The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) intends to deploy digital connectivity faster under the Marcos' administration's Build, Better More Program, DICT Secretary Ivan John Uy said.
Uy made this commitment during a press briefing Wednesday, July 27 at the Manila Hotel where Elon Musk's Starlink also made a presentation of their connectivity kit.. Starlink plans to operate a low-Earth orbit satellite system to deliver broadband internet connectivity in Geographically Isolated and Disadvantaged Areas (GIDA) in the country by the fourth quarter this year.
Uy noted that Starlink would be able to reach the remote areas in the country, providing connectivity to fishermen and farmers. Initially, he said, DICT will bankroll the Wi-Fi for the remote communities. He said that Starlink has yet to come up with its costing.
The Philippines will be the first country in Southeast Asia to offer Starlink's services, which are provided through advanced, low-orbit satellites. The Starlink service is available in more than 30 countries, mainly in North America and Europe. The satellite service will have Speeds between 100 to 200 Megabits per second (Mbps).
First on its Build, Better More Program is DICT's "BroadBand ng Masa" where the agency works with Facebook and Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) to complete the Luzon Bypass Infrastructure Project.
The 240-kilometer fiber corridor connects the archipelago's western and eastern modular information technology facilities.
Once operational, the project's two cable landing stations located in Baler and Poro Point will increase the total government capacity to 2,000,000 Mbps.
This is 50 times the current government capacity of 40,000 Mbps.
Where laying fiber cables is difficult, the department expects Starlink broadband's service can fill the gaps.
Bataan Governor Jose Enrique “Joet” Garcia, who was also present at the DICT-Starlink press conference, told Manila Bulletin they are positioning to be among the first provinces to avail of the Starlink services.
Garcia said that Starlink would be useful as alternative internet service provider not just for the locators of the Freeport Area of Bataan, but also to the remote areas in the province.
The DICT is also gearing up for President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s order to prepare the country for the Fourth Industrial Revolution under the National Artificial Intelligence Strategy.
DICT's Stimulating the growth of Emerging Technologies in the Philippines (SET PH) explores Emerging Technologies to develop an enabling ecosystem to sustain the growth of the industry, according to Secretary Uy.
Already, the department has initiated Tech Trends, a self-development program to provide Filipinos with skills and know-how for jobs in ICT.
The program covers data analytics, AI, and blockchain technology.
On top of these, e-governance is vital to digital transformation, DICT Secretary Uy underscored.
"We need to harmonize information from different government agencies. The standard of operations should be the same. We have to synchronize our data base," he explained.
Hence, the DICT continues collaborating with other state offices to strengthen interoperability via the National Government Portal.
This single website for all public information and transactions can make government frontline services citizen-friendly, reduce queues and lessen, if not eliminate, opportunities for corruption.
To empower and upskill every Filipino in a digitalized DICT likewise offers training programs, such as the digital jobsPH and Tech4ED.
“We need to build up our digital workforce," Uy stressed.
"Schools are producing skillsets that are not aligned with the demands of the industry."
"Business Process Outsourcing alone is a $29 Million sector for 2021 but our challenge is the lack of skill and talented manpower," he noted.
For this reason, "We will work with the education sector to match the skills and demands of the employers.”