Implementing Agency:
Municipal Government of Pinamalayan, Oriental Mindoro
Year Implemented:
2004 – Present
Theme
Perspectives on Productivity, Governance, and Development
General Description
The Pinamalayan Community eCenter (CeC) is a hub, run by the Municipal Government of Pinamalayan, Oriental Mindoro, that empowers communities by bridging the digital divide through e-literacy training and ICT services. The eCenter also manages the official website of the municipal government and the individual websites for each of its 37 barangays, where important announcements and events and official documents are posted for transparency and public information.
Background and Problem
Before implementing the program, there were only a few computer units available at the municipal hall for public use, and only a small number of LGU employees were computer literate. Municipal government operations relied on the use of typewriters for drafting reports and other documents, which resulted in a laborious and time-consuming municipal data storage and retrieval process. Access to public records was also difficult as there was only a limited number of available hard copies, and thus required a visit to the source office to view them personally. These limitations played a part in the municipality’s increasing number of unserved and underserved constituents.
Solution and Impact
In 2004, the Pinamalayan CeC was formally established through the Jumpstarting Electronic Governance in Local Government Units (eLGU) project of the National Computer Center (NCC). The goal of the eLGU project was to grant LGUs a headstart in adopting ICT by empowering them in their capability to embrace ICT and apply its benefits to local governance to radically speed up public service delivery and improve service quality. The NCC initially provided two (2) computer units, one (1) printer, and other peripherals to the CeC, while also conducting several computer literacy training and seminars for its personnel. Although the funding from the eLGU project was not sustained in the following years, the LGU took over the operation of the center. In 2007, the LGU converted the CeC project into a separate operating unit. The direct management was transferred to the Municipal Planning and Development Office (MPDO) in 2014.
Aiming to address the digital divide in the community, the eCenter organizes various ICT-related trainings (e.g. Course on Basic Computer Operation and Tutorial Session on Windows software), seminars, and forums that are customized to the needs of the stakeholders, which include teachers, students, women, barangay officials and secretaries, and key staff from local businesses. The CeC also accepts IT students from different colleges who are doing their practicum to bolster the center’s manpower. Other ICT-related services offered in the CeC include computer use with internet access, basic electronic services (e.g., scanning, printing, use of fax machine, CD burning), and hardware and software repair and maintenance.
The Pinamalayan CeC is also in charge of managing the official website of the municipal government and the individual websites for each of its 37 barangays. The website serves as the LGU’s platform for posting important announcements and events as well as official documents for public information and reference. Among its features is a feedback mechanism, which enables residents to send messages, inquire about services, and log any complaints . This allows for a constant survey of how the municipal services can be further improved.
In December 2019, the CeC was recognized as Pinamalayan’s Technology Empowerment for Education, Employment, Entrepreneurship, and Economic Development (Tech4ED) center, through a Memorandum of Agreement signed by the Municipality and the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) Region-4B MIMAROPA. Tech4ED centers are tasked to provide access to a number of services: learning platforms, computers, the internet, ICT assistance, ICT-related training, and eGov services such as processing online applications such as birth certificates, passport applications, NBI clearance appointments, etc. With this, the CeC was granted by the DICT a total of twelve (12) computer units, four (4) of which consist of additional equipment, i.e., a multi-functional printer, an IP camera, and a router to accommodate increased municipal services.
Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the eCenter’s management has also begun taking part in extending technical and administrative assistance to the LGU’s COVID-related interventions in terms of (1) preparation and printing of forms and documents needed for the Special Amelioration Program (SAP); (2) implementation of StaySafe App; (3) development and administration of database of registrants using the Health Declaration Form (HDF) for the Locally Stranded Individuals (LSIs), Authorized Person Outside Residence (APOR), and Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs); (4) COVID-19 vaccination of residents; and (5) encoding of records of fully-vaccinated individuals in the municipality.
Milestones
The Pinamalayan CeC won first place, in the Best in eGOV Customer Empowerment (G2C) category during the 2018 Digital Cities PH Awards. This category recognizes the measurable effect of an LGU’s best practices using ICT solutions in the education and engagement of the public and in the use of electronic facilities and channels towards providing improved, timely and relevant delivery of public services (Sigue, 2018).
In 2019, the project was also accorded a Self-Sustaining CeC award during the 2019 Tech4Ed Conference, for having existed as an eCenter for 15 years.
Testimonial
“Summer time po noon, kami po ay nagkaro’n ng seminar do’n sa aming e-Literacy. Kami po ay nabibigyan ng panahon at pagkakataon… Ito po ay nagamit namin sa aming pagtuturo. [Noon, ako] po talaga ay iliterate ‘pag dating po sa computer. Talaga pong ako’y walang kaalaman.”
– Gregoria S. Medina, Public School Teacher
“Nung una po, wala po sa loob namin na mag-intindi na matuto ng computer, dahilan po sa wala naman kaming computer na magagamit sa amin sa barangay. Takot po ako gumamit ng computer at hindi ko po alam kung paano ko yan uumpisahan gamitin… Ngayon po, nung kami ay nakakapasok na sa eCenter, nagkaroon kami ng lakas ng loob na talagang mag-adhika na magkaroon ng computer din namin sa barangay. Naisip namin na masarap palang magtrabaho at magkaroon ng kaalaman tungkol sa computer… Napakabilis po pala naming matatapos ang aming mga gawain kung sa computer kami matututo.
– Fe de Chavez, Senior Citizen
Photos
Sources
Municipal Government of Pinamalayan, Oriental Mindoro. (2021). Pinamalayan Community eCenter (pp. 1–52).
Sigue, J. B. (2018). Digital Cities PH awards recognize top eGovernance projects of LGUs. Jocelle Batapa Sigue. Retrieved from https://jocellebatapasigue.com/2018/10/13/digital-cities-ph-awards-recognize-top-egovernance-projects-of-lgus/
Toriano, R. A., Evangelista, J. H., & Chispa, K. T. (2021, December 6). Pinamalayan Community eCenter. personal.