Task Force directed to produce Cabinet-ready policy recommendation within two weeks as Government moves to protect national data and build responsible AI competence across the public service
Dr. the Honourable Andrew Wheatley, MP, JP, Minister without Portfolio in the Office of the Prime Minister with Responsibility for Science, Technology and Special Projects, has formally directed the National Artificial Intelligence Task Force to provide an urgent policy recommendation for Cabinet on the immediate advancement of AI Literacy across the Government of Jamaica. The Task Force has been given two weeks to respond.
A Matter of National Urgency
The directive follows the Minister’s assessment that AI adoption across Ministries, Departments and Agencies is already underway, and in some instances ahead of the safeguards needed to govern it responsibly.
Minister Wheatley stated that “It has become increasingly clear that a number of government entities have already begun to use, experiment with, or otherwise engage artificial intelligence technologies in the execution of their functions,” adding that this “raises serious concerns, particularly where such use may be taking place in advance of the necessary policy, governance, risk management, accountability, and operational guardrails required for the responsible use of AI in the public sector.”
A Structured AI Literacy Push, Led by Government
In response, Minister Wheatley has called for an immediate, government-led initiative to build AI awareness, competence, and responsibility across the public service, framing it as far more than a technical training exercise.
The Minister directed that the initiative “Must not be limited to technical training alone,” stating that “It must begin with a practical, policy-grounded understanding of what AI is, how it is being used, what the risks are, where the boundaries should lie, and what standards of responsibility, transparency, privacy, security, human oversight, and data sovereignty should govern its use in the public service.”
The Task Force has been asked to recommend minimum core content covering: basic AI concepts; practical uses in government; risks and limitations of AI systems; privacy, data protection, cybersecurity, ethics, bias, and accountability; data governance and sovereignty; human oversight and decision-making responsibility; and appropriate versus inappropriate AI use in the public sector. It must also propose interim governance measures for MDAs pending the completion of the broader National AI Policy and advise on the institutional delivery model, including the potential role of the Management Institute for National Development (MIND) as the principal training entity.
The Task Force has been directed to consult with the Jamaica ICT Authority, whose input, Minister Wheatley noted, “will be essential to ensuring that any proposed AI Literacy programme, interim governance measures, and related policy actions are aligned with the Government’s wider ICT governance, digital transformation, and technology oversight responsibilities.”
Government Must Lead by Example
Minister Wheatley emphasised that the Government must model the responsible AI conduct it expects of the public service, calling on the Task Force to account for “the urgent need for Government to lead by example in the responsible use of AI, and to ensure that public officers are properly equipped before AI use becomes more widespread and uneven across the government.”
About the National AI Task Force
The National Artificial Intelligence Task Force was established under the Office of the Prime Minister in 2023, chaired by Mr. Christopher Reckord, with a mandate to provide evidence-based recommendations for Jamaica’s National AI Policy. Its National AI Policy Recommendations Report (September 2024), spanning nine policy areas including Education and Workforce Development and Public Awareness and Sensitization, identified AI literacy as a foundational national priority. The Task Force subsequently led Jamaica’s completion of the UNESCO AI Readiness Assessment (2025), positioning the country among the first in the Caribbean to undertake the process. It is currently working toward the drafting of Jamaica’s first National AI Policy and the analysis of the legislative framework required to support responsible AI development and deployment.
