NDC innovation hub expanding

NDC innovation hub expanding | Daily Tribune

State-owned holding company National Development Co. announced that it will expand the Philippine Innovation Hub this year to further promote the digital landscape among Filipinos.

During the Rotary Club of Manila’s 26th general meeting on Thursday at the Manila Polo Club, NDC general manager and Trade Undersecretary Antonilo Mauricio said NDC is gearing up to expand its Philippine Innovation Hub in 10 regions of the country, as well as its international offices.

In the Philippines, NDC will put up regional hubs in Luzon, namely in Naga City, Batangas, La Union and Nueva Ecija; Cebu, Iloilo and Tacloban in the Visayas and Mindanao, and General Santos, Davao and Cagayan De Oro in Mindanao.

Further, Mauricio said NDC will also put up international offices for the Philippine Innovation Hub in Singapore, Hong Kong, and possibly Dubai, London and Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia.

Growing together

“We don’t want the provinces outside of Metro Manila to be left behind with innovation, so there has to be a physical space for the start-up MSMEs to go to and have access to incubation, acceleration, government support, and potential funding. They can talk directly to the command center outside Metro Manila,” Mauricio stressed.

On the other hand, he said the point of opening up international offices is for the Philippine businesses who would want to open offices in those countries to also receive government support, temporary office addresses, and potential investors for enterprises.

The NDC has set up the Ph iHub (Philippine Innovation Hub) and has been signing up knowledge partners. It is building the Philippine Innovation Registry, seen to be a nexus and clearinghouse of information on the innovation projects that could benefit the country and its people.

The Ph iHub is also the headquarters of the Startup Venture Fund, the Philippine E-commerce Platform, and the Ph AI Research Center.

In 2023, the NDC met with the National Innovation Council to help coordinate, streamline and eliminate overlaps in the innovation efforts of the Philippines.

The NIC is a 25-member policy advisory body in the Philippines. It is chaired by the President of the Philippines, the NEDA Secretary as Vice-Chairperson, 16 Department Secretaries, and 7 Executive Members from the private sector.