Filipinos are looking forward to interacting more with their government digitally and more can be done to ensure the digital experiences of citizens match up to the expectations they have of the public sector, according to VMware, Inc.. According to the new VMware Digital Frontiers 3.0 Study, close to half of Filipinos (46%) are happy to keep interacting with the Government digitally, putting them ahead of other Southeast Asian counterparts surveyed – Malaysia (45%), Indonesia (29%) and Thailand (30%), but slightly behind Singapore (60%). Yet 43% of Filipinos have indicated that the Government has failed to adapt and improve services to the changing market, suggesting room for improvement for government agencies in the Philippines to deliver cutting-edge digital experiences, seamlessly and securely.
The study also revealed key digital opportunities for the Philippines’ public sector with half of respondents (50%) trusting the government to use algorithms for their interests. Furthermore, Filipinos are increasingly open to the embrace of technologies of the future, particularly around including facial recognition (78%), artificial intelligence (75%) and 5G (85%). With greater experimentation and innovation from the public sector, the Philippines is set to advance towards an increasingly digital future on the back of a progressive and future-forward consumer base.
With 77% of Filipino consumers defining themselves as “digitally curious” or “digital explorers”, a significant proportion of the Philippines’ residents are embracing digital services and expect the Government to improve their digital citizen experiences through innovative products and services. While only 34% of respondents find that the public sector has delivered an improved overall experience, 36% of Filipinos expressed that they are excited for the Government’s digital services. This signals a positive step forward in the Digital Philippines initiative as more citizens are integrating digital technologies as part of their everyday lives.
On the important topic of trust, 41% agree that the public sector has given them assurance that their data and information is secure. Almost one in two Filipinos (48%) are comfortable and excited for the government to access completely accurate data about their daily lives (i.e. spending habits, nutrition and diet, health and location) to better offer digital services to them.
“There are immense opportunities to unlock as we continue moving towards our Digital Philippines vision, and I think these are reflected in growing embrace of technologies of the future that include facial recognition, artificial intelligence and 5G,” said Walter So, Country Manager, VMware Philippines. “As we move towards an increasingly digitalized society and economy, it is imperative for the Philippine Government to enable connectivity and improve citizen engagements by harness next-generation technologies to deliver services seamlessly across platforms, devices and geographical locations to Filipinos.”
Being more open to embracing digital services, Filipinos are the most independent when it comes to improving digital literacy with 67% of respondents believing that it is their responsibility to increase their personal digital literacy levels. This puts the country well ahead of Southeast Asia (averaging 61%). Filipinos see the public sector playing an important role in bridging the digital divide in the country as well with 42% of respondents also believing that it is the Philippine Government’s responsibility and at least one-third of respondents (37%) trust the Government in increasing their personal digital literacy levels. This highlights the need for greater public efforts to continue educating and strengthening the digital literacy of Filipinos, and the local government agencies have responded with new initiatives that will support its Philippine Digital Transformation Strategy 2022 and transition to e-governance to improve the delivery of services and experiences for its digital citizens.
Technology strengthens Asia’s COVID readiness with greater digital transformation outcomes to accelerate economic growth and recovery
In a fast-changing business environment, governments in the region have showcased the value technology brings to enable a connected and innovative ecosystem. While organizations were focused on responding and adapting to the pandemic to ensure business continuity in 2020, 2021 marks a turning point with innovation becoming a priority for future-ready organizations looking to accelerate their growth.
A wholistic approach that enables organizations to deliver superior digital experiences across any cloud, any application and any device, in a seamless and secure manner, will become a critical success factor in Asia’s rapidly digitalizing business environment. Progressing into 2021, VMware outlines key priorities that can further strengthen Asia’s transformation into a more resilient, inclusive and innovation-led economy:
- Empowering governments to build a multi-cloud and app future: Unlocking multi-cloud future with app-driven innovations for greater agility in a consistent and more secure environment that enables continuous innovation
- Enabling innovation and productivity for a distributed workforce: Future-ready workforce solutions will enable a seamless and more secure digital employee experience, driving greater outcomes in the new world of work
- Intrinsic security for uninterrupted innovation: An intrinsic approach to enterprise security will provide an additional layer of robust protection for mission-critical operations and infrastructures to fast-track business innovation and resilience
“As the Philippines gears up for recovery and growth in the coming year, bridging the digital divide within the country will be key and the Government plays a critical role in enhancing the digital literacy levels for Filipinos as well as laying the digital foundation for businesses,” added So.
“VMware will continue to be a trusted partner and enabler in helping public and private organizations better respond, adapt and accelerate their businesses by harnessing key cloud and app modernization technologies as they navigate through uncertainties in today’s digital-first environment.”