In support of the Digital Bayanihan thrust led by the Department of Information and Communications Technology, Globe will be providing connectivity to Valenzuela City’s Information and Communications and Technology (ICT) Hub which aims to make the country future-ready and help create eight million jobs by 2028.

“As an industry, we are aligned in the belief that connectivity must not end with access,” Philippine Chamber of Telecommunication Operators (PCTO) President and Globe Group General Counsel Froilan Castelo said. “Our collective goal must be to translate access into real opportunity, to enable learning outcomes for students, to foster scale and resilience among micro and small enterprises, and to allow every Filipino to participate in the digital economy with confidence and security.”

Castelo emphasized this commitment during the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) and the City Government of Valenzuela for developing a premier ICT Hub.

‘Silicon Valenzuela’

Under the “Silicon Valenzuela” vision, the ICT hub will house green data centers, an ICT academy, a business incubation ecosystem, co-working spaces, digital retail areas, along with government services.

Valenzuela City Mayor Weslie Gatchalian plans to form a technical working group to come up with the ICT Hub’s feasibility studies and total project cost.

Valenzuela’s ICT Hub inspiration—the Silicon Valley—originated from a science research base housed in the universities of California and was fueled by venture capital and government spending.

“The ICT hub became part of my vision for Valenzuela in 2022. Since then, I dreamed of creating a Silicon Valley in Valenzuela. We created ValTech and now, we will build the ICT Academy,” said Gatchalian.

Valenzuela is transforming from a manufacturing hub to an ICT hub. Aiming to become a “Silicon Valley” is an initiative supporting the DICT’s Digital Bayanihan, a collaborative effort that aims to bridge the digital divide and ensure no Filipino is left behind in the digital age.

It begins with an ICT Academy, a collaboration between DICT and the local government, built on a 1.9-hectare property. It will have six interconnected buildings, including academic facilities, a BPO hub, and an ICT museum. The first school building is slated for construction next year, pending funding.

While Valenzuela City subsidizes 15,000 university students, 42% of the Philippine workforce lacks digital literacy, highlighting the need for increased digital readiness.

Access to Real Opportunities

Castelo said that the next frontier is digital literacy and for PCTO member-operators to invest in education initiatives, promote online safety, data privacy, and critical digital skills, especially for the youth.  These are today’s essential competencies as risks increasingly accompany reach.

Despite having a vibrant social media presence globally, 42 percent of the country’s workforce lack digital literacy, according to recent studies, which means they have to gear up to be digitally ready.

“In all of this, one truth remains clear, meaningful progress cannot be achieved in isolation. It demands shared purpose and sustained partnership among industry players, government agencies, civil society, and the communities we serve,” Castelo concluded.