Dear Editor,
The year is 2077. The last traffic jam that occurred in Georgetown, Guyana was recorded in September 2029. The last blackout recorded in June 2039. The last water disruption happened in August 2045. The streets are free of litter and robberies targeting pedestrians have not occurred in decades. The power to engineer this change resided with the many public servants that toiled diligently in control rooms throughout the country, endlessly capturing and processing data about our vehicular traffic activity, pedestrian walking preferences, residential dwelling patterns and yes even criminal activity. Incrementally over the years, this data capture and processing allowed Government ministries and the Police Force to become more efficient at their jobs all while reducing costs and increasing the employment of skilled University of Guyana graduates. Naturally there were skeptics in the beginning, and some occasional misunderstanding. Some folks were under the impression that any and all cameras positioned throughout the city were glorified security cameras with a Police officer on the other end 24/7. The reality though was that the cameras were capable of some level of Security provision, but were in fact being put to much better use in the long term by being used as tools for data capture and analysis on a level that Guyana had never utilized before. Combined with the other components of the Guyana National Broadband Initiative it was possible to prevent some types of crime from ever happening in the first place in addition to resolving traffic congestion, predicting power and water outages and reducing the time taken for response and repairs, offering much needed layers of protection to vulnerable pedestrians like school aged children, the elderly and much more.
To some readers, the preceding words may seem unrealistic but to those that spend any amount of time on the internet to have a look at Smart Cities throughout the world it is clear that “Georgetown, the Smart City” could and should be the reality. Technology will never cease to improve, and in extension of this could never cease to make our lives better with each update. The Guyana National Broadband Project’s hardware and software is currently being put into place throughout Georgetown and Guyana, but that is only the easiest part. What will be the true challenge is how fast and how well its operators, we the Guyanese people can use it to improve our lives. It is my hope that the Public Servants who are tasked with capturing, processing and finally generating policies and solutions to problems using data generated by the Smart City Initiative are responsible, perceptive and visionary. The tools being put into their hands are incredibly powerful ones indeed. I believe that utilizing these tools correctly could put Guyana on a path of improvement that could be described as miraculous.
Many Guyanese have traveled overseas for work, study or pleasure and those that have not have heard accounts of cities compared to Georgetown being more secure, more comfortable and a pleasure to reside in. It is certain that those countries utilize data gathered from their own respective National Broadband Initiatives to achieve that level of security and comfort. Much has been said about the Smart City Initiative so far, In my personal experience traveling outside of Guyana, camera systems were present throughout roadways, subways and any public place that sees a lot of foot traffic like bus terminals. Using the data that is gathered over the years, improvements are made to these public places that result in ease of use, safety and cleanliness. The data is not only used to improve existing public spaces, but can also be used when constructing new public spaces. A beneficial domino effect happens here that I hope happens in Guyana also. With first oil on the way, it is my hope that Guyana’s cities and towns reach a level of development that could be compared to first world countries, but I think that the complete adaptation of the National Broadband Initiative’s tools needs to happen sooner rather than later so that the transition begins.
Personally, I believe that a key operator of the tools being put into place by the National Broadband Initiative will be the Guyana Police Force. It is no secret that the Police Force in Guyana is in critical need of upgrades to their current technology. From simple flashlights to advanced body and vehicle cameras connected to powerful databases, we could one day see a routine traffic stop enable a police officer to scan the motorist’s drivers licence and instantaneously know if this motorist has any outstanding tickets or warrants, if this motorist’s Insurance and registration is in order etc. We could also see the use of technology incorporated into tracking via licence plate recognition or real time video. It would make me sleep much more comfortably each night knowing that each errant bus driver that cut me off in traffic, or each reckless taxi driver that stopped suddenly in front of me would be penalized for their bad driving even if the eyes of a traffic police officer was upon them at the time of the incident. It is clear that traffic management in Guyana would be greatly improved by the use of this technology. For me, this would be a great improvement beyond the visual inspection my driver’s licence, documents and vehicle receive when I am stopped by a Traffic Officer. With the adaptation of Smart City technology in countries throughout the world, crime management techniques have also taken on a new process including deeper levels of analytics and use of statistics. Now it is our turn.
I congratulate Guyana for taking its initial steps towards the adaptation of Smart City technology and a brighter future. I look forward to one day living in a safe and secure Georgetown enhanced by the technology of the smart city initiative. Don’t you?
Yours faithfully,
Justin Gomes
University of Guyana International
Relations student.