The 20-page draft, a copy of which was obtained by BusinessWorld, will be presented in a public forum to open today's 1st National ICT Summit which brings together public and private sector stakeholders of ICT. The road map is an attempt to "lay down the Philippine government's strategies and programs, and which would signal the country's resolve and commitment to developing a vibrant, accessible and world-class ICT sector."
CICT commissioner Emmanuel C. Lallana said the draft ICT road map is a strategy on how to develop this sector in the medium term, or from 2006- 2010.
In the forum workshop today, the road map will be "validated by the [ICT] community" to give the commission the confidence on the "general direction" the government is taking. Rather than just a piece of document, the road map will be a "live document" which the government will continue to update given "changing circumstances."
"What will evolve is a working agenda [for the CICT and the ICT sector] up to 2010," Mr. Lallana told BusinessWorld.
Major programs and projects along CICT's four strategic business units - e-governance, infrastructure, business development and human capital development - were mapped out in the draft.
Along the strategy of providing universal access to all, the road map is proposing a national broadband connectivity program, community e-centers and low-cost computing.
The plan states that, by 2010, key cities, municipalities and urbanized barangays should have broadband connectivity with the help of the private sector.
First, second, third and fourth class municipalities should also have broadband connectivity by then, but this task will be jointly undertaken by CICT and the private sector.
More than half, or 55% of rural barangays should have broadband connectivity by 2010, again through joint undertaking by CICT and the private sector.
Mr. Lallana said some of the projects in the road map will be undertaken with funding from other sources, such as the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Education Foundation, and the private sector. Some of the projects identified are those which other government agencies are now engaged in, like the training of mission-critical call center workers which the government had earlier announced.
Instead, CICT is proposing to develop other ICT skills, such as digital animation, competency skills for teachers and out-of-school youth.
On e-governance, the road map aims make government not only efficient in services delivery but also transparent and accountable, said Mr. Lallana.
Thus, there are plans to make public documents, like government contracts, available on public networks. "Government has lots of information. We want to make the public better informed and hold government accountable," he explained.
The road map is also proposing an e-Government Fund "to finance priority government frontline ICT projects such as:
- The Bureau of Internal Revenue's Integrated Computerization Projects, which include the electronic filing and payment system, and BIR Data Warehouse;
- The Bureau of Custom's Web-based applications to streamline processes and encourage transparent transactions;
- The National Computer Center's e-Local Government Units (LGUs) project to assist LGUs in the computerization of priority systems including the Real Property Tax System."
However, no amount was indicated in the draft.
By 2008, all national government agencies and local government units are also expected to be connected to a common intranet network.
To develop a "brand Philippines," the road map is also proposing a "CyberServices Branding" which aims to position the Philippines as a global ICT player. To facilitate this task, an industry portal was proposed as a "virtual business matching service."
This year's draft road map is not the first attempt of government to develop the ICT sector, given that ICT is a major economic driver, generating much-needed job opportunities. In 2003, the predecessor of the CICT, the IT and E-Commerce Council also came out with a strategic road map. There were also the National Information Technology Plan in 1997 and the Government Information System Plan in 2000.
Quelle/Source: TMCnet, 04.06.2006
