Above: St Lucia (CJ Photo)

By the Caribbean Journal staff

The government of Taiwan will be providing island-wide Wi-Fi hotspots around the island of St Lucia, the government said this week.

The project has already been approved, and will be implemented in 2015, according to a statement from the government of St Lucia.

The move is part of a wider tech push for the island, which also this week announced the construction of a pair of new information and communication technology access centres.

The two centres have broken ground in Micoud and Vieux Ford, with each set to serve as a central access hub for providing Internet and other ICT services.

The cost of the two centres will be around $407,407 USD, according to a government statement.

Dr Gale Rigobert, the member of Parliament for Micoud, said the centres would serve several purposes, including as an off-site classroom for a nearby high school.

Funding for the two centres was provided by the government of Taiwan.

“It is my firm belief that through our joint efforts we can make more meaningful achievements which will benefit the people and strengthen the ties between our two countries,” said Taiwan Ambassador to St Lucia James Chang.

The Micoud and Vieux-Fort facilities are expected to open in April and June, respectively.