DSWD Field Office VIII has recently acquired state-of-the-art satellite telecommunications equipment in order to enhance its emergency telecommunications capability for disaster response.

These equipment were donated to DSWD through a collaboration with Inmarsat, a British satellite telecommunications company and the UKSA (United Kingdom Space Agency) National Project Management Team. Through this partnership, Inmarsat will provide telecommunications equipment, training,  and subscription services to the DSWD Rapid Emergency Telecommunications Team (RETT).

During the initial turn-over, DSWD Field Office (FO) VIII received equipment worth P929,637.24, including satellite phones, batteries, a folding solar panel, extension cables, and broadband global area network terminals to allow wifi access anywhere in the globe. Aside from the equipment, Inmarsat experts will also provide training for the DSWD FO VIII RETT.

Several field offices have been selected to pioneer this project, including FO V, FO CAR, FO XII and FO VIII. Project implementation in these offices has already commenced earlier this year.

Over-all, the total cost of this project for FO VIII is about P5,000,000.00. #