RP's IT infrastructure needs core location to be competent

The Philippines should change its Information Technology (IT) planning infrastructure, in terms of identifying "IT investment hub", otherwise, it won't make it in its bid to build another "Silicon Valley" in Asia.

IT expert Dennis Ramon Posadas said that the idea of the Philippine government to spread the IT zones around the country is not the right thing to do, if the country is aiming to be one of the world's IT centers.

Posadas, who is the author of "Rice Bowl & Chips", said the Philippines should decide one place or area to be designated as IT center, where all IT expertise will be put together.

In terms of skills, Posadas admitted that Philippines is gifted with ample of IT professionals, however, careful planning and recognizing a core location is very important.

"The Philippines can extract more value from what it is doing in technology [development] because there's a lot of brilliant scientist and engineers in the country," Posadas said in an economic briefing held in Cebu recently hosted by the Union Bank of the Philippines.

He cited that for a country to take off in building another "Silicon Valley", it should have these following models; strong universities, ample scientists, entrepreneurial (success) stories, developed culture of risk taking, and availability of venture capitalists.

In the Philippines, Cebu and Metro Manila are identified as the two largest IT centers in the country. Aside from this, the government is building more IT zones in other regions across the nation.

Posadas stressed that IT planners should first set up a more developed IT environment location, where everything is there. The community of critical mass of scientist and engineers must be put in one place.

In Cebu, he said the IT Council for instance, may come up with its own IT map, showing all the laboratories, incubators, number of scientists, engineers, IT communities, and venture capitalists.

Without this, it is hard for a place to position as another "Silicon Valley," in Asia.

He said aside from the in placed infrastructure, Cebu for instance, must recognize the success stories of IT entrepreneurs, such as those developers, program innovators, and others.

"Showing off the 'fancy buildings' may help out, but it is the stories of IT entrepreneurs that matters most," Posadas said.

With the growing number of highly skilled IT innovators in Cebu, a number of Multinational companies (MNCs) had set up their Research and Development (R&D) centers here, like Lexmark Research and Development Corporation, Epson Precision, NEC Telecoms Software, among others.

With or without the help from the government, Posadas said Cebu could nurture the IT professionals as long as the private sector will recognize their potential and enter into Venture Capital concept to help the start-up techno-preneurs.

In fact, he said a Cebuano and graduate of the University of San Carlos (USC) Leo Yau is one of the famous innovators for Intel as founder of certain title in semiconductor, and now holds about 20 US patents.

World IT company icons, the Hewlett Packard (HP), and Apple Computer started out from garage operations, this should serve as example for talented Filipino techno-preneurs, Posadas added.