Liberty Caribbean is promising to take mobile connectivity for the average Barbadian, the business community and wider economy to the next level, as it officially makes Barbados’ first 5G mobile network available via Flow and Liberty Business from today.
In doing so, the company is not only the first telecommunications provider to usher in the next generation of mobile connectivity on the island, but it has made Barbados the second Caribbean market after the Cayman Islands to experience what Liberty Caribbean’s senior director and head of communications Marilyn Sealy called “transformative capability”.
This sentiment was shared by Desron Bynoe, vice-president and general manager, Flow Barbados, who said 5G’s introduction to this market was “a capability that will change how we learn, work, care for one another and compete in the global economy”.
The two senior officials were speaking yesterday at Flow’s Customer Experience Centre at Windsor Lodge, St Michael, as team members, key partners, customers and invited guests celebrated the commercial launch of 5G+.
Bynoe, who viewed the event as a turning point in Barbados’ digital story, announced that “this initial rollout of 5G+ connects 22 high-impact sites across the island, and we have deliberately planned the phased rollout to prioritise locations where the technology will deliver immediate, visible benefit for people and places.
“We also have a clear objective: to reach at least 50 per cent population coverage by year-end and to press forward with the work necessary to deliver full island coverage by the end of 2026. Those targets are ambitious, but ambition is appropriate for an island that has always punched above its weight,” he said.
“At its core, 5G+ is more than a generational upgrade in speed or a technical specification. It is infrastructure for possibility. Faster download speeds and lower latency translate to real improvements in everyday life.”
Bynoe also stressed that beyond everyday convenience, 5G+ was “an engine for economic transformation”.
“It strengthens Barbados’ competitiveness and signals to investors, to talent and to innovators that this is a country serious about digital opportunity,” he said.
“From refined tourism experiences that blend the physical and virtual, to smarter public services that improve the speed and quality of Government interaction, to advanced industrial applications that create new value chains, 5G+ is a platform that unlocks possibilities we have only begun
to imagine.”
Its availability was just the foundation, Bynoe noted, as “the real work is how we translate capability into inclusive opportunity”.
He said in this regard, Flow and Liberty Business would be providing “practical support for customers: device guidance, plan options, in-store demonstrations and education so everyone can understand the benefits and make informed choices”.
The plan now is to “continue the phased expansion of the network, prioritising locations where 5G+
can deliver the most social and economic value”.
Bynoe also said that 5G’s impact would be measured by “not just megabits per second, but the difference this makes to people’s lives, livelihoods and opportunities”.
Sealy said 5G+ was about more than speed, describing it as an infrastructure of possibility that “enables richer learning environments, more resilient health services, smarter infrastructure and new economic pathways.
“But technology only fulfils its promise when it is deployed with clear purpose, secured responsibly and made accessible to everyone it is meant to serve,” she said.
“That is why Liberty Caribbean’s approach goes beyond network capacity. Our rollout is intentional and phased: we have prioritised high-impact sites where 5G+ can deliver immediate benefit, and we have set clear targets to expand access quickly and responsibly.
“Our aim is to achieve significant population coverage by year-end and to press forward toward comprehensive island coverage. These targets are ambitious because the opportunity before us is vast – and because Barbados has always shown the resolve to lead.”
Liberty Caribbean will ultimately launch 5G+ in neighbouring islands and Sealy invited regional government and private sector partners to help “convert capability into impact”.
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