Celebrating connectivity

I've written here before about how the United Nations (UN) bestowed upon the Philippines the UN E-Government Award in recognition of the country's remarkable progress in e-governance from 2022 to 2024 and about how the Philippines was one of only 12 out of 193 countries worldwide to receive the award.

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(Front, from left) Victor “Viboy” Genuino, DICT Undersecretary David Almirol, Jr.,PLDT-Smart chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan, President Marcos, First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos, the author, Chaye Cabal-Revilla, and Vic Tri; (back, from left) Richard Lucas, Ruby Montoya, Nathan San Diego (behind the President), Leo Posadas, Secretary Henry Aguda and Amil Azurin Manuel V. Pangilinan Cory Quirino and the First Lady

This award was conferred by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA) during a special segment of the 2025 UN Public Service Forum held in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. It acknowledges countries that were significantly advanced in the UN E-Government Development Index (EGDI) and the Online Service Index (OSI) — two global benchmarks for measuring government digital performance.

The country improved its classification from “High” to “Very High” in the E-Government Development Index (EGDI), rose more than 15 places in the EGDI global ranking, and also moved from “High” to “Very High” in the Online Service Index (OSI) after achieving an increase of over 15% between 2022 and 2024.

According to DICT Undersecretary for E-Government, David Almirol Jr., these milestones “reflect the government’s sustained efforts to digitalize public services and make them more accessible, secure, and citizen-centric” and that “this global recognition by the UN validates the Philippines’ digital transformation roadmap under President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., aligning with his vision to make government services more efficient, inclusive, and future-ready.”