The Development Academy of the Philippines (DAP), through the Center for Governance (CfG), implemented its third Talk Points webinar for the year titled “Building a Digital Defense: ICT Strategies for a Disaster Resilient LGU” under the Senator Tolentino Adaptive Governance and Innovation for Local Executives (AGILE) Program on September 06, 2023 via the Zoom platform and live streamed through the Local Governance and Development Office (LGDO) Facebook Page.

From L to R: The AGILE Talk Points webinar’s resource speakers and host during the open forum ; Engr. Randy G. Baldedara, Mr. Rommel DL. Peneyra, Engr. Jose Carmelo B. Cueto, Mr. Warren D. Gomez, Mr. Warren D. Gomez,  Mr. Richard L. Ybañez, and Ms. Diana Rosapapan-Francisco

Some 250 local government leaders, consisting of local chief executives (LCEs), functionaries, and key technical staff from various localities around the country attended the webinar. The presentations from the resource speakers provided them with knowledge and practical strategies for utilizing Information and Communication Technology (ICT) solutions in disaster management and gained insights on effective disaster preparedness, response, and recovery using ICT tools and technologies.

Resource speakers Mr. Richard L. Ybañez from the University of the Philippines Resilience Institute (UPRI), Mr. Warren D. Gomez from the Department of Science and Technology-National Capital Region, and Engr. Jose Carmelo B. Cueto from the Department of Information and Communications Technology-Region 4A shared their insights on the various disaster management challenges faced by local government units (LGUs)  and the available ICT-driven solutions for local government through the national government agencies.

The resource speakers emphasized the importance of accessibility to these technologies and initiatives wherein local governments may converge with NGAs and academic institutes such as the UPRI and the DAP to avail of and/or craft relevant solutions based on the needs of their communities.

Meanwhile, LGU representatives Engr. Randy G. Baldedara from the Science City of Muñoz and Mr. Rommel DL. Peneyra from the City Government of Carmona shared their key takeaways and good practices from the challenges that they have encountered.

The Talk Points webinar series have more upcoming activities this year on the topics of participatory governance and child-friendly spaces for LCEs, key functionaries, and technical staff of LGUs. For more updates regarding AGILE activities, interested participants may reach-out via email at cfg-lgdo-gse1@dap.edu.ph.