THE Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said Wednesday that infrastructure and innovation were key to ensuring the continued growth of the Information Technology and Business Process Management (IT-BPM) and creative industries.
The DTI was testifying before the Senate Committee on Finance, which was assessing the government’s performance in guiding industrialization and generating jobs.
Trade Undersecretary Rafaelita M. Aldaba said the Philippines remains competitive in the IT-BPM sector in the voice segment, but may be left behind due to technological advances.
“We are number one in the world, in terms of voice, but in AI (Artificial Intelligence), it’s highly likely that our position will be displaced, hence it is really very important (to catch up),” Ms. Aldaba told the committee.
The Department of Information and Communication Technology (DICT) said it is working with the industry on “very targeted programs” to develop and upgrade skills.
“We’re targeting to train about 5,000 people for this year and with 70% absorption possibly,” DICT Assistant Secretary Emmanuel Rey R. Caintic said.
In addition, the Department is also assisting the industry with ease of doing business and identifying next-wave cities.
“We are at the forefront of helping the Anti-Red Tape Authority push the central business portal and the unified employee reporting system,” Mr. Caintic said.
Mr. Caintic said the DICT identified 20 cities, which it will review to ensure they are ready to host BPOs.
Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez said the Philippines also has the potential but lacks the technology and infrastructure in the creative sector.
“We have the potential, the human capacity is there, but we need all this new technology that should allow us to leapfrog our capabilities and optimize our potential,” he told the panel.
Senator Juan Edgardo M. Angara, who chairs the panel, said the DTI should look into further developing the film industry.
The Film Development Council of the Philippines said the Philippines still lacks infrastructure and an incentive regime attractive to international productions.
“There are many aspects of infrastructure that we still need to work on, sound stages being one,” Executive Director David D. Fabros said. “The other aspect is incentives.”
He noted that last year the industry was granted P15 million worth of incentives, which is expected to double foreign productions in the Philippines.
“A lot of productions have been filming here without the incentive, so they’re really interested in the country, but with the incentive we’re expecting it to double,” he said. — Charmaine A. Tadalan
