Globe Telecom Inc. announced it will provide connectivity to Valenzuela City’s Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Hub, a project aiming to make the Philippines “future-ready” and create 8 million jobs by 2028.
“As an industry, we are aligned in the belief that connectivity must not end with access,” said Froilan Castelo, president of the Philippine Chamber of Telecommunication Operators (PCTO) and Globe Group general counsel.
“Our collective goal must be to translate access into real opportunity, to enable learning outcomes for students, to foster scale and resilience among micro and small enterprises, and to allow every Filipino to participate in the digital economy with confidence and security.”
Castelo emphasized this commitment during the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) and the city government of Valenzuela for the development of a premier ICT Hub.
Under the “Silicon Valenzuela” vision, the ICT hub will house green data centers, an ICT academy, a business incubation ecosystem, co-working spaces, digital retail areas and government services.
Valenzuela City Mayor Weslie Gatchalian plans to form a technical working group to conduct feasibility studies for the ICT Hub and determine the total project cost.
The inspiration for Valenzuela’s ICT Hub — Silicon Valley — originated from a science research base housed in California universities and was fueled by venture capital and government spending.
“The ICT hub became part of my vision for Valenzuela in 2022. Since then, I dreamed of creating a Silicon Valley in Valenzuela. We created ValTech and now, we will build the ICT Academy,” Gatchalian said.
Valenzuela is transforming from a manufacturing hub to an ICT hub. This “Silicon Valley” initiative supports the DICT’s Digital Bayanihan, a collaborative effort to bridge the digital divide and ensure no Filipino is left behind in the digital age.
The project begins with an ICT Academy, a collaboration between DICT and the local government, to be built on a 1.9-hectare property.
It will feature six interconnected buildings, including academic facilities, a BPO hub and an ICT museum. The first school building is slated for construction next year, pending funding.
While Valenzuela City subsidizes 15,000 university students, recent studies show 42 percent of the Philippine workforce lacks digital literacy, highlighting the need for increased digital readiness.
Castelo said the “next frontier is digital literacy” and called for PCTO member-operators to invest in education initiatives, promoting online safety, data privacy and critical digital skills, especially for the youth.
“These are today’s essential competencies as risks increasingly accompany reach.”
“In all of this, one truth remains clear: meaningful progress cannot be achieved in isolation. It demands shared purpose and sustained partnership among industry players, government agencies, civil society, and the communities we serve,” Castelo said.
