To promote strong collaborations and partnerships with the academic sector, the Davao Public Transport Modernization Project (DPTMP) or Davao Bus on Thursday held Biyahe Ta, Bai!, a focus group discussion with representatives from various academic institutions in the city.
The event highlighted the importance of the involvement of the academic sector in projects similar to the Davao Bus, especially in fostering experts in the field.
โWe see the academe as a key partner in fostering future experts who can contribute to projects like this (Davao Bus),โ Genevieve Gamueta, Assistant Project Manager of the Davao Bus, said during her discussion.
Gamueta also said that the Davao Bus is open for collaborations with the academic institutions especially in the field of transportation and social development.
The Davao Bus currently offers trainings in personal development, essential life skills, financial literacy, entrepreneurial mindsetting, gender and development, and employment facilitation to jeepney drivers and operators through its Social Development Program (SDP).
Schools offering social work programs and transportation-related courses such as transportation engineering and other related fields are encouraged to have their students apply for internships or collaborate with the Davao Bus.
Such collaborations offer an avenue for an exchange of knowledge and expertise essential in the growth and development of the youth and the city.
โIf ever your schools could produce experts that we need in the project, I hope you introduce the Davao Bus project to them. Through this, we hope to highlight the opportunities for academic involvement, research, and professional growth within our organization,โ Gamueta said.
In her talk, Gamueta also shared to the participants the current organizational chart of the Davao Bus to โinspire a deeper understanding of the expertise required to execute and sustain a projectโ like the DPTMP.
โWe also hope that it would become an invitation to us to collaborate whether it be in policy development, technological innovation, or environmental planning,โ she said.
Mayor Sebastian Duterte, in a message read by City Councilor Conrado Baluran, expressed his hope that the academic sector joins the city government in promoting a transportation system that prioritizes mobility and efficiency.
โIt is our hope that we may count on the support of our academic sector whose expertise and research will be instrumental in shaping a transportation system that not only prioritizes accessibility, efficiency, sustainability, and safety but also upholds aspirations and values of every Dabawenyo commuter,โ he said.
During the discussion, updates on the project as well as the challenges it is facing were presented.
Currently, the Davao Bus project is awaiting the release of the budget from the national government to proceed with the necessary constructions of the infrastructure essential for the implementation of the bus system as well as for the purchase of its bus fleet. CIO
