COUNCILOR Levy Llyod Orcales is asking the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) to expand the implementation of free Wi-Fi to healthcare centers, barangay offices and to allow students to access it for their online class.
Orcales said given the Covid-19 situation, both national and local governments issued orders suspending classes in all levels for both public and private schools, subject to further guidelines and directives that may be releases by the Covid-19 Inter-Agency Task Force and were encouraged to develop creative and alternative modes of education to allow the continuous learning of their students and for the completion of their school requirements prior to the closing of the current academic school year.
The DICT launched the National Broadband Program to provide free Wi-Fi internet access in public places nationwide through the Pipol Konek-Free Wi-Fi Internet Access in Public Places Project.
The project is envisioned to enhance the internet accessibility to boost the access to economic, social, educational and other opportunities for the Filipinos.
“Majority, if not all, of learning institutions in the city has migrated to online classes and had set up internet -- depend modes for continuous education of their students, however not all students in the city have access to the internet or with very poor internet connectivity preventing them from effectively participating in their online requirements,” Orcaels said.
The DICT has built 2,442 free Wi-Fi sites covering 17 regions, 73 provinces and 662 municipalities in the country in public places like plazas and parks, public libraries, schools, colleges and universities, rural health units and government hospitals, train stations, airports, and seaports, and national and local government offices.
Orcales said the DICT Wi-Fi for all program is considered by the government as one of the probable solutions in fast-tracking government efforts to combat the Covid-19 and assisting students in the city to have free and unhampered access to the internet for them to effectively participate in their online classes or modules and primarily reaching out to more people to connect them with the internet and other available ICT infostructures.
The resolution was approved during Monday’s regular council session.