Engr. Edward Lactam, CeC staff, conducting the lecture

The training aims to equip and capacitate barangay officials with basic computer knowledge and operations essential in office functions and records management. It is conducted every Friday at the eCenter. Since there are only ten computer units available for use in the training at the eCenter, the training is conducted in batches with nine participants per batch.

Serving as the lecturer is the IT Officer, Engr. Edward Lactam, and the trainers/coaches are the staff composed of eight personnel of the Municipal Planning and Development Office where the eCenter is housed.

As part of its on-going efforts towards inclusiveness, relevance and to focus on the unserved and underserved, the Philippine Community eCenter Program is piloting the implementation of the Gender Evaluation Methodology (GEM) for telecenters in the Philippines. This pilot study is being funded by the Association for Progressive Communications (APC) and is being implemented in partnership with the Molave Development Foundation, Inc. (MDFI) from November 2008 to February 2009.

GEM is an innovative approach that evaluates the effectiveness and responsiveness of ICT-based initiatives, using gender-sensitive tools and approaches. The methodology is currently being piloted specifically for CeCs in two municipalities: Bato, Leyte and Binalonan, Pangasinan.

In these two communities, the CeC manager, together with CeC staff and identified local government officials, students and other volunteers, have been trained by MDFI to be data collectors, encoders and mentors, as well as to participate in the evaluation process. They will be responsible for collecting quantitative data using survey questionnaires that will be used to gather information on issues related to demographics, CeC and ICT awareness and utilization, and gender. Focus group discussions and key informant interviews are used to distil qualitative information that will be used to complement the data. All these processes will follow GEM’s seven steps in evaluating the gender-sensitivity and responsiveness of the CeCs. 

Ms. Celina R. Adaron is one of the data collectors under the project “Adaptation of Gender Evaluation Methodology” or GEM being implemented in the Community eCenter of Bato, Leyte. As a data collector, she participated in the gender sensitivity training as well as the data collectors and local mentors training. 

She shares that through these training, she realized that men and women, by nature, were created equal, but because of the standards that were set and the practices in society, inequalities and gender biases between roles, duties and responsibilities, division of labor, and rights of men and women exist. According to her, she also gained new knowledge on how to formulate an effective data plan and how to conduct an interview based on the different workshops and discussions.

Celina relates that it’s not easy to deal with individuals who possess different characteristics. As a matter of fact, it took a lot of patience on their part as interviewers just to acquire relevant information from the respondents. She learned that most of the people in Bato were not aware of the existence of the CeC.  In fact majority of their respondents did not know how to use and operate computers.

Lastly, Celina notes that ICT has some connection with gender issues. Studying the reasons why there is inequality in the percentage of men and women with computer access should be undertaken in order to create solutions or remedies for the nation’s progress. This underscores the critical role of the CeC in the development of the nation.

Sharing about Batac Cyber Comm during the visit to eSkwela in Tejero, Cebu

Participants of this exchange program likewise endowed me tips and ideas that are useful in strengthening and improving the operation of our cyber comm, not to mention that they are the least restrained and most boisterous group I have ever been with among all similar undertakings I had attended.  Being the oldest (by birth maybe but not by heart) in the group and probably the least literate in terms of computer lingo, I take pride in my inclusion to this novel experience.  I look forward to not only strengthening our cyber comm in Batac but likewise in helping harness the existing eCenter infrastructure and facilities in our locality so that the ultimate goal of CeCs of bridging the digital divide comes to a reality.