Rock Connect gets technical aid from IFC

Rock Connect, a new mobile provider led by former banker Bruce Bowen, will be provided with technical assistance and commercial advisory support by the IFC, for the buildout of internet services in rural communities.

The company won the bid last year to supply 200 rural communities with broadband internet access on behalf of the Jamaican Government.

“Connectivity is important for business and life generally,” said Executive Chairman of Rock Connect Bruce Bowen on a conference call on Tuesday. “Today marks a milestone, not only for Rock Connect in seeking to close the connectivity gap in Jamaica, but also a milestone for Jamaica, because of the support of a quality institution like the IFC,” he said.

IFC is the private-sector financing arm of the World Bank, and has done business with regional companies over many years, including loans last year to at least two Jamaican firms.

The aid to Rock will assist with the rollout of its network.

“Our landmark agreement with IFC provides technical and commercial advisory support. As we build out Jamaica’s most advanced wireless broadband internet network, Rock is able to leverage IFC’s extensive global expertise in the telecoms sector,” said Bowen.

CONNECTIVITY GAP

Last October, Bowen said Rock Connect and lending partners would invest US$90 million in its buildout and operations over the next few years. Before that, he said, Rock intends to double internet penetration, which, for high-speed connectivity, currently stands at around 60 per cent of the population. The company joins a market dominated by Digicel Jamaica and Flow Jamaica.

Bowen, a Canadian who has made Jamaica his home, said on Tuesday that the connectivity gap continues to negatively impact the society.

“It continues to amaze me, having lived around the region for 20 years, that Jamaica lags every other country in the region in internet connectivity,” he said. “The connectivity gap impacts the lives of hundreds of thousands of Jamaicans, who are not able to get online for personal and business reasons.”

IFC Country Manager for the Caribbean, Judith Green, said on the conference call that over the past two years, the pandemic has increased the reliance on broadband; and that, ultimately, the partnership with Rock Connect will result in the expansion of the economy and bring an improved quality of life for Jamaicans.

“We have witnessed how technology has taken centre stage in our daily lives. It has allowed us to stay safe while working from home. But many do not have this option,” said Green. “From the beginning, the IFC identified with Rock Connect’s mission, and we recognise the potential and opportunity that this can bring to Jamaica’s development,” she said.

LACKLUSTER INTEREST

Bowen and his spouse, Suzanne Fernando-Bowen, set up Rock Connect in April 2019. The company successfully applied for radio frequency, or spectrum, for use in rural areas. The bid received lacklustre interest from Digicel and Flow, which already serve the bulk of internet users who are mainly spread across townships and other urban centres.

Rock Mobile, the operating company for Rock Connect, is held directly by Rock Capital Partners Limited, a company registered in Jamaica in June 2017 that the Bowens also own. Bruce and Suzanne were also the sole directors of both companies at the time.

Bowen came to Jamaica in 2008 to replace William ‘Bill’ Clarke as president of Scotiabank Jamaica. He ran the bank for five years, passing the baton to Jamaican Jacqueline Sharp in 2013.

Bowen subsequently took up a posting in Canada as head of Scotiabank Canada’s English-speaking Caribbean operations, but eventually cut ties with the banking group in 2016, and is now taking a stab at running a telecoms business. He and Fernando-Bowen continue to reside in Jamaica.

“I believe that Jamaica is at a pivotal point where connectivity is concerned,” Bowen said.

business@gleanerjm.com