The Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (CEZA) and the NOW Group just signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) supporting the government's vision of "Digital Philippines”.
Under the initiative, NOW Corp and NOW Telecom are designing a Communications Critical Infrastructure for CEZA.
They will provision fixed wired, fixed wireless, terrestrial, satellite, and other ICT services for economic zone locators and the province of Cagayan.
"This complements our efforts to develop CEZA as a critical hub of economic activity and technological progress, not just for northern Luzon, but for the entire country as well," CEZA Administrator Secretary Katrina Ponce Enrile stated.
Notably, CEZA's competitive advantages are its strategic positioning and critical infrastructure.
The economic zone is close to two Philippine-American military bases, integral to the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) between the United States and the Philippines.
In addition, its proximity to Taiwan positions CEZA as a potential extension for Taiwan's industrial zones, underscoring its commercial and strategic reach.
By tapping NOW, a US Government partner, CEZA aims to ensure a secure information infrastructure to serve the Ecozone.
“Our partnership with CEZA supports the current administration’s Digital Philippines," according to Mel V. Velarde, Chairman of the NOW Group.
"We prioritize reducing the digital divide region by region," he elaborated. "Our strategic intent is to leverage the power of technology and telecom, presenting a growth potential that can captivate international investors and locators."
Earlier, US Vice-President Kamala Harris recognized NOW as its partner for the deployment of a secure 5G mobile network and NBN.
The United States Government, acting through the US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) provided a grant to the local telco.
The Project of NOW with the US Government supports the Partnership for Global Infrastructure Investment (PGII), further underscoring the United States’ commitment to a free and secure Indo-Pacific region.
"Initiatives like this reaffirm the positive trajectory of the Philippines' digital revolution," added Enrile. "We look forward to a bright future in continued collaboration with the private sector.”