San Juan’s 21 barangays to have Wi-Fi zones by year-end

DIGITALLY CONNECTED San Juan Mayor Francis Zamora (right) and Information Secretary Gregorio “Gringo” Honasan II launch the Free Wi-Fi for All program at city hall. NIÑO JESUS ORBETA

MANILA, Philippines — San Juan City is all set to be the country’s first Wi-Fi connected city.

Secretary Gregorio “Gringo” Honasan II of the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) and Mayor Francis Zamora inked a memorandum of agreement on Monday formalizing San Juan’s elite status as the pilot city for the DICT Free Wi-Fi for All program.

Wi-Fi access points were installed inside and within a 100-meter radius of city hall, San Juan National High School and San Juan Mini Park, while more access points were being readied for rollouts around the city.

Before the end of the year, Wi-Fi zones would be installed in all of the city’s 21 barangays, the local government said.

There will also be access points at all barangay halls, health centers and basketball courts, public parks and schools, and police community precincts.

Zamora’s pledge to blanket the city with Wi-Fi zones was a main fixture of his insurgent campaign for mayor and integral to his vision of transforming San Juan into a “smart city.”

The Wi-Fi zones—fully funded by the DICT—would also lay the groundwork for a planned mobile app that would link residents to city hall.