Jamaica to miss Y2K deadline

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By Reuters

Special to CNET NEWS.COM

August 17, 1998, 5:40 a.m. PT

KINGSTON, Jamaica--Jamaica will not overcome its Year 2000 computer problems until 2004, with the private sector hardest hit by the delay in swatting the millennium bug, a government minister said yesterday.

Philip Paulwell, Minister of Commerce and Technology, said crucial government systems would meet the deadline. But the private sector, especially the financial services industry, would be hardest hit by the failure to correct date-recognition software before January 1, 2000.

"It will realistically not be fully dealt with until the year 2004 and this is the case for most countries. Jamaica is not alone," Paulwell said in a Radio Jamaica broadcast.

"The insurance industry and those date-related activities are areas where we are hoping that we won't have to close down businesses but will be able to put certain other things in place to alleviate some of the difficulties," Paulwell said.

Stopgap measures may include reverting to manual systems until the computer problem is corrected, he said.

Year 2000 computer problems stem from an old programming shortcut that used only the last two digits of the year and has resulted in many computers being unable to recognize the date change of the new century.

The minister sought to reassure Jamaicans that some key areas of daily life would be unaffected. Among them were central bank operations, which are already Year 2000-compliant, he said.

Airport operations and public utility companies were expected to be fully compliant by next year, Paulwell said.

Jamaica has budgeted $27.4 million to fight the millennium bug in the public sector.