Bacolod City lauded for ICT feat

By: Dolly Yasa

BACOLOD City – The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), lauded the city of Bacolod for providing a healthy, vibrant and innovative ICT industry that allows citizens to take full advantage of ICT especially in the field of government services delivery, trade, technopreneurship, finance and health.

Atty. Ivin Ronald D.M. Alzona, OIC Undersecretary for Regional Operations and Countryside and ICT Industry Development, relayed the message in the Independence Day celebration here on June 12, 2019.

“I think many of us here already know that we are in the midst of Industrial Revolution and digital transformation, and that those who can ride on this wave of change greatly reap the benefits of the 4th Industrial Revolution,” Alzona said.

Alzona said that the City of Bacolod has achieved “Masaganang Kinabukasan” by having about 35,000 direct Business Process Outsource (BPO) jobs, and over 100,000 jobs created that support the more than 30 Information Technology Business Process Management Companies that are located in Bacolod’s 27 Parks and Centers accredited by the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA).

He also said that there are now institutions accredited by the Technical Skills Development Authority (TESDA) and the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) that implements ICT-industry-centric trainings under the IT and Business Process Association of the Philippines (IBPAP) Service Management Program.

In fact, Bacolod also has fully functional Technology Business Incubation centers that support the development of start-ups.

“The Bacolod City Government must be congratulated for its initiatives in expanding the opportunities for its constituents through their collaborative efforts with national government agencies like the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), the Academe, and the private sector in developing strategies to further improve the workforce, building the necessary infrastructure, and providing an enabling environment for doing business with ease,” Alzona further said.

He also said that given all these milestones, the City Government has given itself the challenge of outdoing and outperforming itself.

“I hope that Bacolod will return to the Tholons Top 100 Digital Cities as recognition of its support to its local ICT ecosystem, the development of the local innovation system, and continuous digital transformation.”