TechLife Offers Pad Lite 8 at Best Price

It's back to school season and the folks from TechLife knows what you need during this school year, a new tablet called Pad Lite 8. Though you have to wait a few days to get it because it'll be launched on the 11th of this month. If it's for reading, writing, assignments, exams, it's the best companion your kids could use in school. It is good for everyday use, and it's small form factor and weight would be super nice and not be a burden for them. 

The tablet is also 4G LTE and VoLTE capable which means internet connection and voice wouldn't be bad with it. You can also use it for research and learning apps to make sure you get to do those school subjects and have it work for long hours because it can do 600 hours of standby time. 

It can also be used for wellness activities, if Mom prefers to squeeze in their workouts or learn recipes from the best cooks on the internet. They would be able to see it clearly because it's HD display is great. You can also learn life skills when needed plus, enjoy sound good because you can connect to external devices using Bluetooth. It's going to be available on Shopee come July 12th, and only costs Php 4,999. I prefer the Champagne Gold but if you want something colorful, get the Lilac Purple instead. They also will offer it at Php 3799 if you get vouchers on the platform, and give you a free TechLife Pad 8 Folio Case because you are nice boys and girls. Make sure you follow their social channels to know more about it! Just search TechLife okay?

CARITAS MANILA Starts SEGUNDA MANA Grand Bazaar at TRINOMA

Had the chance to visit the Caritas Manila led SEGUNDA MANA Grand Bazaar 2025 at the Ayala Malls Trinoma's 4th Floor in Quezon City. This is the social service arm of the Philippines Catholic church and has been running a couple of years already. 

It was packed but people were eager to help because where else would you be able to purchase really great finds of food and products and in turn help the causes that they support particularly the education of the poor and their livelihood. This was witnessed by leaders of Caritas Manila, our lovely Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte, several beauty queens and kings too. 

Rev. Father Anton Pascual the Caritas Manila Executive Director says "For 72 years we have been doing Caritas Manila efforts and there are a lot of people helping us in Segunda Mana. Second Hand Items, new ones, toys, we monetize them for nature and community projects and we hope this would be sustained with your help. This is patterned from the US's goodwill stores and we thank Ayala Trinoma, PMG, Miss Universe PH and Misters Pilipinas, our Mayor Joy Belmonte who has helped social enterprise. We want to thank you, and hope this gets sold in 3 days so we can help the poor. The poor are not lazy, they just need opportunity so they could help themselves. Please spread the good news, may God bless you!"

Mayor Joy Belmonte says "I was lucky to have been able to work after graduation with Caritas Manila. At QC, our values are aligned and have worked to give scholars to lift themselves and not just rely on dole outs. We have 40k now and hopefully have 80k after our term. Thank you to Caritas for doing environmental efforts, textile is another waste we need to address in this economy. Every year we have tons of it in our landfills and in a circular economy we hope to recycle these. I wish people stop a consumerist lifestyle, balance it with new and second hand items to help, declutter and live simple lives to donate in Caritas Manila. We hope to host a lot of social enterprises in the city, it's my dream to do this. Let's all shop for a cause today!"

Miss Eco International 2025 Alexei Brooks says "Coming here I asked what to talk about, but recycling is an important part of it. I am an athlete, and was poor to afford shoes. My grandma went to buy a 500 peso pair which I eventually would win in Palarong Pambansa. I still have it, it's a reminder of who I am, to take care of the environment and climate change is happening. This organization is partnering with international ones and it is a good cause. If you want to achieve great things, please donate so you can make a difference in someone else's life."

PMG GM Agnes Magallanes adds "I rallied our team to donate and went on to do 3 years of helping this cause. We want to be part of the solution, meeting with them, we got to have social engagements and urge corporations to give back. We need to be part of the solution, not just clothes, but plastics, it's part of our sustainable efforts and we thank Caritas Manila for making us part of it. We hope to sell these and have nothing to send back to our warehouse."

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by John Bueno (@kumagcow)

The event will be from today til June 8 so you have about 2 days left to go there and help. Make sure to visit and buy so we can help families send their kids to school through Segunda Mana and other Caritas Manila projects. They also have vendors from communities, as they want them to be self sufficient later on. Hope you can help!

Commitment to Education: Acer Edu Summit Asia Pacific 2025

While we're busy with the elections here in the Philippines, the folks from Acer are reiterating their commitment to education via their Acer Edu Summit Asia Pacific 2025 held in Bangkok Thailand. This happened last May 7th and 8th with the theme "Shaping Tomorrow: AI and Digital Technologies in Education", something that brings delegates from Indonesia, Hong Kong, Australia, South Korea, India, Malaysia, Vietnam, Taiwan, Thailand and our very own Philippines. They participated in discussions about the role of artificial intelligence in honing minds in the region and digitalization. 

It's a venue to give folks from the education sector information about the difference of putting tech into education. As it is, Acer has a whole ecosystem of AI powered devices to help with education and teaching . Together with their partners from Google, Microsoft Windows, Intel, Aopen, SpatialLabs, Predator Gaming, they also gave a rundown on how to use ESports in the education sector specifically with the Altos BrainSphere R680 F7 and Altos BrainSphere R880 F7. 

You may visit their official website via www.acer.com/us-en/education to know more about it.

LUMOS TABLET: The Perfect Blend of Function and Fun for only ₱6,999

I'm a writer, content creator and jack of all trades. We're pretty known in the "industry" for dishing out stories fast. I often write about events that I go to a la minute. It's not magic, but hard research done before interviews. It's also about taking notes, and wanting to keep the exciting things happen, with the goal of telling folks while it's fresh, and as soon as I get it. Arguably, in this day and age, you can't discount the fact that being "fast" counts too. It's now an established workflow.

We often write with a desktop/laptop computer at our home office. If I'm out, I'd pull out my notes and checklist and constantly write with a smartphone with real struggle. I could have carried the laptop with me but with the travel I do and my diagnosed sciatica, it's not going to be a comfortable solution. This is where the LUMOS Tablet comes in. 

Screen size is good. I can see what I need to see for work or play.

Carried this and used it before an event, finished 3 articles with it.

Case cover fits like a glove!

Light weight, even has a  front and back camera!

This is something I'd be able to use for work and leisure. Good tablet for kids too!

This hails from the same brand of projectors I've had the pleasure of using in the past (for work and entertainment). The LUMOS TABLET has a 10.1 inch screen, capable of playing 4K videos, has 8 GB of RAM and a 6000 mAh battery (for hours of use), but still kept quite affordable. I could watch on streaming apps, watch YouTube videos, or enjoy hours of entertainment with Karaoke or play game apps too. This would be an ideal device for what I'd want to do since it's got WPS Office Apps (that has a word processor and presentation software in it), and is lightweight. It also fits in my bag, and since it's a bundle, comes with a Bluetooth keyboard, a mouse, pen (editing would be a cinch!) and its own case cover. It works like a mini laptop, but works without the worries of it being too big.

It can be cast to a Smart TV, I see what I exactly have on the tablet to the TV I have at home. YouTube, Netflix, Presentations all work!

Surely, this could also work with kids who would need to study or folks who would want to cast on TV's for presentations, everyday leisure watching of your favorite K-Dramas, series, movies, reality shows and more. They've got lots of folks, celebrities, YouTubers and Influencers who have attested, given their trust and confidence to it. It is after all, the perfect blend of function and fun. If you would want to get one, simply visit their official website HERE. 

LUMOS TABLET: A great blend of function and fun!

Wouldn't that be a good idea?! Head on to https://lumosprojector.ph/products/lumos-tablet to know more about the device. It's a good investment for family, and for yourself.

Dr. Carl Balita Launches New Show "PLATAPORMA"

One of the most hardworking persons I know, Dr. Carl E. Balita is at it again as he hosts a new show called "PLATAPORMA" set to be shown on DZME, The Manila Times, and Dr. Carl's social channels starting this November 8th, from 5-6 PM. He will be up close, and very personal with his lineup of guests, much of which are political aspirants with a no holds barred format so you get to know who they are, what they stand for on issues that affect the country.

Dr..Carl says "The show is tough, direct to the point, no holds barred and taped as live. Whatever the politicians say, it will appear on the show as they said it. We make it a point to use Tagalog as medium, and we have 200 other channels this content will go to. We plan to put this where they are and hope this reaches the people we need to be educated."

He adds "As a victim (of previous elections), I ask my guests what their proof is about their love for the country. I have hope, to bring you to your feet and contribute to change, and be part of the solution. In the next coming episodes, we will have the element of the public, and my questions will be derived from their platforms, and I will challenge that with data. When you see this, I ask the most difficult questions. I've been there and done that, and with Clarita Carlos will join me at a certain point. We might have this in universities live, hopefully soon. I suspend judgement, I wanna ask them their knowledge about the role of being in the Senate. You cant run and just learn about it when you're already there."

Here's our short talk with him before one of his shoots, please listen!

The show will also have several portions batting their proof with hard data, and one that includes questions from the public and a time for them to do an honest confessional in the last bit. Dr. Carl will also be having Professor Carlota Carlos as co-host, to also help with going into the nitty gritty of their political questions as needed.

This is indeed an entertaining format, but be assured that he's doing this for the sake of VOTERS EDUCATION, one that is sincerely needed in this country of ours. There's talk of more channels in the pipeline where they plan to show this, so stay tuned!

Foundations Forge Partnership: Investing in Youth Through Tech Education

Two entities, SM Foundation and BingoPlus Foundation just formed a partnership in order to provide technology based education for those in exposed communities. The plan is for the BingoPlus FutureSmart and SM Foundation scholarship programs to fund those with interests in Game Development, Software Engineering and Data Science. They will also be supporting those who would delve in Web Development, Multimedia Arts, Design, and IT. This will benefit over 30 students for the upcoming school year.

DigiPlus is making headway in making sure the 100 Million Pesos of investments (through grants and partnerships like these) they are pouring in would benefit Filipino lives, the IT industry, especially since they are an entertainment corp that is all digital.

Debbie Sy the Executive Director and Trustee from SM Foundation reiterates how this collaboration is transformative and could create a huge impact for future professionals of the Philippine IT industry. If you want to know more about it, visit sm-foundation.org or digiplus.com.ph/bingoplus-foundation if you want to also help.

AKTOR.PH and 24 Other Groups File National Artist Nomination for VILMA SANTOS

Aktor.ph the League of Filipino Actors and several groups just set a nomination for the Star for All Seasons Ms. Vilma Santos Recto, for the order of National Artist for Film and Broadcasting. In the event, educational groups, celebrities and Aktor.ph were at the event signifying their support for this move. 

Dingdong Dantes says "You are seeing 20+ groups calling for this nomination that we are talking about, our Star for All Seasons Ms. Vilma Santos. Motion picture in the Philippines is the oldest in Asia. It serves as representations and aspirations. Being our nation's storyteller at AktorPH, we imagine being in the persona of a proud Actor. We envision them to be a nation builder and we wholeheartedly share one of our members Ms. Vilma Santos Recto. We celebrate her, her versatility, and unparalleled passion of Philippine cinema. Her immense talent breathed life to different roles, as the most awarded actress, she leaves an indelible mark in every Filipino. She inspires, starting from Trudis Liit as a young star, then to Darna and Dyesebel. Her chameleon like ability on how she tells the truth, her numerous projects and challenging roles tells how much she deserves this. Her range is unparalleled, captivating audiences in different generations. Her contributions go beyond showbiz, as a public servant, she stands as a symbol of empowerment and resilience. 6 decades of movies, television and public service, we would like to honor her as a cultural champion. In behalf of our officers, advisers, we fully support this nomination as National Artist!"

Here's our video coverage of the event this morning:

They filed all supporting documents yesterday at NCAA and believe it would take at least 1 and a half years to verify the information and decision to have the President approve of it. Dingdong and the rest of the organization pushing for the recognition is hopeful that if all falls into place, the honor would be bestowed upon Ms. Vilma Santos Recto soon. 

iACADEMY Strengthens Foundation Partnership to Benefit Tech Students

For a country with over 86.98 Million internet users and over 73.6 percent internet penetration, the Philippines still has a great need for tech and IT professionals. Recently, one of the most progressive IT schools in the country iACADEMY just signed with BingoPlus Foundation a whole 17.5 Million pesos worth of scholarship grants for students for school year 2024 to 2025. This is an increase of over 300 percent compared wo their 6 Million grand last 2022. This is part of their social effotrts, on investing in technical talents via their own FutureSmart Scholarship Program.

According to the Digiplus President and Foundation Chairman Andy Tsui "This is part of our efforts to make sure there'd be no gap in good quality tech educaiton in the Philippines. There are certainly a lot of promising technological talents out there and we are doing our share to help them."

Aside from the grant, they are also given personal development training, aimed to get them equipped and have the right mindset before they go out in the world. iACADEMY President and CEO Dr. Vanessa Tanco was thankful for BingoPlus Foundation's generosity and noted how both organizations have had the samve vision to continue to proivde quality educaiton for all.  

For those who would want to try their luck for the FutureSmart Scholarship, you may proceed to this addy bit.ly/FutureSmartScholarship. But remember, this will only be until June 15th so make sure you submit your intentions for it on the address above.

Have You Tried Gentle Parenting?

I haven't, but from the looks of it, it makes total sense.

Back in the day, the parenting style in the Philippines was perceived to be very strict, ultra conservative, very matriarchal, and include flying slippers and hangers every once in a while.

Not everyone knew that parenting actually can work even if we deal with kids and do parenting in a very calm demeanor. It's properly called gentle parenting. It involves respect, understanding, empathy and setting healthy boundaries, without taking away individual happiness which is extremely important for kids. The style would make them very confident and independent too.

When a kid does something bad, don't attack the person, but the action. Tell them how you feel, introduce another way to do it and ask them why it would be better. Ease in on why you think why his actions are wrong. It also pays to be a good example. Not only would they inherit your good looks, but your manners. If you are kind, respectful, they'll see how you walk the talk and become an inspiration for them. You'll be a person that they'd aspire to become especially your good traits. 

You should also encourage his/her good actions. We're not here to just point out his bad side, we should always notice how good they were at school, how they help doing chores. It's the little things that make up a huge dent on their personality because that's how positive reinforcement works. Aside from that, make the habit of asking and supporting their dreams. Be it a cashier in the restaurant, a construction worker, a truck driver, a pilot or a doctor, this will make a huge difference in the long run as they develop independence and the value of education.

Although education seem to be a bit pricey these days, there's always AIA Philippines' Future Scholar. A product that can get you cash payouts, an assure you that your child's dreams of graduatiing someday would be fulfilled. This can act as savings, an investment, to help finance your child's education even after school's done. Be it 5 years or more, you can have something to count on when things don't go your way in life. You also get to choose how to build the funds til he reaches maturity (around 17yo). This can also be claimed lump sum if anything untoward happens to you.

AIA Future Scholar gives you peace of mind. This was designed with parents in mind so you continue to live happier, healthier lives. If you want to know more about it, head on to  https://www.aia.com.ph/en/our-products/education/future-scholar.html for more information about it.

Congressman ARJO ATAYDE Kicks Off Brigada Eskwela 2022

After getting elected as Congressman of the 1st District of Quezon City, our boy Congressman Arjo Atayde hit the ground running to serve his constituents in the city. After filing several of his priority bills, he also has done activations for the annual Brigada Eskwela 2022. This is something that the parents, teachers, volunteers do every year to prepare the schools for incoming students, some of which are doing face to face classes this year.

In Arjo's capacity, he has donated lots of school supplies, some needed equipment for offices, plus safety kits to make sure they have the essentials in these schools. He also arranged partnerships with delivery company J&T Express who shelled out Php 10,000 as assistance to maintain facilities in these institutions.

Arjo says "I have always regarded education as a great equalizer, it's one of my priorities this year. I want to continue to be involved in improving it, augment funds for what they need in the schools of my city."
 
Recepients of his efforts today include Toro Hills Elementary School located in Project 8 (This is for areas 1, 2 and 3) and Eulogio Rodriguez Jr. High School located in the Mayon-Retiro (area 4, 5 and 6). Surely, there will be more who will benefit from Atayde's initiated projects. 

 

You'll love him even more! 

"Bagong Henerasyon" Partylist Pushes for Health, Education and Jobs Generation

The BH Partylist or Bagong Henerasyon (New Generation) just concluded their Miting De Avance last May 4 at the Elements Tent in Centris Quezon City. With throngs of people coming from different parts of Metro Manila and nearby provinces, they all converged there to show support for Congresswoman Bernadette Herrera (1st Nominee) and businessman Marlon Manalang (2nd Nominee) for their group.

I am very familiar with Congresswoman Bernadette's work since I reside in Quezon City wherein she served as councilor in the early 2000's. When the partylist system was started and BH Partylist had sufficient votes, their goal to help those who need help in hospital payments, health, education (scholarships and higher education), and those who want to find jobs, businesses (SME's) so people can put food on their table and survive their daily lives. So far, they've gotten over 130 Principal Authored Bills to address this and needs to help even more this coming elections. 

Congresswoman Bernadette Herrera says "Since 2010, this is the first time we are doing a Miting de Avance. From our hearts, thank you so much for being here. Thank you Brother Marlon for organizing this today. I go around looking in communities, hearing people what they need, and I'm thankful you visited us here to give support to our cause. I already feel we have won the race. We are excited to provide public service. I have been here for 21 years and I feel so overwhelmed when people tell us that they were helped by our partylist Bagong Henerasyon. With MCGI and us, I see a very huge support from you all. When Brother Marlon and I visit Kuya Daniel, I feel like I'm part of MCGI. Our goal is to help in Health, Education and Job Generation. We need to teach our neighbors, those who are in the provinces to vote for a partylist representative. It's not hard to campaign as people know we have done remarkable achievements with the Universal Healthcare Law. The government should be able to shoulder private hospitals next, we need to work on this and we hope you would help us do this in the next congress. There's only a few days left before national elections and I hope in the few days you would ask your family, relatives, who would want to push for the same projects we do with Bagong Henerasyon. You are our inspiration, for the people you help are also the same ones we want to represent in the lower house. Number 35, Bagong Henerasyon Partylist!"

Check out the highlights of the event on this video, this includes a short interview with Brother Marlon Manalang (2nd Nominee) who also introduced us to some of his kids who were with him that afternoon:

If you want more information about their cause and projects, you may like their social channels by searching Bagong Henerasyon on Facebook. If you want them to represent you, make sure you shade number 35 this Monday.

Tzu Chi Foundation and Private Companies Pool Resources to Help in Typhoon Odette Efforts

Tsu Chi Foundation Philippines have already done a lot in the past. Master Cheng Yen founded it in 1996 to inspire people, to put compassion into action. They initially had 30 housewives saving 2 cents from their groceries, but now has a seat in the UN. Tsu Chi reached the Philippines in 1994, and now has volunteers in different areas in the country. Tsu Chi and Master Chung Yen has had the Ramon Magsaysay Award, Presidential Award -Kaanib ng Bayan and more. For now they are doing charity efforts, to provide medical assistance, disaster relief, educational program, livelihood and vocational training. They have worked previously in the restoration of a Tacloban Church, Typhoon Yolanda work and response. 

This year, Typhoon Odette Ravaged the country, making 9 landfalls in Visayas and Mindanao, taking out electricity, water supple, and now they're working with people on ground in Cebu, Bohol and Leyte and with the government units so they could help where there are most affected. This involves isolated towns, coastal ones, where thousands of people are in dire need. Children, mothers, people are going out on streets to beg for food, shelter, so they could survive. They now live in tents and makeshift shelters in the same area where the typhoon hit them as well. Cebu, Ormoc and Palo Leyte Volunteers are serving hot meals and water, Manila is also sending help including blankets, water supply, gen sets. Tzu Chi are calling for donations of water, food and funds. They need construction materials, GI sheets, nails, to protect them from the weather. They are also in need of communications, logistics and support. 

Digital Pilipinas convenor and Geiser Maclang Founder Amor Maclang says "Thank you for all those who came this morning, we all were caught off guard with what happened with Typhoon Odette. One of the reasons of why we're asking for your help to support Tsu Chi Foundation. A few years ago, we were invited to Taiwan wherein I had the pleasure of meeting the founder. A lot of our advocacy areas are in Bicol, Leyte, CAR, and Zamboanga. Digital Pilipinas is working with Tsu Chi Foundation to help scale harness technology, help them move money, to bring help where it's needed the most. They are very transparent. We need leader volunteers for education, environment, and work with the CSR arm of Globe, fintech and payments, beyond just making a donation through digital wallets, repurposing donated electrical appliances and sell them to put profits in Tsu Chi and help people. We need help in logistics, the devastation is massive. We will be calling for meetings, to update you of what's happening on ground. You will hear how you can best help in this crisis. We will have January 2 and 3 some rice donations, we need volunteers to arrange that, work together. Thank you to our friends from the private industry who are here, I wish everyone, the rest of our country have a better Christmas."



If you would like to help, donations can be course through these channels:

Yoly Crisanto of Globe CSR says "This is a test for resiliency, and we need to make things better. Communication is key. The challenge is to respond and build things better next time. When Ondoy struck, Marikina valley was under water, we had to build towers higher after that. We need our cell sites to withstand even greater winds than ever before. We build cell sites that can do that, to hopefully invest and pour out more, and there's no donor fatigue in the country. We should never be in this position again, we need to have more resilient measures. We will be there to help, we need to put together our resources, to help coastal communities, to battle the pandemic and climate change. There is a challenge for everyone, and hopefully we can build on our network. The government is very open, the NDRMMC, the LGU's, Siargao, Cebu, Davao, we need to have a concerted efforts, not just work after the Typhoon and say it's done. Let us understand that we need to put new antennas when the roads are blocked, it's hard to work in disaster response. The power lines are down, you can only repair if there is power. That's the reality on ground and it's a concerted effort. We are doing everything we can right now, every single minute counts before, after disaster happens. It's not easy. I'm appealing to everyone to hopefully get back and be connected again after that strong typhoon."

Tsu Chi Foundation has been doing in environmental protection, we have done it in Taiwan. It's something we can replicate in the Philippines, to make sure we don't experience these climate change caused disasters.

Nauman Mustafa of Coins.ph says "I've experienced the Typhoon while I was in the BPO sector at that time. People have come together and there are many companies who want to do this. We decided to put our own business partners to have their proceeds be given to those who need it most. I am a firm believer that we should help others. We are here to support Tsu Chi, we'll ask our partners to also support the foundation in our capacity. We just have to take this challenge an fight with it."

There were tons more from the private sector, it was really nice to see them connecting and trying to help in their way, so please help if you can in your own capacity.

"When the poor cannot come out, the blessed ones should go in and help." -Master Yeng Chen

Huawei Philippines, BDO, DepEd Push Improvements in PH Educational Materials

Good things happened during the first week of December as BDO Foundation, the Department of Education and Huawei Philippines joined forces to work in the development of learning materials that would include key subjects in teaching Science and Math in different schools around the country. This is part of the efforts of the BDO Unibank's social responsibility arm to improve learning materials and have it accessed online and offline.

Witnessing the event was BDO Unibank and BDO Foundation Chair Teresita Sy-Coson, BDO Foundation President Mario A. Deriquito, BDO Foundation trustee Lucy Co Dy, DepEd secretary Leonor Briones, DepEd Undersecretary Diosdado San Antonio, DepEd Undersecretary Tonisito Umali together with Huawei Philippines very own Vice President Daniel Guo.

They signed an agreement to implement a program in the country that will involve searching for best learning materials that includes key concepts of Science and Math. It's a competition that where public elementary and high school teachers will be pitted against each other to find out the best learning modules in these subjects. Secretary Briones lauded the efforts of BDO Foundation and Huawei Philippines as they support these projects. With shared advocacies in the foundation, and working together with regards to ICT infrastructure and devices, this will benefit educators and learners in the future. They are also pushing for financial education and wish to include it in DepEd's K-12 program soon.

Huawei International Inked MOU with Singapore Based NUS BAC

Looks like folks at Singapore are going to have a piece of the cake as Huawei International penned an MOU with the prestigious National University of Singapore Business Analytics Center with its goal of nurturing talent in the region. This will be a good opportunity to reduce talent drain in the tech sector.

Both Huawei and NUS BAC are working on understanding more about big data, cloud computing, business analytics and real world application, to give more opportunities to students and those who do research in the ICT sector. This would be like a sandbox so those who are still learning would be able to dip their hands into software, tech dev resources that Huawei is known for. This would also be a good place for those taking the Masters in Business Analytics program in NUS BAC to learn even more in this partnership with Huawei.

These efforts were lauded by Associate Professor James Pang Yan who also is the Co-Director of the NUS BAC. They will cooperate in the fields of big data, AI, cloud which will make their current expertise in business analytics, so they too would be involved in the ICT industry. This is indeed good news.

ASEAN Foundation Partners Up with Huawei to Address Talent Gap in the Region

It was a momentous occasion over at the Asia Pacific Innovation Day – Digital Talent Summit 2021 as the ASEAN Foundation signed a pact with tech giant Huawei to address the digital talent gap in the region.

It was well attended by decision makers, researchers and digital professionals in the summit that wants to put importance in building a sustainable system to take care of IT professionals, talents in this part of the world. Government representatives and stakeholders like Deputy Secretary-General of ASEAN for ASEAN Political Security Community H.E. Robert Matheus Michael Tene, Chair of the ASEAN Digital Senior Official Meeting H.E. Dato’ Sri Mohammad Mentek, the Philippine Ambassador to China H.E. Jose Santiago L. Sta. Romana was present during the event and gave keynote speech in support of these efforts. As you may know, ASEAN ICT professinals have to get their needs addressed and that accounts for a strong foundation that includes education, skills transfer and adapting to digital change in the ASEAN. This is one of the visions listed in the ASEAN Masterplan for 2025 that warrants to improve participation in digital societies. They also have lauded Huawei for entering joint venture agreements and collaborations with domestic agencies.

Jeffery Liu the President of Huawei Asia Pacific also stated that Huawei and their partners have will be investing $50 million in 5 years to develop over 500,000 digital talents in the Asia Pacific region. An MOU was also signed between two parties to strengthen ties between ASEAN Foundation and the Huawei ASEAN Academy. In it, they commit to scale up seeds for the future, a Huawei global CSR initiative that provides world class training for young ICT practitioners and students in participating countries. This includes the countries of the ASEAN region and was well accepted in the event.

The agreement was also witnessed by Executive Director of ASEAN Foundation Dr. Yang Mee Eng and the Vice President of Huawei Indonesia Albert Yang. Also in the privy was Deputy Permanent Representative of the Philippines to ASEAN Elizabeth Te, Permanent Representative of the Kingdom of Cambodia to ASEAN H.E. Amb. Yeap Samnang, Deputy Secretary-General of ASEAN for ASEAN Political Security Community H.E. Robert Matheus Michael Tene, Deputy Permanent Representative of Republic of Singapore to ASEAN Tham Borg Tsien and Huawei's very own Asia Pacific Vice President Jay Chen.

Huawei also promised ASEAN that it will bring in industry partners from private sector so that they too can contribute to youth development efforts in the ASEAN region.

Spruce Up Your Work and School Spaces with Globe At Home Prepaid WiFi

You've been working so hard at home, some of us are still studying online. Have you thought of tidying up your space? Or maybe look for things that could speed things up? How do you maintain work life balance during these days when everything seems so stressful? Here are a few things you can do to make it better!

Fix Up Your Space

You spend quite a number of hours in your work/study area so make sure it's comfortable. It should be conducive for what you are doing, so you have to make it clutter free. If it's something that you're not using for days, put it in proper storage rather than on top of your table. If you're using gadgets, a desktop computer, tidy up the cables and make sure it's not spread around. Hook it up or put cable organizers. Put pens and pencils in one place, cutters and scissors in another. Making it clutter free will also make you think clearly, put you into zen mode especially on those days when you're stressed and pressured. 

 

Speed and Reliability of your Internet Connection

Work, study and play won't happen if you don't have internet connection these days. I've always used data but always end up with a heated phone because it can't handle all my workload. Aside from that, everybody else at home needs internet. Globe’s At Home Prepaid Wifi was a lifesaver for us during a line outage in my locale. It's super fast and reliable because it connects to LTE. You can also share internet for other devices and people at home. It's quite affordable too because they've made it easy to load and subscriber to sulit promos. You can opt for the HS199 code which has 30GB  of data which you can use for 7 days. Pretty cheap, but amazingly fast.

Observe Work-Life Balance

The stress will also be there, but of course, if you're already working at home, where do you draw the line? If you work in the office from 8-5pm in the past, you should do the same even when you're at home. Truth is, some of us are even more efficient because we're more relaxed in our caves. But once work is done, it should be done. I used to never take vacations in the past, and it ended up making me burn out quite a bit and uninspired. Make time for family, for friends, because the amount of time you spend with them are precious. It doesn't have to cost much, make memories with them and don't even hesitate to tell them how much you love em. A simple game would do. Trust me on that.

By the way, if you're looking for things that can spruce up your space at work or at home, you can purchase the Globe at Home Prepaid Wifi through Globe's official store in Lazada. You can also get the chance to win Coocaa 55 inck 4K capable Android 10 and Smart flat screen Ultra HD LED Frameless TV worth Php 24,490. You can connect your devices to it too and the internet, so you don't have to make a fuzz when you need to look up things on the web. It's only available from September 1 to 30, so hurry!

Huawei Takes Part in Inclusive Integration of the Asia Pacific

 

A Huawei hosted conference over coffee recently talked about a topic called "Accelerate Digital Economy for Inclusive Integration in Asia Pacific – Connecting Digital Industries in Pandemic". It centers how to improve the ecosystem and promote working together so countries can leverage digital opportunities as we all work in the 4 corners of our home because of the pandemic. It was attended by different stakeholders from government, business, industrial and academic sectors.

Some have contributed their plans to remove trade barriers, so they can implement changes and become a remarkable player in the digital economy. Huawei wants to be part of ASEAN's digital master plan which includes ICT connectivity, discovering talent in the sector and preparing the ecosystem for it. It was graced by executives from Huawei including Jay Chen the Vice President of Huawei Asia Pacific, his excellency Djauhari Oratmangun the Ambassador of Indonesia to China, Andrew Williamson the Vice President and Economic Advisor for Government Affairs of Huawei also served as Moderator. Resource speakers include Dr. Le Quang Lan the current Assistant Director and Head of the ICT & Tourism Division for the ASEAN Secretariat, Dr. Vo Tri Thanh the Director of the Institute for Brand Strategy and Competition of Huawei, Dr. Tan Khee Giap the Chairman of the Singapore National Committee For Pacific Economic Cooperation (SINCPEC) as well as the Philippines very own Dr. Alvin P. Ang, an Economics Professor from the Ateneo de Manila University and Prof. Jose Decolongon the COO & Managing Director of Corporate Foresight of Embiggen Consulting  and members of the media witnessed the event.

This will hasten economic recovery in a much faster rate especially when everyone is struggling with all the health restrictions. Hopefully, we will get there.