Antigua & Barbuda has been ranked last in the ITU’s Global Cybersecurity Index, raising concerns from the Director of Cybersecurity about the validity of the report’s findings.
Antigua and Barbuda is taking significant steps to strengthen its cybersecurity infrastructure, with plans to establish a national Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) later this year.
Minister of Information Communication Technologies, Melford Nicholas, revealed that a government-based CERT will be launched by September to oversee cybersecurity across departments.
Once operational, the government will expand efforts to include a national CERT covering statutory bodies and private firms, including telecoms.
“Cybersecurity is everybody’s business,” said Nicholas. “We’ve already experienced attacks, particularly in the gaming sector, that disrupted operations. But we have the leadership to move to the forefront of this issue.”
The announcement comes as Antigua and Barbuda hosts a two-day regional cybersecurity symposium for law enforcement, running from 8–9 July at the John E. St Luce Finance and Conference Centre.
Organised by the American Registry for Internet Numbers (ARIN) and the Caribbean Agency for Justice Solutions (CAJS), in collaboration with the Antiguan government, the symposium promotes cross-border cooperation, information sharing, and responses to emerging cyber threats.
Attorney General Steadroy Benjamin initiated Antigua and Barbuda’s involvement following a formal request from the organisers.