Lawmakers lead development of 'Silicon corridor' in Phl

MANILA, Philippines - Taguig City Rep. Freddie Tiñga of the 2nd district, chairman of the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) committee, and Cavite Rep. Joseph Emilio Abaya, chairman of the Appropriations committee, have taken the initial bold steps to spearhead the development of a “Silicon corridor” in the country.

The two lawmakers led a congressional delegation last week on a successful visit to Silicon Valley in northern California, USA, and met with top officials of Cisco Systems, Synopsys, Google, Genentech and Electronic Arts. They also visited the campuses of Apple and the Plug and Play Tech Center, an incubator of start-up technology companies.

The delegation also held a roundtable discussion with Filipino tech entrepreneur, Dr. Diosdado Banatao, principal of Tallwood Venture Capital, a leading venture capital company in Silicon Valley.

Dr. Banatao stressed the importance of education, research and development, and the risk taking of venture capitalists who are the pillars of Silicon Valley’s success and the need to replicate these in the Philippines. “Continue to retool the Philippines’ education system and focus on math and science, as well as the relevant new technologies in order to be competitive,” Banatao urged the group.

The group is now keen on identifying promising Filipino IT companies and exposing them to the Silicon Valley ecosystem. They will prioritize next wave cities in transforming these into the Philippine Silicon Corridor.

“The success of Filipino professionals in Silicon Valley, and their desire to help grow the Philippine IT industry would create global opportunities for the sector,” Tiñga said.