Iloilo IT Week to highlight ICT jobs, biz prospects

The 4th Iloilo Information Technology (IT) Week on September 28-30 will highlight jobs and business prospects in the field of booming Information and Communications Technology (ICT) industry.

This year’s theme, “Facing Global Challenges through I.T.,” focuses on the opportunities for employment and economic advancement brought about by the ICT sector. The three-day event will feature exhibits, lectures, competitions and jobs fair.

The Iloilo Federation for Information Technology (IFIT) in cooperation with the city and provincial governments and Department of Trade and Industry (DTI-Iloilo) will spearhead the IT Week activities at Robinsons Place here.

The Iloilo IT Week is an annual event that brings together schools, business and government to celebrate the development of the ICT industry.

IFIT is a non-stock and not-for-profit organization founded in 2006 to develop the ICT sector in Iloilo through an active collaboration of the triumvirate of academe-government-industry. It seeks to help transform Iloilo into an ICT investment destination and major ICT and IT-enabled services (ITES) hub through proactive intervention in human resource development.

Dr. Adrian Arcelo, head of IFIT research team will present in the afternoon of September 28 the result of the Iloilo ICT Human Resource Survey conducted by IFIT and funded by the provincial government and DTI-Iloilo.

Dr. Gregg Gabison of Cebu Educational Development Foundation for Information Technology (CEDF-IT) will also present the Philippine Information Technology General Certification Exam (Phil-IT GCE). It is the first certification exam for IT graduates adopted by IFIT to ensure that they master IT upon graduation. It also serves as a benchmarking tool for schools to determine areas of improvement in their ICT curriculum.

Meanwhile, ICT lectures include:

1. “Taking Your Business Online” in the morning of September 29 by Mr. Ramon Lizardo, president of the Philippine Internet Commerce Society and director of Yehey.com;
2. “Freelance 101: Turning Passion to Profit – Blogging from Home” by Ms. Janette Toral, professional writer/blogger, search engine optimization (SEO) consultant and producer of digitalfilipino.com;
3. “Alternative Income Opportunities on the Internet” by Ms. Aileen Apolo, consultant for the Philippines of Google; and
4. “Green ICT for Sustainable Future: ICT Environmental Sustainable Practices” by Ms. Beau Baconguis of Greenpeace, all in the afternoon of September 29; and
5. “Packaging Yourself for Success: How to Make Great First Impressions” by ePLDT Ventus; and
6. “Don’t English Me, I’m Panic: The Importance of English Proficiency for Work” by Ms. Zsa Zsa Bacaling, marketing communications manager of Callbox, Inc., both in the morning of September 30.

The IT Quiz and Jingle Contest will be conducted in the afternoon of September 30.

Thousands of youth to flock to 7th IT Congress

More than 16,000 delegates from 168 schools nationwide are expected to join the 7th Philippine Youth Congress in Information Technology (Y4IT) at the University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City.

“Yearly, we are able to surpass the number of attendance that we have set so for this year, an additional 2,000 walk-in delegates are estimated to come in during the four day event,” said Dr. Jaime Caro, director of UP ITTC.

A gathering for ICT leaders, professionals, enthusiasts, educators and students, Y4IT features recent trends in IT, communication, computing, games and other fields related to technology.

Caro recalls that Y4IT was conceptualized when IT students from different schools began visiting UP ITTC. This pushed them to hold educational tours and IT talks, which were later organized into a bigger event, thus Y4IT was born.

This year, Y4IT will cover topics including cloud computing, iPhone development, e-learning featuring kinesthetic, emphatic computing, IT for NGOs, IT Journalism, animation, game development, robotics and social networking.

Aside from the whole day forum to be held at the University Theater and Film Institute, side events showcasing a job fair, Mini-DevCon gathering, robotics contest, Biomodd exhibit and cosplay will be held at the Ang Bahay ng Alumni.

Confirmed keynote speakers include Sen. Chiz Escudero, Sen. Manny Villar, Sen. Dick Gordon, CICT Chairman Ray Anthony Roxas-Chua III, CICT Commissioners Angelo Timoteo Diaz De Rivera and Consuelo Perez, Imee Marcos and Winston Damarillo.