Proclamation 802 by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo declares June as “National IT Month.”

This June 1 article from Computerworld Philippines states that among government’s move to firm up development in the field, the Department of Labor and Employment

has been encouraging ICT firms to bolster human resource development

and hence harnes the country’s ICT potential.  The article further

mentions DOLE’s advocacy for basic ICT literacy services for OFWs.

I agree with the move for improving ICT skills among OFWs, especially

since not only will this add value in the human resource aspect (i.e.

better jobs or pay) but better IT skills would also translate to communication with family

members left back here being easier and cheaper.

Options abound: email, chat, VoIP.  Imagine not having to pay the

high-priced per-minute phone call charges–US$ 0.40/minute if initiated

from the Philippines; usually lower if from abroad.  Skype calls

are free, and assuming a PhP 30 (~US$ 0.55)/hour charge by reputable

local ‘net cafes (i.e. those with fast connections) and approximately

double that abroad, then I’m pretty sure OFWs and their

families/relatives would take on the opportunity.

Stats.  The Computerworld article cites some statistics, with ICT

employment growing nationwide by an average of 3.85%, or to 80,750 last

year compared to 77,750 in 2003.  This includes specialized ICT

jobs, such as MIS specialists, database administrators, network

specialists/managers, IT sales/marketing consultants, MIS specialists,

and the like.

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