THE DEPARTMENT of Information and Communications Technology will implement the Digital Government Enhancing the Filipino Experience: Empowering Through Digital Governance to embrace new technologies for convenient public service.
During the ONE DAVAO Virtual Presser livestream on July 5, DICT XI information technology officer III Engr. Virgil Fuentes said the new program would help the Philippines slowly reach the technology level of first-world countries.
Fuentes highlighted President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s State of the Nation Address in 2023 where he gave the marching order to adopt digitalization to provide better services for the people.
Last April 12, 2023, the President also approved a single operating system for all government transactions to ensure ease of doing business in the Philippines.
Fuentes elaborated on the current challenges of government services in the country such as excessive forms and documents, costly for citizens, multiple and complex websites, and time-consuming queues.
“Gusto man ta ang atoang transaction madali so wala na gyud untay pila-pila. So mao ning mga challenges nato sa panerbisyo nato sa atoang panggamhanan. Ug kani maong gusto nato ni iaddress,” he said.
The eGoverment Priority Projects will also focus on citizen-centric platforms like a one-stop system to combine all LGUs, unifying all travel applications and documents, simplifying payment transactions, cloud services to maintain data storage, and others. Upcoming projects on tourism, business, health, and more will also be developed in the future.
The eGov PH application, developed by DICT, was introduced to streamline all local and national government services in a single app to advance digital initiatives and improve public service. The app is also available to download on the App Store and Google Play Store.
The DICT plans to connect 122 national government agencies in Davao Region to the eGovernment network. Fuentes said they will also implement a Philippine digital infrastructure project that has been approved and endorsed by the World Bank.“Kami mismo sa DICT XI, we’re actually seeking the endorsement of our provincial governors, our mayors para mapadali, to expedite the process of the implementation of our Philippine digital infrastructure project,” he said.
