Education is key to making PH tech leader

The Philippines could be the next Silicon Valley but only if the government invests more in education.

This was the main message of a forum on “Harnessing Filipino Innovation and Entrepreneurship” organized recently by the Philippine Development Foundation (PhilDev).

The forum was keynoted by President Aquino, who urged local companies to hire Filipinos because they were “highly skilled, hardworking and creative” and assured them the government was “always ready to work with you (private sector).”

The forum, attended by members of the academe, information technology professionals, entrepreneurs and several industry players, discussed the country’s huge potential to become a software industry leader in Southeast Asian and global markets.

“It’s all about attacking poverty … We really need to do it with education first,” said Dado Banatao, chair of the board of PhilDev, “a nonprofit organization that focuses on building an ecosystem of science and technology-based entrepreneurship and innovation for social and economic development in the Philippines.”

“The time has come for all to discover, highlight and harness the talent of the Filipino,” Banatao said in a press statement.

Tech-savvy Pinoys

One of many Filipino-American “technopreneurs” who found success in Silicon Valley, the digital technology hub of the United States, Banatao returned to the Philippines to help young entrepreneurs.

Dr. Jerry Held, chief executive officer of Held Consulting and former senior vice president of Oracle, said  “education is absolutely key” to making the country progressive. He said his visit to the Philippines was “educational” and “very refreshing” as he saw “the enthusiasm” of young, tech-savvy entrepreneurs.

“Education is the foundation of prosperity,” added Toby Stuart, professor of entrepreneurship and innovation at Haas School of Business in Berkeley, California, and former Harvard School of Business faculty member.

In one of the discussions, United States Ambassador to the Philippines Harry K. Thomas Jr. expressed dismay over the lack of government support to education and the brain drain caused by the departure of educated Filipinos to live and work abroad.

“Education [in the Philippines] frustrates me,” Thomas said. “OFWs (overseas Filipino workers) do not want to come back.”

He said Indians who studied and worked abroad usually returned to help their country.

“Why can’t we do that here? … Come back [to the Philippines] like Dr. Jose Rizal [did],” Thomas said, urging forum participants to “open opportunities… so that young men and women [will] want to stay here.”

Trade Secretary Gregory Domingo cited efforts made by the government to improve opportunities in the country. He pointed to economic gains made and new business opportunities here.

Domingo also mentioned steps taken by the Aquino administration to meet shortcomings in education: Adoption of the K to 12 program, which adds two years to basic education; 23-percent budget increase for education, which also gets the biggest chunk of the national budget, and the plan to increase the number of holders of doctorate and master’s degrees and public-private partnerships that will include linkages between companies, universities and colleges.

Banatao said he was glad the current administration understood the country’s needs in education. He called on the private sector to follow suit.

“The government has shown that they are capable of putting money in education… The industry must do its share now,” he said.

Entrepreneurship lessons

Before the forum in Makati City, a weekend mentoring session, “Hack2Hatch: From Hacker to Founder,” was held in Cebu City.

Owners of budding Filipino start-up groups honed their business and technical skills for three consecutive days through an entrepreneurship camp, a guided pitching session and one-on-one mentoring.

They also pitched original entrepreneurial ideas to successful real investors and venture capitalists in Silicon Valley. Eight start-ups with the best and most commercially viable ideas received instant seed money, with no strings attached, to help them fund and grow their businesses.

Other resource persons in Cebu and Manila included Commission on Higher Education Chair Patricia Licuanan; Dr. Reynaldo Vea, president of Mapua Institute of Technology; Dr. Eric Brewer, professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences at the University of California and Google vice president of infrastructure; Arthur Tan, president and CEO of Integrated Microelectronics; Ayala Corp. president Fernando Zobel de Ayala, and Winston Damarillo, chair and cofounder of Exist Global.