MANILA, PHILIPPINES — The Subic-Clark Alliance for Development (SCAD) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Mastercard to join the company’s City Possible™ program. Connecting with a network of more than 300 member and candidate cities around the world, the partnership aims to drive greater infrastructural efficiencies, economic growth, digital and financial inclusion in the Subic-Clark corridor.
The SCAD council ensures an integrated approach to the development of the Subic-Clark corridor located in Luzon, marking it as a strategic geographical zone that is experiencing both extensive growth and significant urbanization-related challenges. With excellent air, sea and land connectivity, the area is primed to be the premiere gateway to a range of international and local connections.
This partnership will see Mastercard and SCAD leverage technology and data to develop and implement solutions for the Alliance’s pressing urban challenges such as digitization of local government units and enhancement of the agricultural supply chain. The collaboration aims to elevate SCAD’s ambitions to be a digital innovation leader and to connect with regional and global partners to co-create and develop sustainable solutions that will benefit residents.
Pioneered by Mastercard, City Possible is a partnership and co-creation program designed to #MakeTechWorkForPeople by aligning key stakeholders to address urban challenges. City Possible provides members unrivaled access to a global community of urban leaders, businesses, NGOs, and academics and are regularly invited to a series of knowledge-exchange forums where participants identify common challenges, exchange learnings, and establish holistic urban solutions. Leveraging innovative technology, data insights, and strategic partnerships, Mastercard is helping cities become more connected and resilient by focusing on improving efficiencies by eliminating the cost and consequence of cash, promoting inclusive economic development by unlocking the power of data, and expanding access to city programs by digitizing municipal services.
“The Subic-Clark corridor has great potential to be a world-class mega-logistics hub serving as the Philippines’ gateway to the Asia Pacific region, bringing in investments, generating employment, and improving the quality of life for residents. Joining Mastercard’s City Possible program will not only help to accelerate the development, piloting, and scaling of solutions, but also drive economic growth and innovation in Subic and Clark,” said Carminda Fabros, Executive Director of Subic-Clark Alliance for Development.
“To ensure a successful partnership, Mastercard looks forward to facilitating engagements between SCAD and global cities that will help the Alliance achieve digital transformation and deploy world-class sustainability solutions. These will address challenges such as transport issues and boosting tourism, which will ultimately benefit the local community,” said Simon Calasanz, Country Manager, the Philippines, Mastercard.
In 2020, two other members within ASEAN joined Mastercard’s program. Thailand’s Digital Economy Promotion Agency (depa) inducted 40 Thai cities into the City Possible network to advance the government’s Thailand 4.0 initiative which aims to transform the country into a high-income nation with vastly improved quality of life in urban centers. Singapore Tourism Board (STB) also joined City Possible to help enterprises in Singapore’s travel sector to access and deploy innovative payments technologies, resources and expertise to co-create a robust tourism ecosystem.
“City Possible is delighted to welcome Philippines’ SCAD, a third member from ASEAN, into its expanding network. The Alliance is a leading influencer for inclusive urban development policies in the Subic-Clark economic corridor and will bring invaluable knowledge to Mastercard’s network and members,” said Miguel Gamiño, Executive Vice President and Head of Global Cities at Mastercard.
Digitalization has been a key tenet of Mastercard’s work with public and private sector partners assisting with COVID-19 relief efforts in the Philippines. In collaboration with Land Bank of the Philippines, prepaid Mastercard cards have been introduced by the Department of Social Welfare and Development to distribute relief funds to approximately 2.4 million Filipinos. Mastercard also partnered with fintech GCash to electronically disburse financial aid to over 90,000 citizens in Makati City via the Makatizen card.
