Davao City to become 'intelligent city': IBM’s Intelligent Operations Center to be implemented, the first in world aimed to improve the city’s public safety

Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio and IBM Philippines Country
General Manager Mariels Almeda Winhoffer sign the
memorandum of agreement at the Public Safety
Command Center last June.

Davao City has been known as one of the safest places in the country and a region with continuous economic development. The same region might be soon be labelled as the most "techie" city in the Philippines, with the support of US-based technology giant IBM and the Davao City government who envision the city to advance in technologies and, thus, to improve the city's management and efficiency.

In an interview with the newspaper Inquirer, Mariels Almeda-Winhoffer, IBM Philippines’ newly appointed president and country manager said that Davao owns already a working command center which gives a platform for government employees to monitor the city from 'above', with closed-circuit TV cameras. This technology has been assisting the local government to respond effectively to emergencies, fires and rescue operations, and other situations where police force were be needed.

Winhoffer explained that IBM wants "to further automate its operations and enhance intelligence into the system," by setting up an IBM Intelligent Operations Center at the city's Public Safety and Security Command Center (PSSCC).

She mentioned as well that the same technology is the same as IBM's super-computer, called Watson. Watson won games of "Jeopardy" against its best players.

She said “I believe that, after this, Davao will be the safest city in the world.”

“The city, thanks to Mayor (Sarah) Duterte, already has the basics. We just want to elevate their capability,” she said to the reporter.

The US American-owned company has been deploying related technologies in other cities all over the world, however Davao would be the only place where the main focus would be public safety and security.

“Davao will be the first in the world to have this kind of technology,” she said, and that this "intelligent city" will be one of the fastest accelerating cities in Mindanao like no other seen, but Winhoffer believes that this equipment will respond to citizens’ needs, with a particular focus on safety, would boost Davao’s tourism sector and make the city even more of a major investment draw.