Pangasinan town wins in Digital Cities PH awards

• Source: http://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1051115
• Wednesday, October 17, 2018

By Hilda Austria (PNA)

BAYAMBANG, Pangasinan --The municipality of Bayambang won the first place in Best in eGov Systems for Global Competitiveness (G2W), second place in Best in eGov Digital Finance Empowerment (P2G), and third place in the Best in eGov Customer Empowerment (G2C) in the recent Digital Cities Philippines awards.

Municipal Information and Communications Technology (ICT) head Carmela Atienza-Santillan, in an interview Monday, said they won the G2W award for their motorized tricycle operators permit system with e-tagging technology.

“Here in our town, illegal tricycles were lessened because of the technology we use. Through the radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology, traffic enforcers use a handheld reader to detect violations such as unregistered tricycle, among others,” she said.

Santillan said the municipality’s P2G award is for the Integrated Local Government Unit System, which ensures that the available technologies are being used to serve better the residents of the town.

“The third place for the G2C award was because of the Bayambang Emergency Response System or the #4357. It’s like 911, wherein people in our town needing assistance because of emergency cases can be attended to immediately through this hotline,” she said.

Bayambang is the only municipality in Region 1 (Ilocos region) that joined the competition for digital cities in the country.

“The Quiambao-Sabangan administration's (incumbent) vision to make Bayambang a smart town, so these awards inspired us to strive harder than ever to attain our goal,” she said.

The recognition was accepted by Santillan and other municipal officials during the Digital Cities PH Awards–Best Practices in eGovernance for LGUs Awards Night at the Philippine International Convention Center, Pasay City on Oct.12.

The eGov Awards for Excellence in Information and Communications Technology (ICT) on Good Governance for Local Government Units is a program of the Department of Information and Communications Technology, Department of the Interior and Local Government, and the National ICT Confederation of the Philippines to recognize best ICT practices of the local government units, said Santillan.

Meanwhile, Alaminos City was also awarded second place in the Best in eGov Data-Driven (D2G) National Awards-City Category for its Barangay Health Workers Information System.