Tuesday, November 07, 2006 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES
News
The government has started mapping the use of e-commerce and information technology (IT) in the country.
It hopes more accurate data would help guide investors and policy makers tasked to narrow the digital divide between those adept at using the Internet to expand their reach into markets and their source of requirements on the one hand and those who are still steeped in the old — and costly — ways of doing business or procuring their needs.
Led by the National Statistics Coordination Board (NSCB), government agencies like the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and private sector representatives are identifying indicators that will be used to track e-commerce and IT use and its impact on the economy.
They started the process in a workshop on this topic yesterday at the DTI International Building in Makati City.
NSCB acting director Candido J. Astrologo, Jr. said the adoption of IT indicators is a long-delayed project. "We are saying that we are the e-hub center of Asia, but we have no statistics to support it," he said.
To be sure, the Philippines has data on Internet and mobile subscribers, but these rely on information from telecommunication firms and count only subscribers. The government also has figures on IT investments and revenues but these are "piecemeal" data recorded by various agencies like the Board of Investments and the Philippine Economic Zone Authority.
What the government needs, Mr. Astrologo said, is a clearer number of IT and Internet users, which he said could be much more than the registered subscribers.
"These are the people who use the Internet cafes. Until now, we have no statistics and profiles on them," the official said, adding that they want to see demographics on who uses e-commerce and the Internet the most and who are getting bypassed by technology.
Today, the Philippines does not even have data as basic as the number of personal computers in households, Mr. Astrologo said. "We realize that there is a digital divide, but we don’t know where these areas are," he explained.
For businesses that rely on Internet users, much data is based on counting individual computers logging on to these companies’ sites, for instance. But that does not cover multiple use of specific computers or even of online accounts.
NSCB Memorandum Circular No. 8-2000 defines the objectives of this thrust — led by DTI and co-chaired by NSCB — as: to formulate the definition of electronic commerce that will be used for measurement purposes and determine its coverage considering both local setting and practices of international organizations and other countries; to identify the current and future concerns of policy makers on the use of electronic commerce in the country as basis for determining data requirements; and to consult concerned government and private sectors on the identification of data requirements and to secure their cooperation in the implementation of the action plan to be formulated.
The envisioned indicators will address the population’s readiness to IT, usage and intensity, and impact, Mr. Astrologo said.
The indicators will also help the government determine the areas that needs improvement, the NSCB official added.
"If I were the investor, I will need to see the readiness of the population to embrace e-commerce," Mr. Astrologo said.
Senior Trade Undersecretary Thomas G. Aquino said the data should make the Philippines more attractive to investors. "With advances in information and communications technology, e-commerce is growing by leaps and bounds and this presents new challenges for the Philippines. Relevant, timely, accurate and quality e-commerce statistics will help our policy makers and decision makers in formulating and shaping policies and making informed decisions," Mr. Aquino said in his opening speech.
Mr. Astrologo said the task force formed for this purpose expects to release a compendium of IT and e-commerce use and demographics in the first quarter of next year. Those figures will constitute benchmark for tracking future data.
Mr. Astrologo said NSCB will conduct the survey annually.
The International Data Corp. has estimated e-commerce in the Philippines to grow by 38% from 2002 to 2007, with business-to-business transactions accounting for 70% to 80% of total value. This growth assumes gross domestic product growth of 5% to 5.5% until 2007, compared to a 6.1% actual GDP growth last year, as well as targets of 5.5%-6.1% this year and 5.7%-6.5% next year.
Obstacles to e-commerce growth in the Philippines have been identified as widespread perception of lack of security on the Internet; low use of credit cards to transact on the Internet; and unclear business models for e-commerce players. — K. L. Alave
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