E-ASEAN TASK FORCE

A One thing that sets Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo apart from her predecessors is her ability to rally her staff to take on and complete Herculean tasks with an eagerness seldom found among members of any government agency. In a recent speech to a special task force on information and communications technology (ICT) integration and development within the 10-member Association of South East Asian Nations (the so-called E-ASEAN Task Force), President Arroyo was given a stirring response as she laid down her objectives to make ICT the cornerstone of her government’s war on poverty.

“The E-ASEAN initiative is an important element of an ASEAN strategy that will define our place and role in the post-Cold War, post-Asian financial crisis world,” she told an E-ASEAN gathering earlier this year.
As a true leader, she commended her ICT troops for their hard work on coming up with a viable ASEAN framework agreement on ICT products, services and investments.
“With this agreement we have signaled to the world that here in Southeast Asia there is a commitment at the highest level to undertake the necessary steps to ensure prosperity in the global new economy,” she said.

Also, like a true leader, Ms. Arroyo presented a long list of challenges, including far-reaching improvements to the country’s ICT infrastructure, the setting up and enabling of a strong regulatory environment, and the continuing enhancement and development of human capital, which are the backbone of the Philippine ICT industry.
“Our E-ASEAN agreement remains the only covenant among developing countries on a coherent strategy for regional ICT development. We cannot afford to be complacent, because we cannot afford to be left behind,” the president concluded.