NIGHT OWL When I met with Poland’s Chargé d’Affaires Jarosław Szczepankiewicz early this year, we talked about possible areas of digital cooperation between the Philippines and Poland. In the 2022 edition of the Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI), Poland ranks 24th of 27 European Union...
NIGHT OWL Digitalization is an integral component of realizing a nations’ sustainable development agenda. In the United Kingdom, the government has launched a digital strategy that it sees as vital to achieving its ambitious priorities of decarbonizing its economy to net zero by 2050, as well as...
NIGHT OWL There’s no arguing that the Covid-19 pandemic gave much emphasis to the need for digital transformation. A lot of nations have set out their digitalization plans based on the challenges and opportunities that emerged during that period of our history. Ireland, for instance, launched its...
NIGHT OWL It gives us much pride when the Filipino talent is recognized on a global stage. But our support for culture and the arts, and the creative industry as a whole, should not be limited to our praises and applauses. In fact, the World Economic Forum (WEF) says that cultural...
NIGHT OWL In its Creative Economy Outlook 2022, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) said that the creative economy offers a feasible development option to all countries, particularly developing economies. A creative economy, according to UNCTAD, “builds on the...
Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) Undersecretary Anna Mae Yu Lamentillo announced the "Night Owl: A Nationbuilder's Manual" book will soon be released in Ilokano, Bisaya, and Hiligaynon translated versions. Photo credit to Anna Mae Yu Lamentillo/ Manila...
"Night Owl: A Nationbuilder's Manual," a book about the "Build, Build, Build" Program of the government authored by Anna Mae Yu Lamentillo, is now part of the library collection of several Ivy League universities and other international libraries. Lamentillo, Undersecretary for Public Affairs and...
NIGHT OWL The United States of America (USA) is a global leader in digitalization. It has been on top of the IMD’s World Digital Competitiveness Rankings since 2017. Although the US went down to second place in the 2022 rankings, it only revealed more opportunities for development and...
NIGHT OWL The world’s third largest economy, Japan, is known for being a global leader in the robotics industry. The use of both industrial and service robots has also been beneficial to the country’s ageing population. But despite the high-tech image of Japan, the pandemic revealed the...
NIGHT OWL The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is harnessing the benefits of blockchain technology in improving governance and the delivery of public services. In 2020, the UAE government launched a blockchain-powered medical platform to improve the efficiency of its Ministry of Health and Prevention...
NIGHT OWL Portugal is one of the countries who has invested early on digital transformation and sustained it over the years to be among the world’s leaders in digitalization. It is a member of Digital Nations, a group of leading digital governments — whose founding members include Estonia,...
NIGHT OWL In 2022, the government of Austria launched its digital driver’s license. Called the mobile driving license (mDLs), Austrian citizens can now access their driver’s license through their smartphones after registering for the digital ID. Eventually, the Austrian federal government hopes...
