1-1 Background of the Project The government of the Philippines under the Ramos administration formulated “Philippines 2000” as a development plan, and aimed to participate in Newly Industrializing Economies (NIES) by 2000. For this purpose, “computerization (maximum use of information)” was set as a goal. Accordingly, the “National Information Technology Plan” (NITP) was promulgated in 1989 and the NITP2000 in 1993. The goal set by the NITP2000 was the computerization of all sectors in the Philippines. Education and training to develop human resources highly trained in IT are therefore essential.
In this context, in May 1993 the government of the Philippines established “the Philippine Software Development Institute (PSDI)” under the National Computer Center (NCC); (a subsidiary of presidential palace). To this end, the government of Japan was requested to provide a technical cooperation project for the purpose of enhancing IT skills for human resources in the Philippines. 1-2 Project Overview The government of Japan provided technical cooperation for human resources in the field, preparation of the training materials, development of training courses, training instructors and the implementation and enhancing of courses for IT specialists in order to improve capacity of IT specialist in Philippines. (1) Overall Goal
Philippine IT industry, especially IT human resources is developed. (2) Project Purpose
PSDI operates and manages high-level IT training courses and seminars. (3) Outputs
1) Management and operation system of PSDI is established.
2) Necessary machinery and equipment are settled and appropriately utilized and maintained.
3) Technical capability of counterparts is upgraded.
4) High-level training courses and seminars are implemented. (4) Inputs Japanese side: | Long-Term Experts | 8 | Equipment | 334 Million yen | Short-Term Experts | 4 | Local Costs | 18 Million yen | Trainees Received | 18 | Philippine Side: | Counterparts | 33 | Equipment | 374 Million yen | Land and Facilities | | Local Costs | 61 Million yen |
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3-1 Summary of Evaluation Results(1) Impact
Trainees and people from their respective organizations have shown a high degree of satisfaction toward the training NCI has provided. This indicates that NCT training courses have contributed to human resource development in IT-related areas. This is attributed to the qualified instructors and the well-planned contents of the training courses on one hand and the fact that fees were lower than they are in private courses (about half the cost), on the other.
NCI has been actively promoting the training of personnel throughout the Philippines since 1999. Specifically, cooperation has been established with Mindanao State College and Iligan Institute of Technology. Similar training tie-ups were established with 29 secondary educational institutes in December 2002. With these cooperative efforts, university lecturers and instructors take part in NCI trainings, and develop IT-related training courses at their own universities based on their experiences. NCI plays an active role with regards to technical transfer.
Regarding the activities of students after their graduation, since many of the PSDI/NCI trainees had already left their positions and transferred to private companies in the country or abroad, it is difficult to confirm the number of systems developed by PSDI/NCI-trained students. However, results of the 22 trainees who were able to participate in survey this time showed that 76% of them were involved in systems development or the improvement of existing systems. Furthermore, 62% were involved in IT-training businesses and were playing a role in curriculum development or instruction. Trainees for LAN-related areas have also taken positions in LAN construction and LAN maintenance and management. All of these factors indicate that the skills acquired through training have been applied.
However, at most of the organizations dispatching trainees to NCI courses, the outsourcing of computerized system development is being promoted. As a result, the need for IT training courses by those organizations, which were the main customers of the NCI up to now, is on the decline. Consequently, it is crucial to carefully plan curricula for future training programs and to try and increase the number of trainees. (2) Sustainability
After the project was finished in 1999, the PSDI was merged with the NCI, (a subsidiary of the NCC), and the training function which was under PSDI and the counterparts of the project became under the jurisdiction of NCI.
After merging with the PDSI, the NCI has implemented IT training of high standards and has developed new courses and upgraded existing courses. However, while the NCI has been establishing quality standards in training, the number of training participants has been on the decrease. The number in 2002, compared to the previous year, shows a decrease of 31%. There have also been situations where the minimum number of participants has not been secured and courses have had to be canceled. This has been influenced by frequent changes in personnel in the NCC, the NCI’s parent agency, from 2000 to the beginning of 2002. Furthermore, recruitment strategies for future trainees at the NCI have not been established, which may also be a factor adversely affecting to the number of trainees.
In recent years the Philippine government has placed emphasis on the area of IT and is formulating various policies at a national level. These initiatives include the E-Commerce Law (a law requiring all government agencies/offices to establish a web-based system that would ensure that citizens can easily transact business through the use of the Internet), and the establishment of the Information Technology and the E-Commerce Council as the highest decision making body on IT related policies in the Philippines. To date, these government policies have possibly contributed to the existence of the NCC/NCI and securing their organizational sustainability. However, the frequent reorganization of the entire NCC has resulted in changes of NCC directors four times in the past four years as well as the changeover of the top positions of all directorates. The strategy expected the NCC to accomplish its plans and targets for the various plans of government agencies such as the establishment of the electronic government (G-WISH) and the Government Information Systems Plan (GISP). However, these changes had a negative impact to some extent, including a temporary standstill in all activities of the NCC and a temporary decrease in the number of NCI training programs.
The NCI’s annual revenue consists of a budget allocation from the government (covering operation costs and personnel expenses), and its own training participation fees. Since 1999, the amount of annual revenue has been stable. However, the present government made cutbacks in recent years and this is having an influence on the NCI’s ability to make equipment outlays. Furthermore, there are expenditure accounting rules that require approval from both the Accounting Office of NCI and the Commission on Audit (COA) that the NCC must abide by. Considerable time is required for buying equipment and approval procedures for renewal due to these procedures, which sometimes restrict the timely installation of equipment. To date, NCI has a good maintenance system within the organization, but it is constantly faced with the need to upgrade computer software and hardware, which have short life spans. In an area like computer technology, where technological innovation progress rapidly, this financial control system may be a factor inhibiting effective organizational activities. 3-2 Factors that Promoted the Realization of Effects (1) Factors Concerning the Planning
N/A (2) Factors Concerning the Implementation Process
1) Since 1999, the Philippine government has been formulating policies focusing on IT areas, such as the E-Commerce Law, G-WISH and GISP, and has been assisting NIC IT-related training courses through its policies.
2) Offering training under the NCI, which is a governmental agency, carries a sense of status with it, and this helps to secure qualified external instructors and contributes to securing high quality training contents.
3) Within NCI, there is a strong commitment to developing and supplying high quality trainings to the market. This results in the maintenance of high quality training courses even though they suffer from the frequent staff changes. 3-3 Factors that Impeded the Realization of Effects (1) Factors Concerning the Planning
N/A (2) Factors Concerning to the Implementation Process.
1) Repeated staff transfers within the NCC from 2000 to the beginning of 2002 have negatively affected the efficient management of the courses and the number of training sessions.
2) Recruitment strategies for NCI courses have not been established, which has limited the extent of awareness of these training courses. Government offices have started to outsource their IT-related work, which has caused a reduction in the number of trainees.
3) Because the approval procedures for financial expenditure are complicated, this has also had an effect on the maintenance and management of the laboratory equipment. In an industry where technical innovation is rapid, prompt responses and decisions are necessary. However, under the current system, it is falling behind the general pace of the market. 3-4 ConclusionThe expected impacts of the project are visible to some extent. The training courses have been highly regarded by government offices, which are clients of the NCI. Former trainees have also been utilizing the knowledge and skills that they acquired and are involved in system development-related work in their occupations. Furthermore, NCI has developed cooperative efforts with universities and is making efforts to promote IT-related personnel training. However, the number of trainees is decreasing and this will have a big substantial influence on the human resources needed. With the introduction and influence of IT, NCI has received support in terms of policies, but complications in procedures related to financial expenditures have had a negative influence on the maintenance and management of equipment. This is increasing the possibility that the NCI will lag further behind technical innovations in the industry. 3-5 Recommendations(1) For the smooth implementation of laboratory equipment upgrading, it is recommended that NCI prepare a written document for its maintenance and management policies. (2) To secure a suitable number of trainees, plans for recruitment strategies should be studied, including a review of past recruitment media. As a possible strategy, consideration should be given to obtaining the cooperation of personnel from IT-related government offices/bodies and IT-related personnel in the Philippines and abroad. (3) It would be worth examining recommendations and important matters decided on by the Information Technology E-Commerce Council (ITECC), the highest decision-making body on IT policy in the Philippines, to consider how the NCI can incorporate them into its own training. In this way, training can be further enhanced to meet the needs of its clients and enhance the presence of NCI. The study and ideas mentioned above should be implemented. 3-6 Lessons LearnedBecause technical innovation in the IT industry is rapid, maintenance, management and the replacement of equipment is the key to being able to respond swiftly to IT-related projects. Therefore, it is important to investigate the financial condition of the implementing organization to determine whether it can sufficiently respond to the issue of equipment renewal when necessary. 3-7 Follow-up SituationN/A |
