■ Harley F. Palangchao
The donation drive of the Cordillera Golfers Foundation, Inc. (CGFI) has come full circle with the turnover of 10 Starlink devices to schools under the Schools Division Office of Apayao.
Sans formal turnover, the donation of Starlink gadgets by CGFI was courtesy of the P300,000 the group has allocated to the SDO Apayao in a bid to make Internet service accessible to the students enrolled in schools situated in the remote parts of the province.
Starlink is the world’s first and lar-gest satellite constellation using a low Earth orbit to deliver Internet thereby, providing high-speed net access to users across the globe, including those in far-flung areas.
Photographs taken by teachers from Apayao showed students of Marag Valley Agri Trade High School in Luna town and Guinaang National High School in Conner town enjoying free access to fast Internet service through their mobile phones.
Teachers, on the other hand, also use the Internet service to update their modules and do research to further improve their lesson plans.
The request for Starlink Internet service was the priority request of SDO Apayao to CGFI when the officers of the foundation met with top officials of the Department of Education-Cordillera last year.
To recall, the CGFI has allocated P2.4 million from the proceeds of its maiden tournament in Baguio in May 2023, which was equally divided by the eight SDOs in the provinces of Apayao, Abra, Benguet, Ifugao, Kalinga, and Mountain Province, including the cities of Baguio and Tabuk.
Last year, Apayao Gov. Elias Bulut, Jr. has also committed that the provincial government was negotiating with Startlink for the provision of quality Internet service to educational institutions in the province.
“We are committed to providing our students with the best possible education, and reliable Internet service is a crucial component of that,” Bulut was quoted as saying.
Starlink is a satellite Internet constellation operated by private aerospace company SpaceX, providing coverage to over 71 countries, including the Philippines.
