More than 270 Jamaicans have been awarded Chevening Scholarships since Jamaica’s first cohort in 1984. Founded in 1983, Chevening is the United Kingdom Government’s global scholarship programme aimed at developing global leaders through providing the opportunity to undertake postgraduate study in the United Kingdom (UK).

This year, 17 outstanding Jamaicans were selected for the scholarship. Today the Jamaica Observer presents the second in its series of stories on some of the 2021-2022 awardees. 

IF 25-year-old software developer Keniel Peart has his way upon returning from the United Kingdom with a prestigious master’s degree, then artificial intelligence (AI) will play a major role in revolutionising the Jamaican health sector.

The University of Southampton bound youngster, who will read for an MSc, is particularly keen to use expertise gained in the UK to develop AI-powered tools and software, specifically to aid medical practitioners in the early diagnosis and treatment of diseases.

“I am particularly interested in finding treatment options for cancer, as it represents a high percentage of disease mortality in Jamaica,” Peart asserted.

Peart, who also doubles as scrum master at National Commercial Bank, was instrumental in revolutionising the bank’s credit journey for Jamaica’s first online mortgage portal and a centralised application portal, allowing customers to apply remotely for credit facilities.

He is furthering this achievement as a scrum master by supporting a cross-functional software development team to reimage lending to support the bank’s strategic objective of becoming a world-class financial ecosystem.

Outside of work, the youngster volunteers with the Royal Optimist Club of Kingston, tutors Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) and Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examinations (CAPE) students at his church, and tutors computer science courses at The University of the West Indies (UWI). He is also a fashion and portrait photographer and a signed model.

With a burning passion for medicine, Peart reiterated that the health sector was one of the most critical within any country and that like-minded technology-savvy youngsters have a key role to play in its evolution.

“With Jamaica being on the cusp of a digital boom, I believe it is imperative for young tech practitioners, like me, to help lead the charge of revitalising this sector, by leveraging technology,” he added.

Peart noted that studying in the UK would also present him with a unique opportunity to immerse further in the field, and build a wider network among like-minded professionals.

“Also as a photographer, I am intrigued by the country’s architecture and will definitely be using this opportunity to capture some of this beauty and culture, in order to share with my Jamaican/Caribbean audience,” declared Peart.