Computer classes to be offered at soon-to-open QC IT building

MANILA, Philippines - Computer literacy training for public high school students will be offered when the Information Technology (IT) Building - worth P94.4 million - opens in Quezon City. In a telephone interview, Quezon City Mayor Feliciano "Sonny" S. Belmonte said that the construction of the IT-Centrex Building, located near SM North EDSA, along North Ave. in Quezon City, was completed last month. He said they are now in the process of conducting public biddings for the contractor who will supply the equipment as well as the system. "We expect the building to be operational late this year, probably on November," he said. He said the four-storey building is meant to centralize the computer education of all public schools of the city. "We want all high school students of Quezon City to be computer-literate... in order to prepare them in college," he said. He said the city government is currently in talks with the private sector on who would administer the operation of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) system of the building. He said the city is eyeing a US-based media company although a final agreement has not been reached. In a separate interview, Susan Baetiong, head of the City School Board Secretariat said that the training to be provided in the IT-Centrex Building would be an add-on to the regular curriculum of the schools. Ms. Baetiong said the city has allotted P48.1M for the procurement of computers and other equipment. — Elizabeth T. Marcelo, BusinessWorld