Digital trust is the foundation for transforming Barbados into a modern, inclusive and resilient smart nation and the establishment of a new Barbados identity ecosystem will enable secure, seamless transactions for people and businesses.
This message from Minister of Innovation, Industry, Science and Technology Senator Jonathan Reid, came as he delivered his keynote address on day one of the Global Business Conference, hosted by BIBA – The Association for Global Business at Wyndham Grand Barbados Sam Lord’s Castle, as part of Global Business Week 2025, last Thursday.
Reid announced that Government is launching a new communications campaign to strengthen public trust in its technology-driven national projects, beginning with the rollout of the digital identification (ID) cards.
He acknowledged that some Barbadians remained apprehensive about the digital ID initiative, a sentiment he said was typical with most new technology-based products. However, the minister assured citizens that the digital ID cards are a secure, advanced, and efficient means of verifying identity while enabling a wide range of seamless digital services.
Reid emphasized that it was “fundamental to build an advanced system of trust. That’s the only way digital identification and the digital economy is going to work.”
He reminded delegates that the old, laminated identification cards – introduced nearly 50 years ago –are now outdated, easily forged, and inadequate for today’s demands.
Noting that the original cards were designed four decades ago primarily for voter registration, he said the new digital IDs can do much more.
Still, he acknowledged, “you have a lack of trust” and “you have issues [with] whether what is being told to you is the truth.”
To address this, the ministry will, in the coming months, roll out a nationwide communications campaign to explain clearly and simply how the digital ID system benefits Barbadians and enhances convenience in everyday life.
Reid underscored that participation would remain voluntary.
“You can choose. And that’s fundamentally the message that we want to be bringing to the country over the next few months, that it’s just a simple thing of verifying who you are, what you have, what you own, what’s your responsibilities, what are your opportunities. . . That’s all. And it’s a place that can store those things, whether it’s on your phone, whether it’s a card, whether it’s a website,” he outlined.
Reid noted that significant investment in cybersecurity will be essential to underpin the government’s expanding use of digital platforms.
He also expressed confidence in Barbados’ ability to respond effectively to the complexities of digital transformation, drawing lessons from Singapore’s approach to industrialisation and innovation.
“One of the things I think they do astronomically well is the idea of building an industry, looking at new industries, but also leveraging the previous industries that they’ve done well in that category . . . and bringing that into the future categories of the economy,” Reid said. (PR/SC)
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