PITC to procure equipment for DND, DICT

The Philippine International Trading Corp. (PITC), the state trading arm attached to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), signed on Thursday a memorandum of agreement with the Department of National Defense (DND) and the Department of Information and Communication Technology (DICT) for the procurement of the government defense equipment and Wi-Fi infrastructure system.

The PITC led by its President and CEO Dave Almarinez inked the deal with DND Secretary Delfin Lorenzana and DICT Secretary Rodolfo Salalima during the PITC’s 44th anniversary celebration at the Philippine International Convention Center.

“The procurement of the defense equipment is in line with President Rodrigo Duterte’s goal of modernizing the supplies and weapons of our soldiers as one way of recognizing their bravery and selfless sacrifices for the nation,” said Almarinez, who was appointed by President Duterte to the position in January this year.

There was no amount mentioned in the procurement of the defense equipment, but Duterte has vowed to further modernize the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) to be at par with its counterparts in the world.

He said that more modern military aircraft, sea vessels, and other equipment are forthcoming in the next two to three years to better patrol the country’s territory and combat security threats.

In the next two to three years, the AFP will have flight simulators, radars, support, patrol and assault vehicles as well as new surveillance and fighter aircraft to better patrol the country’s borders and guard the seas.

As to the Wi-Fi system, the DICT, the implementing agency, also outsourced the services of the PITC to procure R 2.385 billion worth of regional Wi-Fi infrastruc-

ture network relative to the President’s directive to provide free Internet access in public places nationwide.

“This Wi-Fi project will benefit Filipinos in 81 provinces all over the country as we democratize access to I nternet and information which can fuel economic growth especially in small and medium enterprises (SMEs),” Almarinez stressed.

Recently, the PITC signed an MOU with Russia’s Geo Spectrum, an agency similar to the functions of PITC, which will cover a broad range of products such as coconut oil, marine and agriculture products, and phar- maceuticals that the Philippines can export to Russia.

“We have been firm with our goal to create more jobs and opportunities for the Filipino people by opening our doors to other trading partners. This will further empower entrepreneurs and local industries to compete in the global arena,” Almarinez said.

Almarinez, a former politician having served as provincial board member of the First District of Laguna, has set a vision to make PITC a world-class state trading agency by 2022.

“PITC’s key role in the national development will be more emphasized as we see very positive results and significant gains of our pioneering efforts in the expansion of international trade,” he said.

He said that PITC is implementing and strengthening its focus on international trade through its services in exports, imports, countertrade, customs bonded warehousing, and procurement to instill an entrepreneurial mind to the whole organization.

PITC plays key roles for government to government, business to government, business to business, and business to consumer transactions under its international trade services.