UNDP ICT Programme Officer/Focal Point

ICT Programme Office/Focal Point A

Full Name

Jennifer Navarro

Designation/Position

Programme Assistant for Monitoring and Evaluation

Station (UNDP Country Office)

Philippines

Email Address

Jennifer.Navarro@undp.org

Telephone Number

632-8920611-25

Fax Number

632-8939895

Government Agency(ies) with Primary Responsibility

Ministry/Agency

Department of Trade and Industry/ Presidential Management Staff

Contact Person A

Full Name (First, Last)

Roxas, Manuel

Designation/Title

Department Secretary

Email Address

Maroxas@boi.gov.ph

Contact Person B

Full Name (First, Last)

De Rivera, Angelo Timoteo Diaz

Designation/Title

Presidential Assistant for Information and Communication Technology

Email Address

www.op.gov.ph/pms

National Development Priorities

Please list the Government’s primary developmental and sectoral priorities:

Macroeconomic Stability with Equitable Growth Based on free Enterprise; Good Governance and the Rule of Law; Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization with Social Equity; Comprehensive Human Development and Protecting the Vulnerable

e-Readiness Assessment

Has the Government (or any third party or donor) conducted a multi-sectoral ICT or e-readiness assessment of the country?

NO

An e-Readiness assessment is required
 

Existing e-Policies, -Strategies, Acts, Decrees, etc

Has the Government developed, or is the Government planning to develop, ICT policies?

YES

GOVERNMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM PLAN (GISP) - Consistent with the national vision and objectives set forth in the Medium-Term Philippine Development Plan or Angat Pinoy 2004, government shall harness the full potentials of information and communications technology (ICT) to ensure wider public access to information and the faster and more efficient delivery of government services to the public. Within five years after approval of the GISP, the government shall have put in place the enabling environment, the policies, and the appropriate institutional structures to allow the full and unhampered implementation of the GISP. Government agencies shall have reengineered pertinent business processes and embarked on the automation of their frontline services and housekeeping systems. Given this enabling environment, the private sector shall have built up its capacity and put up the organization and investments required to respond adequately to the challenge of providing quality ICT services to the government.

NATIONAL INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PLAN -  documents common vision and presents the country’s broad strategy to spur global competitiveness through IT – laid down infrastructure; producing competitive IT products; and Knowledge Center of the Philippines.
 

Ministry/Agency in Charge of ICT Policy Formulation

National Information Technology Council (NITC)

Was the process of ICT policy formulation participatory in nature, and did it involve stakeholders?

YES

Mostly line and oversight government agencies, local government units and the private sector.
 

Does the Government have an official policy on ICT and Gender?

NO

UNDP would like to advise the government but would need support from ICT experts to mainstream the policy.
 

Does the Government have an official policy on Open Source Software?

YES

Authority of department/agency or LGU head to procure ICT products and resources; Department of Budget and Management (DBM) will enter into a multi-agency agreement with NITC, NEDA, COA, implementing agencies and local governments.
 

Access

How is the Government addressing the issue of equitable access to ICT for all of its citizens, especially marginalized groups and those in rural communities?

Yes through laying down the much needed IT infrastructure and systems but with focus on government, schools and businesses.  Access and control by the poor and the vulnerable is still limited.
 

What is the Government planning to do to increase local connectivity to the Internet?

By putting more IT structures and systems; private-public partnerships on ICT.
 

Has the Government implemented, or is it planning to implement, e-government/e-governance initiatives to better deliver government services through the application of ICT and to improve government transparency and efficiency?

YES

ICT Standards in Government

At present, most government agencies are essentially left to themselves to establish or adopt available ICT industry standards. Having common data and application standards in government is essential for compatibility, for sharing databases, and minimizing redundancy and inaccuracies in common and/or integrated applications. The challenge, therefore, is to ensure interoperability and compatibility among the different information and communication systems of government. The immediate task is to formulate, disseminate and enforce a common set of ICT standards for all government organizations.

ICT Manpower in Government

Recent data indicate the need for massive training and change management in government agencies to retool the existing manpower pool being tapped for ICT functions. It is also imperative that agency heads be educated on ICT to raise their appreciation level of the importance of ICT in improving workplace processes and for policy formulation and administration.

Computerization in LGUs

The 1997 NCC survey showed that all of the 42 provinces and 32 cities that responded have at least one microcomputer. There are neither mid-range computers nor mainframes among these local government units (LGUs). The most common applications or information systems at the local level are the payroll system and civil registration systems. Seventeen provinces and 22 cities are connected to the Internet. Computers and information systems at the local level are basically used to automate some clerical tasks and to computerize the data they collect from its clientele. Databases are not yet used to generate critical inputs for policy and planning processes at these levels.

Government Investments in ICT

Government spending in ICT is generally on the rise, although not fast enough. Annual current operating expenses for ICT projects or activities are estimated at P650 million. The 1999 budget provided P1.5 billion for ICT activities.
 

Local Content Development and Knowledge Management

Is the Government aware of or is it active in standardization and localization of ICTs (e.g. local input/output conventions and standards for digital exchange, development of local language character sets conforming to international UNICODE and other standards) for fostering local content development and knowledge management?

YES

The group on Information Systems and Major Databases consists of the Public Sector, Sectoral, and LGU Mission-Critical Information Systems. These systems comprise the individual information systems of oversight and line agencies whose data requirements and processing requisites cut across various other government agencies. Users and operators of information systems are found all over the country.

The group on Technology Solutions is composed of the various infrastructure technologies that the GISP shall employ. Among these are data warehousing technologies that will be used to store and manage the government’s data on human resources, finance, trade, tourism and industry, health, and other very large government databases culled from various distributed databases housed in individual agency data sources. Also included in this group are electronic document technologies for managing data on human resources, government records and archives, and other document-related activities of the government; and spatial technologies for statistical information, agriculture and agrarian reform data, and public order and safety.

The group on Public Services Information System represents the single access window government portal for both government users and the general public. It provides government users with secured Internet connection via Virtual Private Networks (VPN) to access transactional systems and data dedicated for government use by the Office of the President, staff personnel of the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government, including local government units (LGUs). The general public uses the public Internet connection to access data for public dissemination, and to engage in electronic transactions such as issuances of permits, licenses, registrations, and other regulatory requirements of the government from the public.
 

Please suggest how UNDP can assist in further developing local content development.

By providing technical expertise on policy development and mainstreaming ICT in programs, financial support/assistance to ICT for Development projects and capacity development.
 

International Donors of ICT for Development

Please list (in order of total contributions for 2002) the top five donors who have invested in ICT for Development.  DO NOT include UNDP.

Donor

Specific Area of Support

Amount (USD)

1

JBIC (proposed)

The project, proposed by DOST-Advanced Science and Technology Institute, aims to establish a nationwide broadband network as Internet backbone for local research, academic and government institutions. The proposed project is consistent with the Government Information Systems Plan (GISP) and the President's ICT agenda. It is also in pursuance of Philippine commitment to establish a national information infrastructure (NII) as part of the ASEAN information infrastructure (AII).

US$ 98M

2

JBIC- Govt of Philippines (proposed)

Bases Conversion Development Authority (BCDA) is proposing the development of a portion (25.4 hectares) of Fort Bonifacio into an IT zone, to be divided into the IT Plaza, which will serve as the center of the IT zone, and an area for IT office lots, which will be leased to government agencies and private companies. The IT Plaza will host a Data Center, an IT Incubation Center with IT Training Center, and an E-Service Center.

US$ 150M

3

JICA (proposed)

The proposed project is the development of the Philippine Customs Intelligence Database System: Design and Development of a Comprehensive Database of Importation.

US$ 500M

4

Government of Austria (proposed0

The project will include the provision and establishment of a nationwide integrated government communication and relay system for emergency situations such as crimes and calamities. Dissemination of vital weather information, forecasts and alert/warnings also forms part of the project.

US$ 22, 500

5

Government of Japan (proposed)

IT training center that aims to raise the level of Philippine IT skills to global standards through a full-time program for new IT graduates and part-time (evening) program for employed IT professionals, and feed into the UP Master of Science programs in IT.

US $ 21,562

Please list (in order of priority) the five top areas of ICT for Development for the donor community.  E.g. e-Government, e-Commerce, e-Learning, ICT policy, etc.

1

E-Government

2

E-Commerce

3

E-Learning/Education

4

ICT Policy

5

E-Gender

Please list and describe the three primary ICT for Development areas of focus for your UNDP Country Office.

NOTE: Please DO NOT list actual projects/activities, there is another section for this information.  Please describe the general focus areas (e-policies, e-government, e-commerce, e-learning, etc.) instead.

Area One
E-Learning/Education

Area Two
ICT Policy

Area Three
E-Governance

Check List: Please provide additional comments where applicable.

UNDP has played or is playing a crucial role in assisting the national government with ICT policy formulation.

YES

UNDP, together with UNIDO, provided technical and funding assistance national government in 1997 in the formulation of the National Information technology Plan for the 21^st century or IT21.
 

ICT for Development is a well established programme area within your UNDP Country Office.

NO

ICT for Development is a relatively new practice area and not yet integrated/mainstreamed within the CCF and SRF.
 

The UNDP Country Office requires assistance in identifying UNDP’s potential niche in ICT for Development interventions in the country.

YES
 

The UNDP Country Office is in partnership with the local government in ICT for Development initiatives/projects/activities.

YES

SEAMEO-INNOTECH, Department of Education, National Commission of Indigenous Peoples (NCIP)
 

Please share with us some UNDP County Office success stories, lessons learned, etc., with respect to the work that you have done in ICT for Development.

None so far.
 

What are the major external obstacles in delivering ICT for Development outputs, thus far?  And how has the Country Office overcome these obstacles?

1. Adequate funding and donor commitment to funding for ICT for Devt projects
2. Technical experts in government and other national agencies.
3. Government’s commitment and ownership.

Applying in TTF to fund ICT for Devt projects; Seek advise and technical support/expertise from UNDP knowledge and ICT experts (SURF).
 

What are the major internal obstacles in delivering ICT for Development outputs, thus far?  And how has the Country Office overcome these obstacles?  Please provide suggestions on how to overcome these obstacles.

1. Permanent focal point/programme officer for ICT to mainstream in programmes. Aside from being the FP, I am tasked to do 2 other jobs as Monitoring and Evaluation and Programme assistant to the Programme Coordinator.
2. No local/CO expertise to mainstream ICT for Devt policies.
3. Lack of training or capacity development for ICT focal points.
4. Prioritization and commitment of Management to mainstream ICT for Devt in the programmes.

FP’s participation in the ICT for Devt workshop in December; Recognition of CO management of the importance of ICT for Devt and lodging this practice area in a specific unit – Programme Coorination for mainstreaming in programmes.
 

Project/Activity Information

Project Title

Bridge-IT Project

Start Date

November 2002

End Date

December 2003

Objectives

The Program is guided by four main principles:
1.     Meet the needs of the local society and students
2.     Integrate the Bridge-IT content with the local (national) curriculum
3.     Provide adequate teacher training and ongoing professional development and support
4.     Ensure that the technical architecture and content delivery meet both of the requirements above as they evolve

Description (200 words maximum)

In the Philippines, the Bridge-IT project will focus on equipping the teachers of 5th and 6th grade students with highly interactive, multi-media, supplemental lesson plans in the natural sciences. The Philippines project will offer easy-to-use, full-access multimedia solutions that bring science education content into classrooms. In addition to the content, it provides teachers with high-quality training, tailor-made lesson plans, printed Teacher Guides, and a multi-media Resource Library. Through Bridge-IT, students can apply newly learned skills with self-confidence and curiosity, participate actively in classes, and enjoy increased interaction with teachers. The Bridge-IT Pilot Project would impact over 13,000 students and train over 80 teachers. 

The Bridge-IT project will offer an easy-to-use, full-access multimedia solution that will deliver educational content in developing countries. In the Philippines, the solution will enable teachers to use digital technology as part of their lesson planning, and help teachers and students to apply new skills with confidence and ongoing curiosity to learn more about the world, to participate actively in classroom lessons, and to enjoy increased human interaction. The Bridge-IT solution goes beyond mere provision of technology. True to the project’s vision, it will provide a solution that gives teachers and students the opportunity to acquire the knowledge, skills, and aptitudes to actively create their futures.
 

UNDP Project Officer

Jana Grace P. Ricasio

jana.ricasio@undp.org

National Project Officer

Vicly Garchitorena

garchitorena.vp@ayala.com.ph

Partners (National)

Ayala Foundation, Department of Education, SEAMEO-INNOTECH, UNDP Philippines

Partners (International)

International Youth Foundation, Pearson Corporation, Nokia Corporation, UNDP

Cross-Cutting UNDP Themes

None

Geographical Scope

Rural/urban schools (Manila; Batangas and Cotabato)

Target Beneficiaries

Build 39 digital bridges to local schools (combination of rural/urban, public/private), enabling 96 teachers to positively impact more than 13,000 students.

Expected Outputs/ Results

For this pilot project we have identified the following set of concrete and measurable operational goals:

1.       Build 39 digital bridges to local schools (combination of rural/urban, public/private), enabling 96 teachers to positively impact more than 13,000 students.
2.       Students will have measurable and comparatively significant changes in motivation and performance
3.       Teachers experience a substantial improvement in the variety and quality of the teaching material that will lead to improved motivation and skill-building
4.       The Department of Education will view the Bridge-IT program as having significant supplemental educational value and will play a central role in scaling it up
5.       The open architecture and relative ease of development will encourage content development by local and international content providers
6.       The technical solution will drive digital convergence and the mobile internet
7.       We will produce a concise blueprint to secure future replicability and scalability

 These goals will be measured through actual outcomes and process documentation. The Outcomes Evaluation is closely related to the teacher and student goals, and will be managed by the IYF. The Process Documentation and will be managed by UNDP.

Project URLs (websites)

None

Budget (USD)

UNDP Contribution (USD)

National (USD)

Other Donors (USD)

47,000

Keywords

Bridge Digital Divide; Advanced digital educational technology; Capacity Development; Sustainability and Replication; Local and Global partnerships

Additional Comments