PH, Estonia eye digital cooperation deal

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 15) — The Philippines is partnering with Estonia in digital cooperation to strengthen cybersecurity and e-governance initiatives, according to the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT).

In a statement Thursday, the DICT said Sec. Ivan John Uy told Prime Minister Kaja Kallas that the Philippines is already preparing the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on digital cooperation during the bilateral meeting held on the sidelines of the Tallinn Digital Summit 2023 in Estonia.

The MOU awaits feedback from relevant stakeholders, according to the DICT.

"The proposed MOU between the Philippines and Estonia will pave the way for future agreements in other fields of ICT, support the government's digital transformation, and enhance the country's cybersecurity posture," Uy said.

Kallas said he anticipated the signing of the MOU that will establish the framework for future collaborations between the two countries.

In 2022, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Kallas also discussed advancing digitalization, particularly addressing cyberattacks. 

Estonia, a small country with a population of 1.3 million, was ranked third in the world in terms of cyber defense infrastructure by the Global Cybersecurity Index.