Dr. Melinda dP. Bandalaria, UPOU Chancellor and Professor, tackled components of digital inclusion, situated a digital inclusion indicator in the country in relation to other countries, and recommended a model of the Philippine eCenter of the Future towards digital inclusion in the 17th Knowledge Exchange Conference.
The Philippine Community eCenter Network, Incorporated (PhilCeCNet) conducted the 17th Knowledge Exchange Conference (KEC) on 3-4 November 2022 via Zoom and live streamed on Facebook and YouTube platforms. The 2-day virtual event carried the theme “Localizing Global Standards on Digital Inclusion: Towards a Roadmap for Community eCenters.” Ms. Red Dawn Joy D. Laurente, University of the Philippines (UP) alumna and Project Development Officer of the Negros Occidental Language and Information Technology Center (NOLITC), served as the host.
Dr. Melinda dela Peña Bandalaria, UP Open University (UPOU) Chancellor and Professor, and incumbent President of PhilCeCNet, was one of the guest speakers on the first day of the conference. The online initiative also featured Dir. Maria Teresa Magno-Garcia, Director of the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Literacy and Competency Development Bureau (LCDB) of the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT); Dr. Angelo Juan O. Ramos, Executive Director of the Molave Development Foundation, Inc. (MDFI); and Ms. Maria Agbada-Alcasid, Founder of Hiraya at Pluma Marketing Agency, as guest speakers and Ms. Cely Carman-Trio, Project Development Officer/Acting Registrar/QA Lead of NOLITC, as the moderator.
Dr. Bandalaria discussed the components of digital inclusion, situated a digital inclusion indicator in the country in relation to other countries, and recommended a model of the Philippine eCenter of the Future towards digital inclusion. She proposed three initiatives for our Philippine Community eCenters to address the concern on digital inclusion: spearhead the digital inclusion strategies, train to achieve the different digital literacy competencies, and enable the strategic areas for digital inclusion. She highlighted the role of eCenter Managers, who have been part of the Training Curriculum, for being the change leaders and enablers and enjoined everyone to be the community digital inclusion enablers.
Director Magno-Garcia tackled digital inclusion through strengthened capacity building and shared the DICT plans to strengthen its digital-skills capacity-building initiatives and address digital inclusion, especially in the countryside. Dr. Ramos provided insights and advice based on his years of experience working for stakeholders in ICT development and encouraged everyone to be an agent of change in the community and to focus on positive change. Ms. Agbada-Alcasid discussed the essentials of copywriting and shared her experience working as a copywriter.
The guest speakers for the second day of the conference included Dr. Elizabeth Yumul-Manugue, Faculty Member of the Public Management Program of the Development Academy of the Philippines (DAP); Mr. Argen R. Azul, Provincial Officer of DICT-Batangas; Dr. Richard E. Amansec, Director of the Management of Information Systems Division of the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCAARRD) of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and current Conference Chair; and Prof. Pierangelo B. Alejo, Consultant/Trainer and Lecturer LPAC and AIJC. The moderator for this session was Atty. Anabelle Sabay Palic, Department Head of the Negros First CyberCentre of the Negros Occidental Provincial Government.
Dr. Yumul-Manugue shared her expertise on Community eCenter (CeC) management for sustainability. Mr. Azul tackled web development fundamentals, concepts, and career direction. Dr. Amansec presented the PCAARRD Advanced Learning Management System (PALMS), which is an online tool that the eCenters can utilize and access non-degree training materials for the agriculture, aquatic, and natural resources. Prof. Alejo facilitated the roadmapping exercise for eCenter Managers and stressed the importance of digital inclusion by relating it to inclusive education, digital transformation, and data literacy, to name a few.
The speakers answered questions from the participants after their presentations. Certificates of Appreciation were handed out to the speakers for sharing their insights and expertise on their respective fields of practice. Recognitions for the Best Virtual Tours and the Pandemic Resilience Award were awarded to the winning entries and delegates. Raffle prizes were given away to some lucky attendees.
PhilCeCNET is a learning and collaborative community of CeC stakeholders which supports the building of responsive, efficient, valuable and sustainable CeCs. UPOU is part of the PhilCeCNet Board of Trustees (BoT) 2021-2022 with Dr. Bandalaria as President and Dr. Emely Amoloza as member of the Secretariat.
The recording of the 17th KEC is available for viewing on YouTube (Day 1 and Day 2).
Written by Jaime Guimbao
Edited by Myra C. Almodiel and Anna Cañas-Llamas