PLDT Enterprise, ePLDT encourage free flow of data for ASEAN summit

MANILA, Philippines — As the chair nation of this year’s ASEAN summit, the Philippines is tasked with the responsibility of inspiring the digital development of Southeast Asian nations.

As such, leading telecommunications and digital services company PLDT Inc., through its corporate business arm PLDT Enterprise, has taken on the responsibility of encouraging the free flow of data throughout the country.

In an effort to achieve this region-wide vision, PLDT Enterprise and ePLDT partnered with the Asia Cloud Computing Association (ACCA) to organize a Digital Thought Leaders Seminar. Focused on the Free Flow of Data and the Financial Services Sector in the ASEAN region, the event was held last October 4 at The Tower Club of Philam Life Tower in Makati City.

ACCA executive director May-Ann Lim opened the summit by giving an overview of the Asean ICT Masterplan (AIM) 2020 and sharing its eight strategic thrusts: economic development and transformation, people integration and empowerment through ICT, innovation, ICT infrastructure development, human capital development, ICT in the ASEAN single market, new media and content, and information security and assurance.

To be able to further contextualize and highlight the relevance of such, several industry players and experts were invited to facilitate in the discussion of the two plenary sessions that followed.

In the first plenary titled "The Enablers and Blockers of the Free Flow of Data in the Digital Economy", Department of Finance Anti-Red Tape Technology Modernization architect Dennis Reyes, National Privacy Commission’s Complaints and Investigation Division chief, Atty. Francis Acero and ePLDT’s CSO Angel Redoble shared knowledge from their fields of expertise and provided valuable insights for attendees.

Participating in the second plenary themed FSI and Fintech in ASEAN and the Philippines were International Finance Corp. (IFC) senior financial sector specialist Griselda Santos, Cantilan Bank executive vice president Tanya Hotchkiss, FINTQ by PLDT managing director and CEO Lito Villanueva, and ePLDT CSO Angel Redoble and head of Cloud Business Hanna Mortel.

“As our country hosts the ASEAN 2017, we are strategically positioned to propel the region to greater heights when it comes to digital transformation,” said PLDT vice president and head of the Banking Sector Chito Franco. “Our view is that digital transformation starts not with the elegance of technology and force fitting it into our daily lives but really more about solving everyday problems with the use of technology.

With AIM 2020 envisioning to “[propel] ASEAN towards a digitally enabled economy that is secure, sustainable, and transformative,” PLDT Enterprise stays true to its mandate of nation-building, by helping accelerate the free flow of data throughout both the nation and the region.