Smart chief wireless advisor Orlando B. Vea [second from left] and Smart president and CEO Napoleon L. Nazareno [third from left] receive an award for SafePH at the GSMA Global Mobile Awards ceremony in Barcelona
Smart chief wireless advisor Orlando B. Vea [second from left] and Smart president and CEO Napoleon L. Nazareno [third from left] receive an award for SafePH at the GSMA Global Mobile Awards ceremony in Barcelona, Spain.The prestigious Mobile World Congress, held in Barcelona, Spain, has awarded Smart Communications, Inc. for the company’s quick response in the restoration and emergency response through their revolutionary platform SmartNet soon after the typhoon Yolanda hit the Philippines.
Smart’s disaster preparedness and emergency response program, called SafePH, was put to a test when Yolanda devastated a large part of Central Philippines last November. GSMA Globe Mobile Awards 2014 tagged SafePH: “Best Use of Mobile for Emergency or Humanitarian Efforts.”
On many levels: preparedness, partnerships, and the rolling out of a whole portfolio of services aimed at improving communications access for the affected community in a rapidresponse fashion.
-GSMA Global Mobile Awards
Smart pre-positioned their personnel, equipment and relief goods in major areas in Central Philippines before Yolanda made landfall. The day after Yolanda hit the country, Smart, in cooperation with Telecoms Sans Frontieres and Thuraya Telecoms, immediately set up free call stations using satellite phones for survivors to get in touch with their love ones and communicate their needs.
Just a few weeks after the disaster, the Vodafone Foundation Instant Network was assisted by Smart engineers to provide interim communications support to the government and other humanitarian agencies to affected communities in Palo in Leyte and Guiuan and Borongan in Samar.
“We thank the GSMA for recognizing our disaster preparedness and response program, and for training the spotlight on Filipino resilience and the undying Bayanihanspirit which came in full display in the aftermath of Yolanda. This award belongs largely to our dedicated network engineers who quickly restored communication links in affected areas. We salute and thank them for their commitment and hard work,” said Smart president and chief executive officer Napoleon L. Nazareno.
From left to right: Telecoms.com editorial director Mike Hibberd, Voyager chief operating officer Jose Benjamin Fernandez, Smart chief wireless advisor Orlando Vea, Voyager department head Michael Padua, and Telecoms.com group publisher Tim Banham
Meanwhile, SmarNet was recognized as an innovative response to the challenges presented by the rise of OTT (over-the-top) services at the Telecoms.com Awards. SmartNet, developed by a Smart subsidiary, Voyager Innovations, offers a free use of popular mobile applications such as Facebook, Twitter and Yahoo! Messenger. The “Freemium” model allows the people to experience mobile internet without unexpected data charges because of SmartNet’s anti-billshock guarantee.
Smart was the only Philippine telco to be shortlisted at the Telecoms.com Awards. Telecoms.com is a leading provider of news, analysis and opinions about the telco industry worldwide.
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