PH digital competitiveness drops

The Philippines' digital competitiveness has fallen for a second straight year based on an annual ranking released on Thursday by Switzerland's Institute for Management Development (IMD).

The country was 61st out of 67 economies in the 2024 list, produced by the IMD's World Competitiveness Center (WCC). This was down from 59th last year when it lost three spots from 56th in 2022.

It was next to last among 14 Asia-Pacific countries, unchanged since 2020, and 25th among 30 economies with populations of more than 20 million, also the same as last year.

Singapore continued to lead the list while the United States experienced a three-place drop to fourth. Switzerland and Denmark took second and third, respectively.

Singapore's top ranking was said to reflect its advanced city management, prolific high-tech patent grants, and robust banking and financial sectors.

Switzerland, meanwhile, improved in terms of high-tech exports and cybersecurity, and Denmark was strong in the areas of employee training, e-governance and secure internet servers.

In contrast, the US saw declines in its attitude to globalization, international managerial experience and increasing fears of failure among entrepreneurs.

The IMD ranking measures digital competitiveness using three main factors — knowledge, technology and future readiness — and the Philippines lost places with regard to the first two.

It was 64th in terms of knowledge, 56th in terms of technology — down from last year's 59th and 63rd, respectively. It edged up, however, to 58th from 59th in the area of future readiness.

Broken down further, the Philippines' rankings also slipped with regard to sub-factors under the three main categories.

It fell to 60th from 56th in terms of talent, 61st from 58th in scientific concentration, and remained 62nd in training and education — all under the knowledge pillar.

Sub-factor rankings under technology all fell: 66th from 63rd for regulatory framework, 45th from 41st for capital and 53rd from 43rd in the area of technological framework.

Improvements, however, came in the future readiness sub-factors of adaptive attitudes (52nd from 59th) and IT integration, 58th from 60th, although a drip to 54th from 50th was seen in the area of business agility.

There were some bright spots for the country: it was second overall in terms of female researchers (under scientific concentration) and high-tech exports (technological framework).

It was 22nd with regard to science graduates (training and education), 9th in telecommunication invest ments (capital), and 19th in flexibility and adaptability (adaptive attitudes).

The biggest weaknesses, meanwhile, were in the areas of artificial intelligence (AI) articles (66th, scientific concentration), secure internet servers and communications technology (64th and 66th, respectively, under technological framework), and starting a business and enforcing contracts (65th and 64th, regulatory framework).

The country's main challenges, according to IMD partner the Rizalino Navarro Policy Center for Competitiveness of the Asian Institute of Management, are:

– sustaining job-generating investments;

– ensuring food security to temper inflation and keep prices affordable;

– addressing learning gaps to improve the education system;

– building sustainable infrastructure to reduce climate change vulnerability; and

– resolving the Philippines' territorial rights to the West Philippine Sea diplomatically and peacefully.

Jose Caballero, senior economist at the WCC, said that geopolitical rivalries — particularly between the US and China — were fragmenting the global digital landscape.

Geopolitical tensions have also become a defining feature in shaping digital competitiveness, the IMD said.

Economies, the business school said, will have to grapple with the pace of technological change and capability requirements.

Countries that effectively exploit the power of new technologies such as AI, blockchain and quantum computing, it added, "are likely to enhance their digital competitive advantage, leading to sustained economic growth, improved productivity and greater global influence.

Source: Manila Times

Big Byte Index: Philippines’ monthly internet cost 37th cheapest in the world

The Philippines ranked 37th out of 168 countries in World Data Lab’s Big Byte Index 2024, after scoring 16.6 out of 100. This means the country’s internet price at $4.8 a month is lower than the United States’ $28.8. The Philippines had the fourth-cheapest internet price compared with its peers in the East and Southeast Asian region.

The Philippines ranked 56th out of 169 countries in terms of the “internet poor” as a share of the population, according to the 2024 Internet Poverty Index by Austria-based data enterprise World Data Lab. This translated to over 18.33 million Filipinos or 15.9% of the total population who cannot afford a 1-GB-per-month internet package, the third highest in the region.

Source: Business World

Technology’s role in the future of property management

Property management as an industry thrives in developing economies like the Philippines with robust real estate markets, stable legal frameworks and regulatory oversight, and an environment ripe for turning assets into thriving investments.

Metro Manila’s decentralization and the rise of emerging cities in the provinces are spurring the industry to life. As the urbanization of provinces accelerates and real estate markets expand to those outside the capital, the demand for professional property management also rises.

Property managers — whose tasks encompass a gamut of services from the oversight and administration of daily property operations to maintaining property quality through consistent upkeep and repairs — are necessary to ensure the efficient utilization and maintenance of real estate assets, especially for property investors.

The property management industry brings structure and expertise to managing residential, commercial, and mixed-use properties, ensuring they meet modern standards of safety, sustainability, and tenant satisfaction. In a developing economy, where resources need to be maximized, effective property management can even considerably enhance the appeal and functionality of real estate, attracting investments and contributing to economic stability and growth.

It is an especially remarkable period for the industry, as the country’s onward march towards economic growth and urban development coincides with transformative breakthroughs in technology. Machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI), for instance, are at the forefront, offering unprecedented capabilities to predict and manage various aspects of property management.

Advanced property management software today utilizes big data to monitor property performance, finances, and tenant behaviors, enabling managers to identify key performance indicators and address weak areas. Meanwhile, sustainability is another critical trend reshaping the industry, as property managers increasingly focus on reducing the carbon footprint of their assets by optimizing energy consumption, improving waste management, and incorporating renewable energy resources.

In fact, many local governments across the nation are utilizing technology to improve their cities. In April, the Baguio City government said it is implementing a technology-enabled initiative titled “Project MINERVA (Monitoring of Indicators for Efficient Redevelopment and Value Assessment)” to address urban decay and promote smart city development.

“With the project’s ultimate goal of driving predictions and monitoring models for air quality, water quality, urban mobility, and tourism management, we’re able to use technology to advance our goal of becoming a truly smart city by 2027,” Baguio City Mayor Benjamin B. Magalong said.

Other cities are also turning towards the smart city route. There are the emerging hot spots, like Cebu, Davao, Bacolod, and Iloilo. Early this year, smart city developer Iveda launched a $5-million venture to execute several contracts over the next 12 months to bring smart technologies to these cities. The initiative will build on their existing work in the country and roll out AI-enabled technologies to modernize key infrastructure, such as airports, roads and sidewalks, leveraging AI tools to enhance public safety and city management.

There are also others like the City of Victorias in Negros Occidental, for another example, which announced a digital road map for the implementation of a smart city master plan merging technology and government in partnership with data science and artificial intelligence company Aboitiz Data Innovation (ADI).

Technology is revolutionizing the real estate sector as a whole; and property managers, by embracing these technological trends, can stay competitive in an industry that is poised for growth and meet the ever-evolving needs of urban living

Source: Business World