By Patrick Garcia and Aaron Homer Dioquino
Several mayors in the National Capital Region (NCR) discussed in a forum on Thursday, Feb. 23, technological advancements and sustainability practices aimed at improving the lives of citizens and promoting a cleaner and better future for next generations.
Makati City Mayor Abby Binay, Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte, and Valenzuela City Mayor Wes Gatchalian attended the Liveable Cities Lab 2023 spearheaded by Liveable Cities Philippines in partnership with League of Cities of the Philippines and Globe Telecom.
Bacolod City Mayor Albie Benitez, Celeste Dy-Donato of Geodata Systems Technologies, Inc. and Engr. Gerhard Tan of Globe Telecom also graced the said forum.
"As the country faces a number of challenges related to urbanization and economic development, intelligent cities will become increasingly important in the Philippines. Technology and Innovation will play a critical role in addressing challenges in urban management and sustainable economic growth in all our cities. By using technology to improve various aspects of urban life, intelligent cities can enhance livability, workability, and sustainability for their residents," Liveable Cities said.
"For these reasons, we have decided to devote all our Liveable Cities Labs this year to the rise of intelligent cities in the Philippines. Through our scheduled series of 9 Labs and at least 3 LocalLabs, we will be exploring different ways of building more intelligent systems for our cities - from Mobility to Public Health, Resilience, GovTech, and other aspects of modern urban management," it added.
Makati City
Aside from showcasing Makati's sustainability innovations and technological improvements in healthcare, connectivity, and transportation, Binay said the city government will also launch the digitalization of the city's Makatizen Card to its citizens to further help them access their data conveniently even without the need of their physical cards.
The Makatizen Card was created in 2017 through the partnership of the city government and Globe Telecom’s subsidiary G-Xchange, Inc. (GXI), and iBayad Online Ventures Inc. to provide residents with a multipurpose ID that functions as a valid government ID and ATM card.
The card is linked to a GCash mobile wallet number that allows users to purchase goods, send or receive money, and pay bills on-the-go.
During the height of the pandemic, the city government and Globe Telecom used the Makatizen Card to create contactless solutions to efficiently disburse P2.7 billion in economic aid to its more than 500,000 residents, making it the first city in the country to implement the cashless distribution of financial assistance through a mobile wallet.
The partnership provided a digital disbursement facility for the expanded Makatizen Economic Relief Program which provided relief to city residents affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Instead of manually disbursing the financial aid through city hall employees or through physical disbursement facilities, the LGU used the GCash platform to efficiently and safely provide aid to its constituents. This reduced the risk of transmission of the disease, as it limits physical contact among people.
Through the said feature, the city released P364 million to over 72,000 residents in just one day since its implementation.
"Coming March, we are planning to transform the Makatizen card into a virtual card by going digital. The Makatizen card will soon be conveniently accesses through a smart phone or any internet-enabled device, making it easier for residents to access government services and programs," Binay said.
The mayor explained that the move will not just streamline the government's processes in providing fast and efficient public services to its residents but also to ensure transparency of government transactions and prevent corruption in the city government.
The launching of the card's digital version will also make detecting users who abuse the card's functions much easier.
Binay said Makatizen Card holders can learn how to download the digital version of the card via online and on social media services such as TikTok.
She added that Makatizen Lingkod Bayan Caravans will be deployed in each barangay in the city for the information dissemination of the system to its residents.
Quezon City
Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte shared that she prioritizes preventing corruption when doing transactions with the city government departments as they launch initiatives utilizing technology to provide better services to the residents.
"I would like to make sure that all of the money that should go to the city must go to the city because it should go to the people so that the lives can improve," Belmonte said.
With this, the mayor said that they automated different services in city government departments, which also led to positive results including better local revenue generation, lesser requirements and processing time for residents, and high levels of client satisfaction.
The mayor showcased the QC e-Services Portal that digitalized almost 100 percent of the city's frontline or social services such as business permit renewal tax payment, application for scholarships, occupational permits, birth registration, financial assistance, Covid-19 vaccinations, among others.
The platform aims to organize and streamline the government processes, making it faster and more efficient. It reduces red tape in dealing with the local government. It can be accessed through: https://qceservices.quezoncity.gov.ph/
"Intelligent cities are often associated with words like data,
inter-connectivity, technology, and digitalization. I will not
disagree. However, it is important to stress that intelligent cities
are first and foremost about people, specifically about improving
their lives in the most efficient possible way," the mayor said.
Belmonte said that 74 QC e-Services kiosks manned by trained personnel were placed in different parts of the city to assist the citizens.
Meanwhile, Belmonte also said that about one million out of the three million population of the city have already applied for the "QCitizen ID (identification card)."
The identification cards, launched in 2021, are equipped with quick response codes and unique numbers which allows the local government to track, and ensure better and right allocation of services to the citizens.
Innovations for peace and order, disaster response, education, climate change and food security, violence against woman and children, and communication were also presented by the mayor during the event.
Belmonte said the city governmental also conducted about 209 caravans in different areas in the city since July 2022, providing access for around 249,000 citizens to medical and dental services, pet vaccination, scholarship and housing applications.
Valenzuela City
Valenzuela City Mayor Weslie "Wes" Gatchalian shared that the city government will be launching more features of it recent innovation for social services called the "DotBot."
DotBot, the first artificial intelligence (AI)-powered social service platform in the Philippines launched last Tuesday, Feb. 21, assists residents for various City Social Welfare and Development Department (CSWDO) services (including burial and medical assistance, transportation, and application of certificate of indigency) through Facebook Messenger.
The mayor said that through the system, they aim to provide convenience for their clients, decongest the city hall or shorten the queues of applicants, and educate the people on the requirements of the services they will avail.
Gatchalian added that the platform is currently in its first phase and only answers inquiries of the city residents about the requirements and the locations where they can apply for the assistance they needed.
Aside from City Hall, residents can also apply for the assistance in 27 Sentro ng Sama-samang Serbisyo (3S) satellite offices after they inquired regarding the documentary requirements using DotBot.
The mayor said they are expecting around 5,000 clients monthly to benefit from the system.
He added that the second phase of the DotBot, which is set to be launched by the end of this year, will let residents upload their documentary requirements online; allow social workers to conduct validation and quickly advise clients on their eligibility for the services; and create an online database for the documents of the clients.
According to the mayor, the third phase of the system, which will be launched in 2024, will enable electronic disbursement of various assistance through e-wallets such GCash and Paymaya.
They are also planning to explore the possible migration or inclusion of the system to other communication application (e.g. Viber and Whatsapp) to expand its coverage of service.
He said that the city will still conduct manual disbursement for those who don't have access to technology, as well as house-to-house disbursements for senior citizens and persons with disabilities.
Gatchalian said the city government is already utilizing technology in providing services to residents for years and presented some of their digitalized platforms for education, business permit/tax payment renewal and Covid-19 contact tracing.
"My administration aims to make the city of Valenzuela known not only as an industrial city but as a livable city with the purpose of giving Valenzuelanos a comfortable life for their families," the mayor said.