Mendoza meets ICT leaders

The recent third membership meeting of Digital Philippines saw the first dialogue between ICT industry leaders and newly designated Transportation and Communications Secretary Leandro Mendoza.

Mendoza, who assumed his post on July 2, assured the industry leaders in attendance – including executives of IBM, Siemens, Intel, Hewlett-Packard and Sun Microsystems – that his term will be marked by openness and efficiency.

Digital Philippines is a non-stock, non-profit organization of ICT and ICT-related firms and associations chaired by Ambassador Roberto Romulo, senior adviser for international competitiveness and co-chairman of the Information Technology and Electronic Commerce Council (ITECC).

Findings from a recent study conducted by Digital Philippines, "SMEs and e-Commerce in Three Philippine Cities," and the results of the e-Gobyerno Exhibit and Seminar held last June 7-8 were presented during the meeting.

The SME study, made possible through a grant from the Asia Foundation, surveyed 498 SMEs in Metro Manila, Cebu and Davao and the extent of their use of ICT and e-commerce in business operations.

The study is part of a three-country review that includes Indonesia and Thailand, and shows Filipino SMEs to be ahead of their counterparts in the two countries in the use of ICT and e-commerce.

The e-Gobyerno Exhibit and Seminar was organized by Digital Philippines in partnership with the ITECC and the Congressional Oversight Committee on e-Commerce. An estimated 7,600 people attended the event.

The SME study is part of a broader research program of Digital Philippines on the main areas of ICT application – e-commerce, e-government and e-learning. An evaluation of 140 national government websites, called "e-Government in the Philippines: Benchmarking Against Global Best Practices," was published last April.

Findings from this study indicate that the Philippines must accelerate e-government implementation if it was to meet the June 30, 2002 deadline set in the e-Commerce Law for all government agencies to have an online presence.