PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, Philippines — Inilunsad na sa lalawigan ng Palawan nito lamang ika-5 ng Pebrero ang Broadband ng Masa, programa ng Department of Information and Communications Technology o DICT na layuning mabigyang solusyon ang ‘digital divide’ sa bansa.
Sa pamamagitan ng programang ito, nabigyan ng libreng wifi access ang 37 lokasyon na mayroong 129 hotspots sa labing-apat (14) na mga munisipyo sa Palawan kabilang dito ang bayan ng Busuanga, Coron, Culion, Cuyo, El Nido, Taytay, San Vicente, Roxas, Narra, Sofronio Espanola, Quezon, Brooke’s Point, Bataraza, Balabac at Lungsod ng Puerto Princesa.
Ayon kay DICT Assistant Secretary Philip Varilla, 23 tourist spots dito ang mayroong wifi internet na may kaakibat na 115 hotpots, siyam (9) sa barangay health stations na may siyam (9) rin na hotspots at limang (5) internet via geostationary satellite na mayroon namang limang (5) hotspots.
Aniya, nais ng DICT na hindi lamang makapagbigay ng ‘connectivity’ sa halip makapagbigay ng ‘meaningful connectivity’.
“Our group as I mentioned handling the national broadband program on the free wifi for all program or the free public internet access program which is the two program under the Broadband ng Masa program.
[I]n Palawan, we are launching the several free wifi sites. This is a good example of what we want in DICT to partner with national and local government agencies. These are all necessary steps in bringing broadband service to all and with these collaboration we cannot just connect, connect, connect but we connect meaningful,” ani Asec. Varilla.
Susog naman ni DICT Regional Director Cheryl Ortega, ang programang Broadband ng Masa ay isang flagship initiative ng DICT na layuning makapagbigay ng mabilis at maaasahang internet connectivity sa bansa.
“This initiative focuses on addressing connectivity challenges in hard to reach areas, ensuring that even remote regions can benefit from the socio economic opportunities facilitated by robust internet connectivity,” aniya.