From Classrooms to Communities: PLDT and Smart Renew 21-Year SWEEP Partnership With AdZU

Through their renewed partnership with Ateneo de Zamboanga University (AdZU), PLDT and its wireless arm, Smart Communications, Inc., are empowering young Filipinos in Mindanao to turn education into real-world solutions, showing how technology and learning can directly uplift communities.

The partnership between PLDT, Smart, and AdZU under the Smart Wireless Engineering Education Program (SWEEP), began in 2004 with the turnover of a Smart Wireless Laboratory equipped with technical tools to upgrade the university’s IT and engineering facilities.

PLDT and Smart Public Engagement First Vice President Roby Alampay said, “PLDT, Smart, and the larger MVP Group, truly believe that Ateneo plays an important part in the development, peace, and progress of this region. A laboratory like this may look small, but even a small token of our cooperation stands for something much bigger. We invested in SWEEP decades ago on the faith that people would be the product – and we have trained thousands of faculty and students, produced several startups, as well as a lot of other undocumented successes. Ipagpatuloy natin ito.”

A pioneering initiative of Smart, SWEEP is the country’s first and longest-running industry-academe linkage program that enhances technology education and helps produce industry-ready engineering and IT graduates. Since the partnership began, AdZU students have actively participated in SWEEP, gaining mentorship and hands-on experience to sharpen their skills and develop innovative solutions that address the needs of their communities.

AdZU President Fr. Guillrey Anthony Andal, SJ, emphasized the importance of SWEEP to Zamboanga City and its communities. “SWEEP has consistently asked, "What do students need now to meet tomorrow with confidence?" "This same question lies at the heart of our mission as a university here in Western Mindanao. When the things that we learn in our laboratories or in our classrooms are used for others —when they help a farmer bring produce to market or allow a doctor to reach a patient in a distant barangay, that's when we know that the education we are providing here at AdZU is truly impactful,” he said.

“This is why we are deeply grateful to PLDT and Smart for more than two decades of this beautiful partnership. You are not only providing training, equipment, and connectivity—we honestly believe you are opening doors for each of us,” he added.

As part of this ongoing collaboration, AdZU has also played a key role in developing mobile literacy applications for the Chavacano and Tausug languages. The #LearnSmart Apprende and Hinduan apps provide educators with accessible and engaging digital tools to teach these local languages to younger generations, while preserving the rich cultural heritage of Zamboanga City.

These initiatives contribute to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4: Quality Education, by promoting inclusive and equitable learning opportunities, and SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities, by safeguarding cultural heritage through innovative digital solutions.