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Members of the Iloilo Federation for Information Technology (IFIT) and the stakeholders of the information technology (IT) industry in the province gathered last Monday for the start of the annual IT week celebration. The celebration was spearheaded by IFIT , in cooperation with the provincial and city government of Iloilo.

The activity aims at highlighting the IT capability of Iloilo, especially with its very rich human resources, said IFIT chairman Jesraf Palmares. “We grow on our strength which is our human resource. We want to uplift their capabilities to be able to support the needs of the industry,” Palmares aid.

The theme for this year’s celebration is “Facing Global Challenges Through IT” and it kicked off with the opening of exhibits at the Robinsons Mall on Monday morning. Likewise, there are presentations on the IT manpower in Iloilo, the launching of the Philippine IT General Certification Exam and a Microsoft Free Software for students marked the first day of the celebration.

There are also forums as the organizers invited experts to talk on on-line business, blogging at home, alternative income opportunities in the internet, Green ICT for sustainable future, importance of English proficiency and making great first impressions.

Palmares posed a challenge to those who are engaged in the real estate in the province and asked them to be more proactive. He said there are many business process outsourcing (BPO) companies in Bacolod City because of the readily available facility, giving them more options. If such facilities were also available in Iloilo, they could also be benefitting from the continuing growth of the BPO industry.

Meanwhile, trade and industry director Wilhelm Malones expressed optimism that upon the completion of the coal-fired power plant being constructed by the Global Business Power Corporation (GBPC), will give a much needed boost to the standing of Iloilo as one of the emerging IT destinations in the country.