A new legislation is opening the doors for innovative entrepreneurs, but digital transformation is the key to accelerating startup growth, according to the Department of Information and Communication Technology (DICT).
The agency is calling for a stronger push for new technology to support startups in the country following the signing of Republic Act No. 11337 or the Innovative Startup Act and its implementing rules and regulations.
“We at the DICT trust that utilizing, developing, and “harnessing technology will only accelerate the growth and evolution of our Philippine startup ecosystem,” said DICT assistant secretary for Digital Philippines, Emmanuel Rey Caintic at the first-ever Philippine Startup Week (PHSW2019) last month.
Digital transformation is still young in the Philippines, but the FinTech Philippines Association (FPh) has noticed a growing amount of knowledge and talent consolidating in the Philippines.
Jove Tapiador, co-founder of FPh, said there is a wealth of opportunities to solve problems through innovation in the Philippines.
Tapiador noted various international development agencies have supported the growth of electronic payment startups in the country. “Startups are a key to long-lasting economic development,” said Tapiador. “We believe that the startup community is potentially the 4th leg of economic growth in the Philippines.”
The Innovative Startup Act us set to offer development programs and incentives to both startups and enablers.
“Unfortunately, most of our applications are from abroad, such as Facebook and Google, while there are very few that are locally generated, like Angkas,” said DICT Undersecretary for Operations, Eliseo Rio. “We need more local apps like Angkas,” he added.
