“A government CIO should be at least the number two or number three executive in an agency,” said Tim diaz de Rivera, director general of the National Computer Center and concurrent commissioner of the CICT, echoing similar sentiments by Customs Deputy Commissioner Alexander Arevalo and Internal Revenue Deputy Commissioner Lilia Guillermo. Diaz de Rivera said the CICT is pushing an initiative to “strengthen the capability” and role of government CIOs in the country, as part of CICT’s overall e-governance agenda.
As the number two or number three official in government, he or she has more power to direct implementation of information and communications technology projects and policies, the NCC official added. Decision-making will also become simpler.
Arevalo and Guillermo are both the number two officials in their respective agencies, giving them more leverage to chart the ICT direction of their agencies, Diaz de Rivera said.
The Bureau of Customs and the Bureau of Internal Revenue are now among the top agencies in the country, which are implementing huge ICT projects involving billions of pesos.
BoC was recently granted a 1.3-million euro grant for its new modernization project, while BIR's Guillermo has told INQ7.net how its modernization projects have improved its revenue collection and services.
As part of an initiative to enhance the capability of government CIOs, Diaz de Rivera disclosed that the CICT will soon establish a “CIO University,” where government CIOs can get further training and certification. This initiative will be partly funded by a 10 million-dollar grant from the Canadian International Development Agency that is expected to be finalized in two to three weeks.
Meanwhile, the proposed Department of Information and Communications Technology will establish a council of government CIOs who will aid in policy-making process and consulted on e-government initiatives, according to Diaz de Rivera.
Autor: Erwin Lemuel Oliva
Quelle: INQ7, 29.06.2005
