A senator called Saturday for the swift passage of a bill creating a
Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) to meet
global broadband targets set by the United Nations.
Sen. Edgardo Angara said the UN Broadband Commission on Digital
Development had set four new “ambitious but achievable” targets for both
developed and developing countries by 2015.
“For the country to meaningfully participate in the ICT-driven future,
we have to ensure that broadband Internet is widely available and
affordable to all,” said Angara, who chairs the Congressional Commission
on Science, Technology and Engineering (COMSTE).
He said the Broadband Commission had decreed that all countries should
have a national broadband policy including making broadband services
more affordable.
The targets also require that in four years, 40 percent of all households in developing countries should have Internet access.
Also, the Internet penetration rate should equal 50 percent of the population.
“A task like this isn’t easy and requires close coordination between
ICT stakeholders. We are already making inroads in enhancing our
broadband infrastructure. But government needs to step up and create a DICT that will become the focal point of such efforts,” Angara said.
He also cited studies from Nielsen show that only one out of three Filipinos currently have access to the Internet.
This is lower than figures shown for Malaysia and Singapore where 38 and 67 percent of their respective populations are able to log on to the Web.
Also, Angara cited the IT Industry Competitiveness Index from Business Software Alliance (BSA) which ranked the Philippines 52nd out of 66 countries in terms of its capability in supporting an IT production sector.
“Our competitiveness is at stake-- we lag behind our neighbors not only
in setting up the necessary broadband infrastructure, but also in
laying down the policy environment conducive to the growth of a
full-fledged IT industry. We need to hasten the passage of a DICT bill
so that we can catch up as quickly as possible,” he said. — TJD, GMA News
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