I think the Philippines still need to improve on all the five themes. However, I think the one that is most relevant today is about Transparency and Trust (Theme 2). The controversy surrounding the alleged corruption on flood control projects worth billions of pesos have been on the headlines for weeks now, with private contractors and government officials under investigation. Although the main agency involved is the Department of Public Health and Highways (DPWH) and not the Department of Health, I think this controversy affects the public’s trust on the government as a whole. We have to put extra effort in getting the public to trust the digital health care tools and systems that we are going to use, and ensure them that their health data are secured and kept private. Transparency is also very important, so people will be assured that their taxes are being used on real digital health projects, not “ghost” projects.
