Digitalization Priority For PH Economic Growth Rate Increase

Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman emphasized last Monday that the government is pushing for the same pace or even higher gear for the Philippines’ economic growth rate in 2023.

“We hope to sustain this growth, if not surpass it, and we believe that enhancing our digital governance will play a crucial role in achieving this,” Pangandaman said in a statement.

Pangdaman added the need to leverage digital interventions as part of the Marcos administration’s sustainable development programs.

“Our country needs to fully embrace and transition to digitalization, especially on government processes and business models,” she said.

“By investing in digitalization, we connect Filipinos to more opportunities,” she said. “That is why in our proposed fiscal year 2023 budget, ₱12.47 billion will be provided for ICT [information and communication technology] and digitalization programs and projects of the government.”

In line with this, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said that more than 2 million Filipinos now have printed versions of their electronic or digital national IDs.

The printed digital ID was provided so citizens can enjoy the benefits of the PhilSys ID while PSA addresses the backlog on the issuance of plastic IDs. It will have the same functionality and validity as the physical card.

The benefits include faster and seamless transactions in accessing financial and social protection services that require proof of identity, subject to authentication.

PSA Undersecretary Dennis Mapa, National Statistician, and Civil Registrar General said, “We would like to underscore that every registered person will receive their physical card even if they have already claimed their printed ePhilID.”

He added that claiming the printed and physical ePhilID is free of charge.

Source: Inquirer.net