IBM team to help solve city’s traffic, flood woes

A team from International Business Machines (IBM), a New York-based multi-national technology and consulting firm, has offered their free services to the Mandaue City government to help it become more competitive in the world market.

The team specifically offered to help solve Mandaue City’s traffic and flooding problems.

IBM is the second-largest publicly traded technology company in the world.

“We are here on a philanthropic visit how we can help the cities in Cebu become more competitive in the world market,” said David Minear, chief technology officer of IBM who led the IBM team in its visit to Cebu City last week.

Minear offered the company’s help after Mayor Jonas Cortes organized a drainage summit on Oct. 1 aimed at assessing the city’s comprehensive drainage masterplan formulated ten years ago and to come up with a short and long term solutions to this problem.

Minear said the mayor was very clear about traffic and flooding in the city.

He said the team’s job would be to identify the obstacles of the plan, which will later be continued by local colleagues, who would also be capable of handling the job.

Martina Pareschi, Strategy and Transformation Service Leader of IBM-Italy for her part, said the team would bring in the technology needed for the plans and discuss these further with other neighboring cities through the Metro Cebu Coordinating Board.

Pareschi and Minear are part of the six-man IBM team dispatched to various cities in Metro Cebu for the same purpose.

The team is composed of representatives from IBM coming from the United States, Sweden, Italy and Germany.

In coordination with Ramon Aboitiz Foundation, Inc. they are here for a three-week visit and discussion-meetings with the different city mayors to help address the pressing common concerns. /Reporter Jucelle Marie P. Cuyos