The National Water Resources Board (NWRB) has released last week a tender notice for the development of an electronic records management system in a bid to address challenges posed by paper-based record keeping.

NWRB is the lead government agency in the Philippine water sector, conferred with policy-making, regulatory and quasi-judicial functions. It is responsible for ensuring the optimum exploitation, use, development, conservation and protection of the country’s water resource, consistent with the principles of Integrated Water Resource Management.

Gilbert Verana, an Information Systems Analyst at NWRB, told FutureGov that when employees need certain documents or records, they simply go to the archives section to retrieve the manila folder where it is filed. Days later, employees would return it either damaged or missing several important pages.

The project, which costs about Php 4,000,000 (USD 92,000), will facilitate quick access to the right information, prevent damages to documents caused by constant handling, and ensure seamless and secure access for select authorised personnel.