A lot is riding on this Community eCenter — the renaissance of Ifugao heritage and the future of the renowned Ifugao Rice Terraces. The ePuggo (native for “from the mountains”) CeC is answering the challenge with effective use of information and communications technology (ICT) to bring new life to the
Rice Terraces, declared as a UNESCO world heritage site.

Springing from the joint efforts of the Save the Ifugao Terraces Movement (SITMO) and the Last Mile Initiative-Philippines (LMIP) of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the ePuggo CeC is the Internet solution to boosting needed eco-tourism for this engineering marvel of the ancient world.

In creating the CeC, SITMO, an NGO dedicated to the preservation of the Terraces, provided the impetus for ecotourism and the promotion of Ifugao culture while LMIP, bringing in Intel and Microsoft, provided the eCenter with computer equipment, software and applications, and broadband connectivity via VSAT.

ICT training participants in Kiangan, Ifugao

LGU execs try out Internet surfing