19 Sept 2019 (Quezon City) -- Mixed reactions greeted over 100 government chief information officers (CIO) and information technology (IT) managers as they met for the 2019 3rd General Membership Meeting and Conference of the CIO Forum (CIOF) last 18 September at New Park Inn by Radisson at SM North EDSA Complex here.

Opening glitches associated with brand-new hotels delayed the conference for about two hours, right in the middle of the keynote message delivered by Assistant Secretary Emmanuel Rey Caintic on behalf of recently-confirmed Secretary Gregorio B. Honasan II of the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT).

Theme of the conference was "Securing Citizen-Friendly Government Online Services," the third in a yearlong series of discussions on "Strengthening Government Data Platforms and Services."

The delegates represented over 30 agencies, including: Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center, Bureau of Internal Revenue, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, Cooperative Development Authority, Commission on Filipinos Overseas, Department of Agriculture, Department of Budget and Management, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, DICT, Department of National Defense, Department of Public Works and Highways, Department of Energy, Department of Trade and Industry, Government Service Insurance System, Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council, Insurance Commission, Land Bank, Light Rail Transport Authority, Mandaluyong City, National Power Corp., National Electrification Administration, National Food Authority, Presidential Communications Operations Office, Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation, Philippine Economic Zone Authority, Philippine Guarantee Corp., Philippine Reclamation Authority, Securities and Exchange Commission, Social Security System, Saint Lukes Medical Center, and Tariff Commission.

Discussions revolved around online government services that comply with the 'Ease of Doing Business' (EODB) law while ensuring security and data privacy. Local EODB initiatives were presented by representatives from Quezon City and Taytay, Rizal.

DICT's roadmap and thrusts for the next three years, including the national broadband plan, the eGovernment Master Plan 2022, and updates on the Philippine ID system were also presented.

CIOF President B. Elizabeth E. Yap officiated the oath-taking of four new regular and one associate members of CIOF.

The quarterly gathering was organized by sister organization CIOF Foundation (CIOFF), with a joint CIOF-CIOFF project management team coordinating the undertaking.

The event was supported by industry partners such as Fortinet/VST, Eastern Communications, Globe Business, AltHash/HTMLCoin, Ardent Networks, and American Technologies Inc.

Ms. Jenny Rose Red of the Philippine Information Agency hosted the gathering.