Privacy
Privacy is a fundamental human right that is recognized in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and in countless other international and regional treaties. Privacy is a fundamental concept that is based on other values such as freedom of association and freedom of speech. 
Most countries recognizes a right of privacy in their constitution. At the very least, most constitutions provide provisions for the protection of personal rights, such as the  rights of inviolability of the home and privacy of communications. Most countries, are moving towards adopting privacy laws that protect the individual.   Most of these laws are based on the models introduced by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and the Council of Europe. (2)   St. Vincent and the Grenadines has such laws in its constitution. 

Intellectual Property
With the ever-increasing value of information and its important role in the development of the world's economies, coupled with the ubiquitousness of technology and the advent of globalization, the role of intellectual property rights (IPR) has taken on new importance.  In this area, developing economies are facing many challenges and the Eastern Caribbean is no different.   Not only do these islands need to look at the issue of IPR from a national perspective , but as well from an international obligation perspective with respect to TRIPS, Trade Related Intellectual Property. 
IPR protect ideas and information of a commercial value.  In today's ever-changing technological world, protecting commercially viable ideas is imperative for business success. 

SVG has the following national legislation (regulations and administrative decrees) with respect to Intellectual Property Rights:

• Registration of UK Patents (Amendment) Ordinance 1956
• The Patents Act, June 1898;  Patent Rules, 1925
• Trademarks: Ordinance N. 5 of 1940, effective September 3, 1940
• The Copyright Act, 1989 (3)

• challenges and opportunities of electronic commerce
• impact of eCommerce on the IPR system
• the protection of copyright and the role of WIPO treaties in the digital media
• the domain name system and intellectual property issues (4)

Implications of protecting IPR
Countries which protect IPR should find it easier to attract foreign direct investment to help stimulate the much need growth of their economies, which will also  help the social advancement of the country.  When a country adopts a legal system to protect IPR it is sending a message that it will protect information of commercial value within its jurisdiction.  Trademark protection also vital to investor confidence and a system needs to be developed in this region to inspire investor confidence.
However, given intangible nature of IPR,  an educational effort must be undertaken to sensitive citizens to the value of IPR in the development of their countries.  This effort needs to be a collaboration of government, private sector, individuals and technical assistance agencies. 
On a national level, trade in services must be elevated to the same level as trade in goods, in terms of interest and concern.  At present, there are no legal sanctions to combat piracy and violation of IPR.  The laws exist as seen above, however, they do not seem to be enforced and this could be because of a number of reasons such as the unavailability of resources to combat infringements.  This points to the need for development of human and institutional resources. 

Data Protection 
Although the countries of the Eastern Caribbean have not made any formalized laws regarding data protection and the transfer of data flow, it seems that the countries of the Eastern Caribbean may take a stance on the issue similar to that of the US.  Although these countries generally tend to follow Europe because of their historical connection, this time things may be different.  In an article written by the Caribbean Association of Industry and Commerce,  the private sector representatives for the Caribbean region, it was stated that  "the free flow of information across country borders is essential to trade and eCommerce."  Furthermore, they support the idea similar to the United States to leave the solution in the hands of the private sector, "with government oversight and regulation only as a last resort".  (5)

Freedom of Information
 St. Vincent and the Grenadines, one of Commonwealth Caribbean states, grants protection to freedom of expression, including freedom of the press, in Article 12 of its Constitution. Freedom of expression includes the "freedom to receive ideas and information without interference," and
"freedom to communicate ideas and information without interference (whether the communication be to the public generally or to any person or class of persons)." The full text of Article 10 of the Constitution of 1979 reads: 

                                1.Except with his own consent, a person shall not be hindered in the enjoyment
                                 of his freedom of expression, including freedom to hold opinions without
                                 interference; freedom to receive ideas and information without interference;
                                 freedom to communicate ideas and information without interference (whether
                                 the communication be to the public generally or to any person or class of
                                 persons); and freedom from interference with his correspondence. 

However, although the constitution guarantees this right, it seems that in practice the situation was otherwise. There have been  a combination of various statutory provisions which actually have curtailed the freedom of expression. There are controls on the importation of newsprint and printing equipment, requirements for the lodging of substantial bonds to cover possible awards of damages in libel actions, interpretations of defamation laws inherited from colonial times, the sub judice rule, and Official Secrets Acts. It seems that these factors have contributed to a certain level of censorship in the SVG's media.  Furthermore, both  St. Lucia and SVG have been cited as examples of countries where legislation and official decrees can seriously impair freedom of expression. (6)
As part of this study done by Transparency International on the access to information in developing countries, a questionnaire was circulated to approximately half the countries listed as "developing" by the UNDP. The countries were selected either because they were subjects of the most recent Human Rights Watch report, or because other specific information about them had been discovered in the research. A completed questionnaire was received promptly from St. Vincent and the Grenadines.  Despite the wording of its Constitution, the official view is that the guarantee of freedom of expression does not include a right of access to information. Some type of information can be accessed; however, the government's private and confidential information cannot be accessed. (7)

Conclusion
It is evident that SVG needs to address the issues of IPR and the lack of enforcement of already existing regulations to protect intellectual property.  Furthermore, as suggested to me by the Ministry of Communication and Works,  SVG  intends to develop an  information policy which would include informatics and telematics and address issues such as guidelines for the use of information, information ownership, the role and responsibility of the Government in facilitating access, and confidentiality of public sector information. Adoption of supportive national  telecommunication policies, currently in the works in these two countries, are a clear indication of the increasing awareness of the impact of information technology  resources in this developing region. This issue also has a direct implication for the sustainability of the activities of the current OECS project relating to informatics as well as the ability to attract foreign investment in the IT industry.