexus: Bridging Corporates and Startups for Next-Gen Solutions’, the event brought together business leaders and C-suite executives for an insightful discussion on corporate innovation and collaboration with start-ups while highlighting the benefits of the EU-LAC Digital Accelerator matching platform.

This programme is a cornerstone of the EU-LAC Digital Alliance, which is aligned with the Global Gateway (GG) agenda, and aims to foster digital transformation collaboration among businesses in the Latin America and Caribbean region and Europe.

Global Gateway is an integral part of the European Union’s international engagement focused on five key themes: digital adoption, climate and energy, transport, health, and education and research.

Under the programme, successful partnerships will be offered acceleration services valued at up to €30,000 around areas such as SMART Production. Over 200 entities have registered on the platform, 17 of which are Jamaican businesses.

Ricardo Thompson, co-founder and CEO of Niritech Digital Services Limited – one of the Jamaican businesses registered on the platform – indicated that he will be leveraging the networking aspect of the programme in order to connect with businesses across the region.

“My expectation from the EU-LAC initiative is essentially to enable my company to connect with other companies that are larger or of similar size so that we can leverage the opportunities arising from Europe, or even other parts of Latin America. We firmly believe that through collaboration we can achieve significant outcomes,” he noted.

The Digital Accelerator builds on the EU’s support to Jamaica, including the €9.5-million Digital Jamaica programme that was launched in October 2023. Digital Jamaica represents a multi-sector initiative aimed at supporting Jamaica’s digital transformation agenda.

Another participant, Almando Cox, CEO of ResolveIT Limited, emphasised the initiative’s importance in providing more support services to facilitate local digital transformation. He noted how many young entrepreneurs get caught up in day-to-day tasks instead of focusing on strategic growth.

“How do entrepreneurs transition from the point of working in their business to working on their business?” he asked.

“The solution is to leverage technology. It is difficult to scale and compete without digital tools. The reality is, when you have an organisation or a group that can provide you with that kind of knowledge and capacity building, it becomes much easier for entrepreneurs to navigate this technology landscape,” Cox explained.

The EU-LAC Digital Alliance focuses on four key areas: policy dialogue, boosting connectivity, Earth observation and satellite navigation services, and the EU-LAC Digital Accelerator, which promotes partnerships between businesses from the EU and Latin America and the Caribbean.

Together, these efforts underscore a collective commitment to advancing prosperity and progress in the region.