The First Innovators Summit Comes to Capiz.

A Milestone for Capiz: The First Innovators Summit Lands in Roxas City

On August 17 and 18, 2026, Lakehouse 2 at San Antonio Resort became the gathering point for something Roxas City had never hosted before: a full-scale regional innovation summit.

Seasoned MSME owners sat beside students rehearsing elevator pitches in corners. Government officials, academic directors, and startup founders shared one stage without a corporate script. For two days, the room felt like exactly the kind of city Capiz has always been capable of becoming.

The Innovators Summit 2026: Design Thinking, Startup Development, and Pitching Challenge, Capiz Leg was jointly organized by PCCI Western Visayas and JCI Roxas Makawiwili, in partnership with DOST Region VI, DOST Capiz iHub, DTI, and DICT. As a homegrown Capisnon technology and connectivity provider, Wesfardell Connect was proud to serve as a sponsor.

A special recognition belongs to Eliza Capa, President of JCI Roxas Makawiwili and a fellow local business owner. Her relentless drive and community leadership made this landmark summit a reality for Roxas City.

The Capiz Fireside Chat: Leaders at the Same Table

The summit's centerpiece was the Capiz Fireside Chat on Innovation and Entrepreneurship, co-organized by the DOST Innovation Hub (iHub) and moderated by Mr. Jose Francisco Gerona, National Director for Business and Entrepreneurship.

The conversation was candid, grounded, and practical: exactly what Capiz founders needed to hear.

Engr. Rowen R. Gelonga, CESO II (Regional Director, DOST Western Visayas)*: For Engr. Gelonga, the argument was clear: sustained investment in Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI) is not optional for regional growth. He mapped how DOST iHubs and Technology Business Incubators (TBIs) shepherd early-stage ideas from initial discovery all the way to commercial rollout.

Wesley Selda (President, Wesfardell Connect; Vice President, Philippine Cable and Telecommunications Association)*: Wesley brought the provincial builder's lens: what digital infrastructure actually looks like when you are laying it across a typhoon-prone province, and why fast, reliable fiber connectivity is the bedrock that every Capisnon startup, remote worker, and MSME is building on, whether they realize it or not.

Mr. Nic Caspe (CEO & Founder, HLGYN Clothing Co.)*: Nic Caspe kept it real. Market validation, bootstrapping, branding on a shoestring: the daily arithmetic of running an independent brand that actually survives its first three years.

Prof. French A. Dampog (Director, Intellectual Property Management Office (IPMO), Capiz State University TBI)*: Prof. Dampog flagged the gap most Capisnon founders overlook: the bridge between a good academic invention and a commercially defensible product. IP protection is not paperwork. It is leverage.

Engr. Fulbert Woo (PCCI Western Visayas)*: Engr. Woo rounded out the panel with the chamber perspective: how regional business networks open market doors that individual founders cannot crack alone.

Nurturing the Coming Generation: Design Thinking & Pitching

Following the fireside session, participants moved into intensive Design Thinking sprints, forming multidisciplinary teams to tackle real challenges across agriculture, logistics, tourism, and digital commerce.

Supported by mentors from across Western Visayas, these teams transformed raw ideas into validated prototypes and sharp value propositions, then took the stage for the final Startup Pitching Challenge.

Watching young people learn to frame a problem, find a market, and pitch a solution from scratch over two days: that, for me, was the summit. They are the generation who will define what Capiz looks like in ten years.

Capiz does not lack talent or ambition. What the next generation of Capisnon founders needs is the ecosystem, the infrastructure, and the mentorship to build. This summit proved all three are possible right here.

Building a Future-Ready Capiz

True digital progress is never just about running fiber into neighborhoods. It is about empowering what happens over those connections.

Whether it is a student accessing cloud AI tools, a local café running a modern POS system, or a homegrown Capisnon startup pitching to global markets, the connection is the infrastructure of possibility.

Wesfardell Connect extends our congratulations and gratitude to Eliza Capa and JCI Roxas Makawiwili, PCCI Western Visayas, DOST Region VI and DOST Capiz iHub, DTI, DICT, every mentor, and every participant who made the 2026 Innovators Summit a success.

The next generation of Capisnon founders has a table now. Wesfardell Connect will make sure they have the connection to reach the world. The future now starts here. 🌱