ICT-Davao names new prexy

SAMUEL Matunog, former president of Davao Software Industry Inc., was named new president of Information Communications Technology (ICT) in Davao City.

Matunog, who is a lawyer, assumed the post left by the council's former executive Lizabel Holganza, who served as president for two terms.

Holganza was recently elected as the new president of the National ICT Confederation of the Philippines (NICP), comprised of 45 ICT councils nationwide, wherein she also served as its former vice president last year.

Matunog said that under his term, plans will be implemented this year to drive further the growth of the business process outsourcing industry (BPO) in the city this year.

"We are not doing something new but we're continuing to implement the roadmap we have prepared several years ago," Matunog said, who was also the then ICT-Davao vice president for Industry Development in 2012.

For instance, devising new strategies that are geared towards talent development in order to meet the requirement of the new and existing BOP companies operating here.

"We must meet the demand of the ICT industry. We continue to work hard to attain the 30,000 jobs in ICT by 2016," he said.

Right now, about 16,000 to 18,000 jobs have already been generated in BPO-related careers such as voice, non-voice, software and development, and animation, according to Matunog.

But, the number of workforce is expected to increase, given that two new big call center firms will be opening for business in May this year.

The new ICT-Davao president is also eyeing for the possibility of partnerships with other ICT councils in the country to do an "impact sourcing and micro work programs."

"The idea is there are companies abroad who are interested to share that can help in poverty alleviation in the countryside," he said.

Matunog explained there are foreign firms like in USA which are allowed to extend development programs through their corporate social responsibility (CSR).

"These firms can minimize their taxes. They are allowed to deduct taxes if they can do some philantrophic work. They can do that through channeling some resources through local organizations that are doing poverty alleviation programs," he said.

Among the sectors who can benefit from this program are the high school graduates.

"Not highly-skilled but can do some work," he said, adding this program can start as long as the platform will be completed, most probably, this year.

Matunog added that they also want to push innovation under his term that not only service sector can benefit but also the product development.

He said there will come a time that revenues generated from the ICT sector will reach maturity.

"We're encouraging high-breed companies with more products to offer. More product development not only services. We want to enagage our talents into developing products," he said.

For instance, developing products that can be of use in health and agriculture industries, he said.

The executive said doing some researches about the industry are in the works already to spur more developments.

"Nag-una ang negosyo pero wala pa kaayo ta profile about sa industry (Businesses are coming in first but we still don't the industry profile)," he said,

Matunog wants an industry profile be made since it's "very hard to pin down" industry performance in the absence of such data.