The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) has allotted P7.7 billion in its proposed P46.6-billion budget for next year to bolster free internet access in the Philippines.
In a statement on Friday, Information Secretary Gregorio Honasan 2nd said the amount would finance his department’s efforts of firing up 23,100 live sites by end-2021.
The majority of the sites — 10,300 — would be deployed in public schools, while 1,804 would be allocated to state universities and colleges (SUCs) and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) institutions.
More than 5,000 would be deployed in national and local government offices; 3,300 in government hospitals and rural health units; 1,505 in public parks, plazas and other open areas; 368 in public libraries; and 179 in transport terminals.
“We are aiming to provide every public school and SUC with free internet connectivity and access to aid our students and teachers adapt to the ‘new normal’ in the education sector,” Honasan said.
“This is part of our commitment to DepEd (Department of Education), CHEd (Commission on Higher Education) and Tesda to ensure the education sector’s access to broadcast, connectivity and digital security this [coming] school year while the country is still under [a] state of public health emergency,” he added.
More than 4,000 live sites are now up under the department’s Free Wi-Fi for All Program.
The statement comes after the DICT proposed the P46.6-billion outlay to effectively implement its strategic programs toward digital transformation in the new normal ushered in by the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.
In its July 9 statement, the department quoted Honasan as saying the budget “is in line with the goals of the National Economic [and] Development Authority and the Inter-Agency Task Force-Technical Working Group on Anticipatory and Forward Planning (IATF-TWG-AFP) to rebuild the economy and adapt to the new normal of economic activity.”
Of the planned amount, P22.1 billion is earmarked for the DICT’s Digital Connectivity and Access programs, P11.7 billion for its digital government initiatives, P10.2 billion for its Digital Workforce and Digital Education program, P55 million for its Digital Cities and Provinces program, P1.05 billion for its cybersecurity efforts, and P1.3 billion for its internal programs.
The amount is higher than its P6-billion budget for this year.