President Aquino signed on Monday Republic Act 10844 creating the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), Communications Secretary Herminio B. Coloma Jr. announced. The new specialized department will merge the following agencies into the newly created DICT: Information and Communications Technology Office; National Computer Center; National Computer Institute; Telecommunications Office; National Telecommunications Training Institute; and all operating units of the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) with functions and responsibilities dealing with communications.
The National Telecommunications Commission, the National Privacy Commission and the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordination Center were also mandated to become attached agencies of the new DICT for policy and program coordination, and shall continue to operate in accordance with their respective charters. As a result of the creation of the DICT, the DOTC shall be renamed as the Department of Transportation. Under the new law, the DICT shall be headed by a secretary, who will be assisted by three undersecretaries and four assistant secretaries.
Two of the undersecretaries and two of the assistant secretaries shall be career officers, and one of the four assistant secretaries should be a licensed professional electronics engineer.
“Moreover, the law also requires that the Secretary, as well as the Undersecretaries and Assistant Secretaries, have at least seven years of competence and expertise in any of the following: information and communications technology; information technology service management; information security management; cybersecurity, data privacy, e-commerce, or human capital development in the ICT sector,” Coloma said in a statement.
The new law provides for a six-month transition period, during which the transfer of functions, assets and personnel should be completed.