Name: Ray Anthony Roxas-Chua III
Publish Date: 01 September 2009
Designation & Organisation: Commission on Information and Communication Technology (CICT), the Philippines
Location:

Ray Anthony Roxas-Chua III is the Chairman of Commission on Information and Communication Technology (CICT), the Philippines, the nodal agency for deployment of ICT in rural areas of the country. As the Chairman of the commission, he has been instrumental in shaping course of telecentre movement in the Philippines. His role is going to be more critical as Philippines has been selected for the new host of telecentre.org Academy. In his interview with Telecentre magazine, he expresses his opinion on the vision and strategy of telecentre movement,  telecentre.org Academy and role of CICT. He believes that telecentre.org 2.0 is an opportunity for the Philippines to share its experiences and success of telecentre movement to the world community.

The Community eCentres (CeCs) project is the flagship programme of Commission on Information and Communication Technology (CICT) for rural public access in the Philippines. How is the CeC programme progressing? What measures has the Commission taken to deal with connectivity, power and other challenges encountered while implementing the CeC programme in the rural areas?
Infrastructure is a major concern in the implementation of the Philippine Community eCenter (CeC) Programme. The CICT has taken initial steps towards the formulation of a national broadband policy for the Philippines. Earlier this year, we convened telecommunication companies and major ICT organizations in the country for a consultation workshop to get more information on policy issues that need to be addressed. As a result of that workshop, a working group will soon be created to sit down and draft our national broadband policy.
Another very important strategy that we are employing is the public-private partnership (PPP). This has specifically proven to be a major contributing factor in getting the Philippine telecentre movement off the ground and on to a good start. We see the spirit of collaboration between the public and the private sectors as one of the main ingredients that will enable us to meet the challenges posed by the lack of telecommunication infrastructure in the rural areas. Indeed, experience says that PPP approach is key to the success, especially of large-scale ICT projects.
We have also begun the mapping of existing telecentres in the country and their respective infrastructure and services. With such a national survey, we hope to establish benchmark data that will enable us to make informed decisions and further enhance our strategies to reach the 2010 vision spelled out in the Philippine CeC Programme Road map - a CeC in every municipality of the country.

Apart from providing public access to rural people; what are other potential areas in which CeCs can be instrumental?
CeCs can play a significant role to make people avail of benefits of ICTs. It can bring government closer to people and give them a stronger voice in governance. It can also play an important role in shaping education and in marketing local products to the world. The CeC can serve as a conduit of these benefits and present a model that can help developing countries pave the way towards development.   

CICT played a key role in the emergence and development of PhilCeCNet as a formal organisation and also acts as its Secretariat. What are its main roles as PhilCeCNet Secretariat?
Yes, CICT played a very important role. It was actually the convener of the network. But I must say that having multi-sectoral partners, who are willing to work with us made things quite easier.

telecentre.org supported our network start-up programme in 2007, which involved activating the network, developing the road map of the Philippine CeC Programme, creating the web portal, and establishing the telecentre.org Philippine CeC Academy

What are the major contributions of telecentre.org in the evolution and growth of PhilCeCNet?

telecentre.org was indeed instrumental in the evolution and growth of PhilCeCNet. telecentre.org provided crucial support in terms of finance and technologies to help the network attain this position.
telecentre.org supported our network start-up programme in 2007, which involved activating the network, developing the road map of the Philippine CeC Programme, creating the web portal, and establishing the telecentre.org Philippine CeC Academy, the network's capability building arm. 
But more than the infusion of funds, it was the technical guidance, the hand-holding during our start-up years that spelled a lot of difference for us. And for that, telecentre.org has left an indelible mark in Philippine CeC history.
How is the CICT facilitating growth and institutionalization of telecentre.org-Philippine CeC Academy (tPCA),  the capacity building arm of PhilCeCNet?
Primarily by bringing in partners together to form a consortium, CICT has paved the way for  institutionalisation of the Academy. To further spur its growth, we give our full support to all Academy-related activities, promoting its pilot courses, linking partners and CeC knowledge workers, encouraging participation of stakeholder groups, providing policy guidance to the Academy. As with the network, we are there at every step.

It has been confirmed that CICT is going to host telecentre.org 2.0 and the arrangements for transfer are already underway. According to you, what are the factors that led the telecentre.org stakeholders to select Philippines as the new host?
While it is true that the Philippines has been selected as the next host, it is going to be the telecentre.org Foundation rather than the CICT who will be hosting this global programme. telecentre.org Foundation is a new, non-profit organisation based in Manila that will soon be legally incorporated.
As for the selection of the Philippines as the new host, I do believe that our modest achievements in the Philippine telecentre movement have built the necessary foundation for us to embrace greater challenges.
Being selected as the next host of telecentre.org is one such challenge, probably the biggest so far, especially in the context of Asia where phenomenal telecentre growth is expected in the next couple of years. In addition, the Philippines being a part of the developing world, must have influenced the decision of telecentre.org management.
Above all, I do believe that our longstanding relationship with telecentre.org and our good track record in our projects with them was also a crucial consideration in the decision and we welcome it. To be at the forefront of the global telecentre movement, to be leading and managing a global initiative from our own backyard is truly an honor, a distinction that confirms our nation's status as an emerging leader in rural informatics.
How is the transfer going to impact the vision and mission of global telecentre movement in general and that of CICT in particular? 
I think that this is the appropriate time for the transfer when telecentre.org has already reached a certain level of maturity and has succeeded in giving a face to the global telecentre movement. In terms of vision, telecentre.org 2.0 will carry on the original vision set forth in the start-up phase. But global telecentre landscape is much different now than it was five years ago. The technologies that are available to us now were not there before, and the challenges that we face today are greater both in magnitude and number. There is definitely a need for us to align our mission to these new challenges in the next five years. With renewed spirit and redefined strategies, we will be able to rise up to face various challenges. 
On the part of CICT, the Philippines' hosting of this global initiative is not going to be an easy task. But CICT is embracing it not just for the Philippines, but for the global telecenter.org community, who look to telecentre.org's continuing leadership and presence. With the support and cooperation of global community, we are confident that we will be able to meet, or perhaps even exceed, the expectations of the global telecentre movement.

Please provide some information about the structure and functions of telecentre.org 2.0 under CICT. How is it going to be different from its predecessor?
As we are still in the transition stage, the Philippine transition team is working hand in hand with the telecentre.org team in Ottawa. Currently, they are working overtime to define a business strategy for the next phase of telecentre.org. That is seen to build on the successes of the initial phase, while also striving to break new ground for the global telecentre movement. But the crafting of the business strategy for telecentre.org 2.0 will have to go through an intensive consultation process to ensure that the interests of the programme and its partners, investors, and various stakeholders are upheld. Until that is done, we cannot prematurely say what exactly are the structure and functions of telecentre.org 2.0 going to be.
Though one thing is certain at this point that the principles and ideals of the programme will still be the same, as it moves to a new host, enters a new phase and faces new and bigger challenges. There is definitely going be a new flavor to it with the voice of the global telecentre community resonating even louder.

Last but not the least, how do you perceive telecentre.org 2.0? How are you going to be associated with it?
I view telecentre.org 2.0 as an opportunity for the Philippines to share its experiences and successes in the telecentre movement with other countries that face challenges in providing access to ICT to its citizens. Universal access to ICT is a vision that is very close to our hearts, and nothing will make us feel more fulfilled than to see our modest level of success replicated all over the world.
I will be very directly involved in the programme, particularly in the early stages. As CICT Chairman, I will be part of the Board of the Foundation and along with IDRC, will play a lead role particularly in the decision-making process of the Foundation, a function that is critical especially during the transition period.