President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. is confident that the Philippines can catch up with other countries in terms of digitalization through the help of the private sector.

Addressing the National Information and Communications Technology Summit 2022 at the Manila Hotel on Wednesday, the President called on government partners to help build a better and more progressive future for the country's Information and Communications Technology sector and the bureaucracy.

Recognizing that the private sector is the one leading the technology, Marcos said its assistance would help his administration to provide "fast, transparent, and efficient" services to the public.

"Those partnerships are not a business partnership, but I suppose it is a sharing of technologies, a sharing of knowledge. It is a sharing of the state-of-the-art from the private sector, with the public sector, and that working together that will bring us to success," he said.

It is imperative, Marcos said, to adopt a "holistic" approach to harnessing various technologies for the country's digital transformation.

"We have the tools. We have the knowledge. And most importantly, we have the people. All that is left to do is to have the will and the resolve to achieve it. So I reiterate my call to our partners: Let us forge ahead, build a better, brighter, more progressive future for the ICT sector, for the bureaucracy, for the entire Philippines," he said.

Moreover, he said the country could achieve a digital Philippines by enhancing its digital infrastructure, improving the regulatory framework for innovation, ensuring cybersecurity, and developing the country's digital workforce.