Private sector investments crucial to natl digital upgrade–think tank

The government should ride the momentum of collaboration with the private sector to establish long-term and sustainable programs in the digital sphere, according to a think tank.

“Investments in technology contemplate the future; they generate exponential benefits not only to today’s Filipinos but the next generation,” said Professor Victor Andres “Dindo” Manhit, president of Stratbase Adri.

he said the prolonged lockdown hastened Filipinos’ adoption of technology not only in their professional but also in their personal lives.

“The pandemic taught us, even those who were not inclined to believe it, that the digital world not only covers the work that we do but also the details of our everyday lives,” he said.

“We learned it was possible to buy our groceries or medicine, talk to a doctor, and conduct our banking affairs online. Our children went to school online. Connectivity became a basic human need.”

But the government has its hands full with responding to the pandemic and to other problems like endemic corruption.

“The logical course of action is to turn to the private sector as an indispensable partner,” he added.

Twin surveys

“FILIPINOS do not only know that the private sector is important to our national progress. They are also aware of how the private sector can help achieve it,” said Manhit.

Surveys by top polling firms Social Weather Stations and Pulse Asia, both commissioned by Stratbase, support Manhit’s statements that the people are cognizant of the crucial role that the private sector plays.

In October, the Social Weather Stations found that at least eight in 10 Filipinos believed that the growth of the Philippine economy would be accelerated if the government collaborated more actively with the private sector.

respondents to the same survey also said that the private sector can help boost the economy by creating jobs (65 percent), expanding livelihood opportunities (57 percent), and helping lift the lives of Filipinos out of poverty (46 percent).

The same sentiments surfaced two months later with the results of a Pulse Asia research survey, which revealed Filipinos thought the private sector can help create jobs (58 percent), lift Filipinos out of poverty (57 percent) and expand livelihood opportunities (52 percent).

In fact, 81 percent of the respondents agree that the government should engage the private sector to invest in public infrastructures such as roads, bridges, and airports to save government funds for Covid-19 response.

Digital shift

“let’s make no mistake about it—there have been initiatives toward a digital transformation even before Covid-19,” Manhit said.

“But these were, at best, uneven and uncoordinated. There was no blueprint for a national digital shift that cuts across sectors or geographic areas, and most of the efforts were concentrated on urban centers with existing digital infrastructure.”

Manhit said that the pandemic should have provided the government with a clear insight into what the country needs to achieve its digital potential. And then, recognizing that the private sector has the wherewithal and the expertise to build and maintain such initiatives, the government should actively pursue collaboration to enable more Filipinos to cross the digital divide.

“Cloud-based solutions, for instance, are an indispensable and inexpensive tool for small businesses and entrepreneurs,” said Manhit.

At the same time, he emphasized the need to empower Filipinos through training and upskilling. “We not only need to make technology available; we also need to update and upgrade the skills of our people so they can make the most out of the available digital technologies,” he said.

Collaborative, not divisive, leaders

WITH the elections just around the corner, Manhit underscored the importance of choosing leaders who will inspire confidence among investors and who will undertake programs with the private sector in good faith and mutual respect.

“The private sector has the best interests of the country in mind and would gladly step up to the challenge if given the opportunity to thrive in a stable and supportive regulatory environment and good governance,” Manhit said.