CITY OF SAN FERNANDO --- Central Luzon's first digital transformation center (DTC) was launched in Pampanga by the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT).
The agency launched its DTC in partnership with the government of Japan and the International Labor Organization (ILO) under the program "Bringing Back Jobs Safely Project."
The facility located at Barangay Dau in Mabalacat City is in line with the government’s thrust to narrow the digital divide in the Philippines by boosting competitiveness and fostering job creation through expanding the technological capabilities of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Central Luzon.
“We at the DICT are eager to broaden the training coverage as part of our information and communications technology (ICT) literacy and competency development programs to harness competitiveness of the current and future workforce and the marginalized/special needs sector towards an ICT-enabled society,” the DICT said.
The ILO said there is an urgent need to aid MSMEs in order to reduce their vulnerabilities and economic disruption in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The center will support enterprises in Central Luzon to overcome the digital divide and address the lack of digital infrastructures that make it hard for small businesses to succeed in a digitalized economy,” the ILO said.
The Japanese government, which funded the construction of the DTC, highlighted the value of digitalization especially in business as one of the lessons learned during the pandemic.
“We learned to adapt, and as we recover let us continue our way up and further the knowledge that we have gained and utilize it to our great advantage,” the Embassy of Japan said.
The facility was launched to meet the training needs of the general public, particularly MSMEs seeking to improve their operations by using digitalization as a way of achieving business sustainability.