THE Malasakit Lounge of the Land Transportation Office (LTO)-Central Visayas will soon have an internet connectivity, as the agency has entered into an agreement with the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) for the Government Network (GovNet.)
In a statement issued Tuesday, September 15, LTO-Central Visayas said the DICT is currently implementing GovNet, which aims to help address the basic needs of the government for transparency, efficiency, and effective governance through ICT.
LTO-Central Visayas Director Victor Emmanuel Caindec and DICT Secretary Gregorio Honasan signed the memorandum of agreement between the two agencies to provide better services to the public.
Under the agreement, DICT will provide up to one gigabit (Gbps) connection access to the GovNet network of LTO.
The agency will also provide the actual Fiber Optic Cores and the other peripherals that are necessary for establishing a connection between the government network and the agency's network.
Under the DICT's GovNet, an interconnected network of government agencies in the country will enable faster communication, better coordination, easier access to online services, and simplified processes.
"This partnership is very timely since we are on the stage of setting up the LTO Management Information System. Through a faster and integrated network, we can deliver fast service to the public," said Caindec.
LTO-Central Visayas's Malasakit Lounge, located in N. Bacalso Avenue, Cebu City, will soon transform into a Malasakit Center (the would-be first in the country) with the full capacity of services such as the Malasakit Center licensing center for the special sector, Drivers Education Center, a legal research library, and an e-learning portal.
Caindec said these services will harmonize DICT's high-speed internet as the agency shifts from manual to online processing.
One of which is the Land Transportation Management System (LTMS), which is being gradually implemented in some of the LTO offices in the country where the public can apply, book an appointment, and pay for driver's license transactions online.
In Central Visayas, it is being piloted in Tagbilaran District Office, Tagbilaran City in Bohol, and in Dumaguete District Office, Dumaguete City in Negros Oriental.
DICT will also provide the manpower to install and set up the necessary network equipment, while LTO will provide a secure space for the said equipment.
DICT said the main benefit of GovNet to government agencies is it lower costs of internet services and enable faster data transfers for government-to-government communications.
GovNet is part of the E-Government Master Plan of the DICT that aims to build the fiber-to-the-building connection for government agencies, schools, local government units, and hospitals in Metro Manila and Metro Cebu. (WBS/With PR)