BusinessMirror August 10, 2023

INFLATION remains a bane for workers as the number of employed Filipinos looking for side hustles increased in June, based on the latest data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

On Tuesday, PSA said the number of the unemployed reached 2.327 million in June 2023 while the underemployed reached 5.87 million. (Full story: https://businessmirror.com.ph/2023/08/09/ unemployment-underemploymentincreased-in-june-23-labor-force-survey/)

Based on the data, invisibly underemployed Filipinos or those who are employed full time but are still looking for better livelihood opportunities, reached 2.332 million. is is even higher than the number of the total unemployed in June.

“I think people are still struggling to get by given infl ation, so they are forced to do side hustles,” Ateneo Center for Research and Development (ACERD) Associate Director Ser Percival K. Peña-Reyes told the BM “People have to fi nd ways [to survive]. As I’ve been saying in recent interviews, there is no social unrest despite high infl ation because people somehow still manage to fi nd work, albeit these are low-productivity ones. Just enough to survive day to day,” Peña-Reyes added.

e data showed that the number of those considered invisibly underemployed increased 19.8 percent or by 385,000 compared to June 2022.

e increase in their numbers was also in double digits compared to May 2023. PSA data showed an 18.1-percent increase, or by as many as 357,000 from May 2023 in terms of invisible underemployment.

However, data also showed that the visibly underemployed—composed of Filipinos who are em-

WITH the increase in commodity prices slowing, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) now expects infl ation to reach below 4 percent by the end of the year.

In a panel at the Philippine Economic Briefi ng in Davao, BSP Deputy Governor Francisco Dakila Jr. said average infl ation could settle at 5.4 percent for this year. While this remains above the 2 to 4 percent target this year, this reflects the recent slowdown in prices.

Earlier, BSP Governor Eli Remolona Jr. said the country may overshoot the infl ation target this year. However, he said with various measures to address supply chain issues, the country may still be able to “stick the landing” when

it comes to the government’s infl ation targets. (Full story: https:// businessmirror.com.ph/2023/08/07/ phl-may-overshoot-inflation-targetbsp/)

“We have seen infl ation decelerate rapidly. e latest outturn was at 4.7 percent, that is a significant reduction already from the peak of 8.7 percent in January,” Dakila said. “We are seeing that infl ation will go back to within the target range at 2.9 percent for next year. In fact, it’s a little bit below the midpoint of the target. As can be seen also on this path, the likely outturn is that infl ation will be back to the 2-4 percent target range in the fourth quarter this year,” he explained.

Dakila said infl ation could

“touch close” or be “slightly below the lower level of the target” in the fi rst three months of next year. is, however, will be largely due to base effects as infl ation peaked at 8.7 percent in January this year.

“We’re closely monitoring some upside factors to infl ation. In the recent path, infl ation was driven by supply-side factors and we’re coordinating with other government agencies to make sure that those supply-side risks do not materialize,” Dakila said.

He said the Inter-Agency Committee on Infl ation and Market Outlook (IAC-IMO) is monitoring commodity prices closely, including commodities like oil which has been rising. Nonetheless, Dakila said the simulation of the BSP

takes into consideration $100 per barrel oil prices. Currently, oil prices are in the $80 per barrel range.

“Of course, the other factors are oil, which has recently been rising again in the international market, but nevertheless, other things are constant, we have a good margin for oil,” Dakila said.

Earlier, BM reported that rice may again be the cause of higher infl ation in the coming months as Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) data showed that prices returned to levels that were seen prior to the implementation of a law that sought to bring down the price of the staple.

On Friday, the PSA reported

‘AS the poor say they cannot eat growth,” the leadership of the House of Representatives wants President Marcos’ economic managers to explain how the nation could sustain its economic growth and how such growth could benefit people, particularly the poor, while defending the P5.768-trillion national budget for 2024.

House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez and House Committee on Appropriations Chairman Elizaldy Co made statements

as they vowed to closely scrutinize the 2024 national budget while implementing transparency and encouraging active involvement from stakeholders as the budget briefi ng for the national budget gets under way today ( ursday).

First to face the House are members of the President’s economic team, or the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC). ese are Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman, Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno, National Economic and Development Authority Director General Arsenio Balisacan, and Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Eli

Remolona. e four are expected to brief lawmakers on the state of the country’s economy and the macroeconomic assumptions used in putting together the proposed 2024 spending program.

Romualdez said members of Congress would want to know from the administration’s economic managers “how the country could sustain its economic growth and how such growth could benefit our people.”

He said many of the poor complain that the economic boom is benefiting only the rich, big com-

PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Wednesday said the country will not remove the BRP Sierra Madre from the Ayungin Shoal.

In a brief video statement, the chief executive belied the claim by Beijing that the Philippine government has made the commitment to remove grounded warship, which serves as military outpost, in its current location.

“I’m not aware of any such arrangement or agreement that the Philippines will remove from its own territory its ship, in this case,

the BRP Sierra Madre from the Ayungin Shoal,” Marcos said.

“And let me go further, if there does exist such an agreement, I rescind that agreement now,” he added.

Last Monday, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs alleged the government has yet to act on the commitment to tow away BRP Sierra Madre. is after the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) summoned Chinese Ambassador to Manila

BSP sees inflation reaching below-4% in 2023

that infl ation averaged 4.7 percent in July 2023 and was the lowest in 16 months. (Full story here: https://businessmirror.com.

ph/2023/08/04/commodity-priceshit-16-month-low-in-july-psa/). PSA data showed rice infl ation averaged 4.2 percent in July

2023, the highest since February 2019 when the increase in the commodity’s prices was at 4.5 percent. e Rice Trade Liberalization (RTL) Act was implemented in March 2019.

Cai U. Ordinario

Budget...

panies, and stock and fi nancial market players.

“ e poor say they cannot eat growth. If the majority of our people do not feel our economic expansion, they should at least see it in terms of the proper use of the national budget for social services,

PHL to have enough rice stocks beyond El Niño period—Marcos

EVEN with a “low” rice production scenario in the next harvest season, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. said the country will still have sufficient stocks of the food staple to last beyond the El Niño phenomenon next year.

He made the assurance after the Department of Agriculture (DA) reported on its rice supply projections this year, when he met with the Private Sector Advisory Council (PSAC) and the Philippine Rice

infrastructure, education, health, and even direct fi nancial assistance to the poor and other vulnerable sectors,” the House leader said. us, House members would like to see increased allocations for these services and pro-poor programs, he added.

Strict

ACCORDING to Co, strict rules and procedures governing the conduct of budget briefi ngs or hear-

Stakeholders Movement (PRISM) in Malacañang last Tuesday.

During the meeting, DA Undersecretary Mercedita A. Sombilla said the even with the “low” scenario with the assumption that

ings will be implemented during the briefi ngs.

“ ese rules are designed to enhance transparency, encourage active participation from stakeholders, and foster rigorous scrutiny of budgetary allocations and expenditures,” said Co.

“By implementing comprehensive rules and procedures, the committee seeks to maximize the impact of every allocated peso and uphold the utmost accountability

rice production will remain the same, they expect the ending stock for 2023 at 1.96 million metric tons (MMT), which can last for 52 days. She also noted the Philippine Statistics Authority came out with an even better scenario, wherein the ending stock is projected at 2.12 MMT, to last for 57 days.

e next harvest season for palay (unhusked rice) will be from September to November.

“ e rice situation is manageable and stable. ere is enough rice for the Philippines up to and after the El Niño next year,” the President said. is was reiterated by PRISM lead convenor Rowena del Rosario-Sadicon.

“We don’t need to panic for anything else. Let us remain calm. It’s

in budget implementation,” said the lawmaker.

Co also underscored the critical and pressing need for the immediate consideration and passage of the P5.768 trillion 2024 proposed budget. An executive meeting was held on August 8 to assure the timely passage of the budget.

In light of the critical role of the proposed budget in realizing the nation’s goals, Co emphasized the need for a thorough examination of the budget’s provisions.

“So, as we consider the FY 2024 budget proposal, let us scrutinize it with an open mind and innovative approach toward greater transparency and better implementation of programs and projects under the 8-Point Socio-Economic Agenda to achieve a more sustainable and inclusive economy,” he said.

“As we embark on this important task, let us be guided by our shared mission and commitment to uplift the lives and well-being of the citizens, society, and the nation, towards a better and brighter future for the Philippines,” he added.

Calendar

TO facilitate the efficient approval

‘SIERRA MADRE’ STAYS AT AYUNGIN–MARCOS

very important that we are one in our objective to be positive on this. We have sufficient rice [supply],” Sadicon said partly in Filipino after their meeting with President.

DA, however, earlier said it will still encourage the private sector to import 1.3 MMT volume of rice to ensure the country will have enough food supplies during emergencies this year.

Based on the forecast of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), El Niño will bring lower rainfall until the fi rst quarter of 2024.

Marcos met with rice stakeholders to ensure the country will not suffer a rice shortage during the said period.

process, Co said the committee has approved the budget calendar for the deliberation and approval of the fi scal year 2024 national budget.

“ is well-structured calendar aims to streamline the deliberation process, ensuring timely consideration of the proposed budget to address the pressing needs of the nation promptly,” said Co.

“Our journey continues, and together, we will face these new challenges and build upon the foundation of economic transformation embodied in the Philippine Development Plan 2023-2028,” Co added.

Calendar

THE budget hearings will start with a briefi ng from the Development Budget Coordination Committee on ursday.

Next week—from August 14 to August 17—agencies that will defend their allocations are: Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp., Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office, Department of Tourism, Department of Foreign Affairs, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Department of Energy, Energy Regulatory Commission, Civil Service Com-

Huang Xilian to demand that the Chinese Coast Guard stop its “illegal activities” in the West Philippine Sea (WPS), which included the fi ring of water cannons against Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) vessels during the weekend.

e PCG ships were escorting indigenous boats carrying food, water, fuel and other supplies to BRP Sierra Madre.

e Philippine military deliberately grounded the vessel in 1999 to reinforce the country’s territorial claims in the West Philippine Sea. Samuel P. Medenilla

mission, Department of Agrarian Reform, and Department of Social Welfare and Development.

Facing lawmakers from August 22 to 24 are the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Justice, the Commission on Higher Education, the Commission on Audit, the Department of Trade and Industry, the Department of Labor and Employment, and the Department of Migrant Workers.

For August 29 to 31, the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development, the Presidential Communications Office, the Office of the Vice President, the Department of Education, e Judiciary, the Department of Information and Communications Technology, and the Department of the Interior and Local Government will defend their budgets.

Attending the last two weeks of committee-level budget briefi ng from September 4 to 11 are: the Department of Transportation, Office of the President, Commission on Human Rights, Department of Science and Technology, Department of Health, Department of National Defense, Department of Public Works and Highways, Office of the Ombudsman, and Commission on Elections.

ployed but in mostly part-time capacity—declined to 3.543 million in June. is is a contraction of 10.1 percent or 398,000 compared to June 2022 and a decline of 3.9 percent or 143,000 versus May 2023.

“ e latest June 2023 labor force figures confi rm that the economy is still struggling to create decent work, pay and earnings,” Ibon Foundation said in a statement.

“ is is particularly clear if the results are interpreted against recent surveys which showed increases in self-rated poverty and decreases in household savings over the same period covered by the Labor Force Survey [LFS],” it added.

e PSA noted that among those with jobs, those who held elementary occupations accounted for a large chunk.

Data showed elementary occupations accounted for 30.3 percent of total employment.

In a presentation on Tuesday, National Statistician Claire Dennis Mapa said 14.8 million of the employed are engaged in elementary occupations, which increased from the 13.71 million in June 2022 and 14.55 million in May 2023.

Ibon noted that the biggest increases in employment came from the sub sectors with the lowest reported pay.

e top four job-creating sub sectors are all among the five lowest-paying subsectors in the economy. ey estimated a 612,000 in-

crease in accommodation and food service activities or an average daily basic pay (ADBP) of P432 in 2022 or 457,000 increase in agriculture and forestry or P300.

Ibon also said cited a 358,000 increase in wholesale and retail trade or P419 and 268,000 increase in other service activities at P304.

“ is simply follows the overall trend we have been observing that job quality has declined over time. Because of digital transformation, jobs have become more polarized as regular middle skilled jobs have disappeared. Most of these workers are joining the ranks of lowskilled informal jobs, resulting in a mismatching of skills,” Ateneo de Manila University economist Leonardo Lanzona Jr. said.

“In effect, the economic recovery we are experiencing is a laborsaving one, resulting in a greater proportion of lower-paid workers. is is due to the government’s failure to institute a massive skill development program that would raise labor demand, and an appropriate social protection system that can support worker livelihood conditions,” he explained.

Given the challenges of fi nding decent jobs, Action for Economic Reforms (AER) Coordinator Filomeno Sta. Ana said the least the government can do is to at least make food affordable.

Mapa earlier said that given the increase in rice prices, the country’s staple could again drive infl ation in the coming months.

PSA data showed rice infl ation averaged 4.2 percent in July 2023, the highest since February 2019

when the increase in the commodity’s prices was at 4.5 percent. e Rice Trade Liberalization (RTL) Act was implemented in March 2019.

Mapa said rice prices this year gradually increased starting in February when infl ation for the staple posted a 2.2-percent increase; March, 2.6 percent; April, 2.9 percent; May, 3.4 percent; and June, 3.6 percent before reaching 4.2 percent in July.

“Making food cheaper is a way of improving living standards and productivity without putting pressure on increasing wages,” Sta. Ana said. “ e challenge is to increase productivity of all laborers, not only those employed in modern enterprises.”

Mapa added that in July, as with June, the PSA recorded increases in the price of all rice varieties that it monitors—regular milled, wellmilled, and special rice.

Based on data, Mapa said regular milled rice prices averaged P41.50 per kilo, higher than the P41.20 per kilo in June and P39.60 per kilo in July 2022.

For well-milled rice, the average price was at P45.50 per kilo in July, higher than the P45.20 in June and P43.90 in July 2022.

Special rice averaged P54.60 per kilo in July, higher than the P54.40 posted in June and P53.10 in July 2022.

PSA data from PSA also showed that average regular milled rice prices started climbing in March 2022 at P38.97 per kilo, while special rice, the most expensive rice variety, started increasing from P52.96 per kilo in June 2022.

More workers in jobs with low pay in June

By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan

THE Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) asked Congress to enact a law that will legitimately allow motorcycle riders to operate passenger services, given that the pilot study has been running for four years already.

LTFRB Chairman Teofilo Guadiz III, who chairs the technical working group (TWG) for motorcycle taxis, said the pilot has been running for four years since 2019 and that the ball is now in Congress’ court.

“ We are awaiting the determination whether to proceed or not,” he said. “We are merely trying to continue the study until the time that we were called for this hearing, perhaps to be given wisdom on what to do with the existing pilot study.”

Guadiz said the agency has submitted an initial report in 2021, another in 2022, and another recommendation report for this year. These documents, he said, outline the clauses that could used in crafting the law, encompassing “safety, security, franchise, regulatory procedures…and law enforcement.”

“The only way now for Congress is to move forward. Look into this motorcycle taxi pilot study with favor, and enact a legislation that will eventually legitimize this habal-habal into a legitimate organization,” he said.

O n Wednesday, the House Committee on Transportation conducted a legislative hearing on the proposed amendments to Sections 3 and 7 of Republic Act No. 4136 to include motorcycle-for-hire in the definition of terms and in the classification

of vehicles that would require registration with the LTFRB.

D uring a recent House hearing, Land Transportation Office (LTO) Chief Vigor Mendoza, also the vice chair of the TWG, expressed his disagreement in terminating the pilot study.

H e highlighted existing gaps that need addressing, including issues like multihoming and liabilities. Mendoza also emphasized the importance of a transition period to ensure the proper implementation of the study.

The appeal came after Sagip Party-list Rep. Rodante Marcoleta inquired on the validity of the study and its scope and limitations.

L ikewise House Committee on Transportation chairman and Antipolo 2nd District Rep. Romeo Acop said the TWG should submit a “report confirming the conclusion of the study” given the amount of time that has passed since it was started.

Meanwhile, PBA Party-list Representative Migs Nograles proposed refraining from admitting new players to the MC Taxi Pilot Study until existing issues are resolved.

For his part Ariel Lim, President of the National Confederation of Tricycle Operators and Drivers Association of the Philippines (NACTODAP), suggested to increase the rider allocation, especially for areas “outside Metro Manila.”

F ollowing the hearing, the TWG will present recommendations on the extension of the MC Taxi Pilot study, multi-homing, rider cap allocation, entry of new players, liabilities, and more. The House expects this comprehensive report within 45 days.

Chinese harassment threat to peace, stability in region–US defense chief

By Rex Anthony Naval

CHINA’S harassment and

attempts to obstruct Philippine resupply effort to Second Thomas Shoal (Ayungin Shoal) last Saturday is threatening the peace and stability of the region.

This was stressed by US Department of Defense (DOD) Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III following a phone call with Department of National Defense Secretary Gilberto C. Teodoro Jr. Tuesday (US time) where recent events in the South China Sea, including last weekend’s resupply effort, was discussed.

“Secretary Austin condemned the China Coast Guard’s use of water cannons and other dangerous maneuvers, which put the safety of Philippine vessels and crew at risk. He joined numerous countries in expressing concern about these unsafe operational activities, which undermine the status quo and directly threaten regional peace and stability,” a US DOD statement read.

Austin, in the same phone call, also reaffirmed that the Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) extends to Philippine public vessels, aircraft, and armed forces—to include those of its Coast Guard—in the Pacific, including in the South China Sea.

Group urges DENR to suspend all ongoing land reclamation projects in Manila Bay, Metro Cebu

THE Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya) on Wednesday urged the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to revoke the environmental compliance certificate (ECC) and other permits for various landreclamation projects in Manila Bay that were found to be liable for alleged environmental violations.

The call was made after President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. announced on national television that all but one land reclamation project in Manila Bay were suspended due to numerous violations. It was not clear which project was given the green light to continue with the project while all others will be undergoing a review process.

To concretize President Marcos’ pronouncement, the DENR should comply and also review the ECCs of the 21 land reclamation projects in Manila Bay,” Ronnel Arambulo, vice chairman of Pamalakaya said in a statement.

According to Arambulo, merely suspending the projects is not enough. He

said those found violating environmental laws should be held accountable for the destruction of Manila Bay, an important fishing ground in Luzon, and the displacement of communities that were affected by the projects.

The group cited for instance the need to restore the more than 300 fishing families who were forcibly evacuated from Bacoor, Cavite due to land reclamation.

It is also imperative, Arambulo said that the mangroves that were destroyed be restored in the coastal areas of Manila Bay.

Pamalakaya said accountability should come in the form of just compensation for fisherfolk who have lost their livelihood and the rehabilitation of marine resources and coastal communities.

The group also urged the Marcos administration to “certify as urgent” a bill declaring Manila Bay as a reclamation-free zone.

Filed by the Makabayan bloc last year, House Bill 2026 prohibits all forms of reclamation activities in Manila Bay. The bill is pursuant to the 2008 Supreme Court continuing mandamus to rehabilitate, clean

Mindanao caucus lauds Cardinal Quevedo’s appointment in BARMM Council of Leaders

THE Mindanao Peoples Caucus (MPC) on Monday welcomed the appointment of His Eminence, Cardinal Orlando Beltran Quevedo, OMI, D.D., as representative of Settler Communities in the Council of Leaders of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).

Under Article VI Section 9 of the Bangsamoro Organic Law, the Council of Leaders shall advise the Chief Minister

on matters of governance. Bringing in Cardinal Quevedo to advise the Chief Minister is very consistent with the avowed mission to promote moral governance in the Bangsamoro, sending an unequivocal message that the BARMM is resolute in enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong in the way autonomy is exercised in the Bangsamoro, an MPC statement read.

“This is a very astute choice and this

The MDT between the US and the Philippines was signed on August 30, 1951.

Article IV of the MDT states that “each Party recognizes that an armed attack in the Pacific area on either of the Parties would be dangerous to its own peace and safety and declares that it would act to meet the common dangers in accordance with its constitutional processes.”

“The Secretaries reaffirmed their shared commitment to upholding the rules-based order, including supporting the Philippines’ right to conduct lawful maritime activities, consistent with the 2016 Arbitral Tribunal Ruling, which is final and binding on all parties,” the DOD statement noted.

Both officials also discussed USPhilippines alliance cooperation and reaffirmed its “ironclad nature.”

Also tackled were initiatives to  “redouble efforts to strengthen bilateral training, interoperability, and support for the modernization of the Philippine Armed Forces,” the US DOD statement added.

Both Austin and Teodoro also commended recent bilateral military cooperation, including collaborative efforts to deliver over 32 tons of humanitarian sup -

signed by different organizations affiliated with the alliance. “We also hope it serves as a precedent for similar approaches in other parts of the country where reclamation projects are also concentrated, such as in Metro Cebu.”

plies to the remote islands off the coast of the Batanes island group and the mountain region of Cervantes Ilocos Sur impacted by typhoon “Egay” last week.

“They noted the swift response was critical for the well-being and safety of thousands of Filipinos in these regions affected by the typhoon. They praised the utility of Lal-lo Airfield in Cagayan, a new Enhance Defense Cooperation Agreement location, in facilitating relief efforts,” the US DOD statement stressed.

Both defense officials also committed to find a near-term opportunity to meet in-person and restated their commitment to stand shoulder-to-shoulder as allies to bring security, prosperity, and stability to the Indo-Pacific region and beyond.

Earlier, the National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea (NTFWPS) scored the latest incident of harassment perpetrated by China Coast Guard, People’s Liberation Army Navy, and Chinese maritime militia vessels, on August 5, against Philippine vessels, on a routine resupply mission in waters surrounding Ayungin Shoal.

It added that as a low tide elevation, Ayungin Shoal can neither be

the subject of a sovereignty claim nor is it capable of appropriation under international law—a fact affirmed by the 2016 Arbitral Award. China cannot, therefore, lawfully exercise sovereignty over it.

“China’s illegal exercise of maritime law enforcement powers, the series of blocking and other dangerous maneuvers, including its vessels’ aggressive use of water cannon, against Philippine vessels are blatant violations of the Philippines’ sovereign rights and jurisdiction under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea [UNCLOS], which both China and the Philippines are parties to,” NTFWPS added.

The Philippines demanded that China immediately stop its coercive, unlawful, and unjustifiable activities in our maritime zones.

“The resupply mission to and the upkeep of the BRP Sierra Madre are legitimate Philippine Government activities in our country’s exclusive economic zone, which are all in accordance with international law, particularly UNCLOS,” it added.

NTF-WPS said the Philippines remains firm in its resolve to continue pursuing its mandate of protecting and upholding the country’s legal maritime entitlements.

up, and restore Manila Bay for recreational use and fishery resources development.

According to Pamalakaya, reclamation projects with approved ECCs include the 420-hectare reclamation in Bacoor, Cavite; 360-hectare Pasay Reclamation Project; 318-hectare Manila City Waterfront Project; as well as the 419-hectare Horizon Manila Project.

Meanwhile, the People’s Network for the Integrity of Coastal Habitats and Ecosystems (People’s NICHE) urged DENR Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo-Loyzaga to make civil society organizations (CSOs) part of the cumulative impact assessment of land reclamation projects in Manila Bay.

The appeal was made through a letter dated August 8, 2023, urging Yulo-Loyzaga to suspend the land-reclamation activities and hold a dialogue with CSO leaders to discuss the conduct of the cumulative impact assessment.

“We welcome this [cumulative impact assessment], as it is a long-overdue step in the complete appraisal of the impacts of reclamation across the critical bay ecosystem,” the group wrote in their letter,

only shows that the leadership of the BARMM seriously walks its talk on moral governance. Yet again, BARMM proves it is inclusive”, MPC’s Chairman Hussein Akmad said.

“We thank Cardinal Quevedo for accepting the appointment and taking the extra mile, not only to support, but to be with the Bangsamoro people, at this most critical juncture of the extended transition period”, said former MPC Secretary General, and now Member of Parliament, Mary Ann M. Arnado.

Cardinal Quevedo is a staunch supporter of the peace process and has played an instrumental role in fostering dialogue of life and faith between Muslims and Christians in Mindanao.

Born in Ilocos Norte, Cardinal Quevedo grew up and studied in Marbel, Koronadal, Cotabato in the late 40s and early 50’s. His parents were public school teachers who migrated from the crowded North to the vast and spacious South.

He worked as a priest-educator in Cotabato City for 12 years, as a parish priest in Jolo for almost two years, as Bishop of Kidapawan for 6 years, and as Archbishop of Cotabato from 1998 to 2018.

He also served as President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines from 1999 to 2003, and President of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences (FABC) from 2005 to 2011.

Senator Risa Hontiveros, for her part urged the government to reject all China-funded reclamation projects in the Philippines.

A ccording to reports, two of the six initially approved reclamation projects in Manila Bay are executed by China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd., a subsidiary of China state-owned Communications Construction Co. or CCCC. However, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has since suspended the operations of all but one reclamation project in Manila Bay due to management issues.

“I w elcome the President’s suspension, but government should not approve reclamation projects by China state-owned companies anymore. Certainly not now. CCCC, like its home country China, has committed many violations against the Philippines. From building artificial islands in the West Philippine Sea to now reclaiming land in Metro Manila, China is destroying Philippine territory left, right, and center. Nabawasan lalo ang respeto ko sa Tsina. Nanghihimasok na nga sa Pilipinas, sinisira pa ang ating likas-yaman,” Hontiveros said in a news statement. Jonathan L. Mayuga

ALARMED over the proliferation of various crimes attributed to Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO), Senator Sherwin Gatchalian said POGO-related criminal activities are likely to escalate unless the industry is expunged permanently from the country.

Just recently, police authorities recovered 28,000 registered SIM cards at a POGO facility in Pasay City allegedly involved in online scams. Gatchalian said the confiscation of registered SIM cards indicates that POGOs are heavily entrenched in online scams, possibly victimizing hapless individuals both here and abroad.

According to a report from the Philippine National Police (PNP), a total of 4,355 individuals fell victim to POGO-related crimes from January 2017 to June 30 of this year, involving 903 perpetrators.

The crimes documented in the report include human trafficking, forcible abduction, homicide, illegal detention, kidnap-forransom, theft, robbery-extortion, serious physical injuries, swindling, and grave coercion, among others. Chinese nationals, or a total of 793, account for the majority of the suspects involved in these crimes,

Gatchalian said, citing PNP data. Gatchalian emphasized that criminal activities involving POGOs are likely to worsen if the POGO industry is allowed to continue operating in the country. “As much as we dread that situation, that possibility is not difficult to imagine. This should prompt all of us to take a stand against POGOs,” he said. In response to the recent surge in criminal incidents linked to POGOs, Gatchalian has filed a resolution to investigate the growing involvement of POGOs and accredited service providers.

A June 26 raid on the premises of Xinchuang Network Technology, Inc. in Las Piñas City led to the rescue of 2,724 individuals victimized by human trafficking and online scams. A separate raid in early May at a POGO hub in Clark Sun Valley in Pampanga resulted in the rescue of 1,090 victims of human trafficking and online scams.

Also, a separate entrapment operation on June 27 in Pasay City led to the apprehension of three Chinese nationals, former POGO employees among them, for their participation in torture, kidnapfor-ransom, and illegal possession of firearms. Butch Fernandez

Chiz raises key points on proposed budget, delivery of National ID project

Sen.

NOTING that Malacañang is asking Congress to approve a P1.6 billion funding in the 2024 national budget to “accelerate the issuance of the National Identification Cards,” Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero intends to ask “at what speed will it be done and will it be fast enough to overtake the backlog”?

This, as the senator noted that the annual funding is lodged in the proposed P8.8 billion budget of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) for 2024.

“Even President Marcos highlighted this allocation in his traditional Budget Message to Congress as a way to accelerate the issuance of the national ID card, which every citizen is mandated by law to have,” the senator said.

The lawmaker lamented, however, that while it is officially called the Philippine Information System card, popularly known by its shorthand, Phil ID, delivery has been “hobbled by delays creating a backlog in the tens of millions.”

But while the appropriations are with the PSA, the problem lies with the printer, which is the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, Escudero

noted. “For an agency which prints money and runs the mint, this delay to the people, more so that they are compelled to register and apply for it, is unacceptable,” he said.

Of the 77.325 million who have registered as of July 7, 2023, only 41.358 million plastic cards have been printed and dispatched, of which, 34.719 million have been received by applicants.

“Yung 38.608 million printed lang sa papel.Habang1.2 million ang dino wnload nalangnilaatsilanaangnag-print,” he said.

“In this age of AI [artificial intelligence], the promised cards are being printed D-I-Y [do it yourelf]. Angdamingpangakonung binabalangkasangbatas,atnanghumihingi ng pondo.”

Escudero said that due to the delays, the people have lost enthusiasm that resulted to lower demand.

“Kayanamanhalos33 million paanghindi nagparehistro. ‘Yung targeted clientele mo mawawalantalaganggana,” he pointed out.

Escudero added he will ask the PSA and the BSP “for quantifiable targets” when they come to the Senate for the 2024 national

budget hearings.

“Sa ngayon kasi, kung ang National Expenditure Program ang babasahin, vague angperformance outcome so I would like them to present a clearer target,” Escudero said.

“Una, sa Performance Information ng PSA. Ito yung parte ng proposed budget ng isang ahensya na nakalista ang mga deliverables. The absence of data on PhilID is a great omission,” he said.

Escudero said he would ask the PSA to explain the special provision in its appropriations that “it shall set a timetable to fully establish and implement the system, which shall not be later than December 31, 2024.”

“So wala na ba talaga yung original na target na end of 2023, wrap up na ang proyekto?” he asked.

Republic Act

11055, which institutionalized the national ID system, was signed by President Rodrigo Duterte on August 6, 2018 “to much fanfare and promise,” Escudero said. “Panahon ngsilipinkunganongabaanginiunladnito paglakipasnglimangtaon,” he said.

Ball is now on Congress’ court, LTFRB says on legalization of motorcycle taxis

Gatchalian asserts more crimes likely unless POGOs are banned permanently

CARDINAL Orlando Beltran Quevedo with Minister Mohagher Iqbal and MP Mary Ann M. Arnado during the Inaugural session of the Bangsamoro Parliament last September 15,2022.

Thursday, August 10, 2023

U.S.-ASEAN BUSINESS COUNCIL VOWS TO BRING MORE INVESTMENTS TO PHL

By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla

AMERICAN companies are now open to making more investments in the Philippines due to the country’s “transparent predictable business environment” in accordance with the IndoPacific Economic Framework (IPEF).

We are determined that we come here not just to talk but also to bring a lot of action to create real partnerships and to show our

commitment in the form of investments.” USAsean Business Council president and CEO Ted Osius said during his courtesy call with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. in Malacañang on Wednesday.

The retired US ambassador lauded the country’s leadership in implementing Pillar 3 of the IPEF on the use of clean energy, decarbonization, and infrastructure and as well as its compliance to the initiative’s Pillar 4 on tax and anti-corruption measures. IPEF is an initiative launched last year

by US President Joe Biden, which aims to implement high economic standards for its member countries.

Osius said US companies are ready to support the goals set by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. in his second State of the Nation Address (SONA) on infrastructure, agriculture, clean energy, green metals and semiconductors.

We look forward to deepening our engagements with your government and to create more partnerships with companies here in the Philippines,” Osius said.

Greater economic engagement

PRESIDENT Marcos welcomed the US commitment, which he said would be beneficial for both the Philippine and the US economy.

“I invite the members of the esteemed Council to continue being valuable partners of the Philippines. Let us push for greater economic engagement between our two countries, for our mutual benefit, for the prosperity, especially of the region,” the Chief Executive said.

ECs urged to deliver quality, reliable service to consumers

THE Department of Energy (DOE) issued a reminder to all 121 electric cooperatives (ECs) to perform their duties and responsibilities and assure that the needs and expectations of consumers are met.

During the 54th founding anniversary of the National Electrification Administration (NEA), Energy secretary Raphael Lotilla told ECs to be responsive and responsible to their customers “because at some point, if our people get tired of the quality of services that they receive, then they themselves will be the ones to clamor for change.”

“NEA can only do so much. Our first line of defense is at the level of the electric cooperatives...Instead of being the followers in case of changes and reforms, my challenge to the electric co-operatives under the leadership of NEA, is to be at the forefront of change and reform,” said Lotilla.

NEA supervises all ECs in the country.

Lotilla commended the hard work of NEA and all ECs during a difficult year in the power sector when consumers were greeted with weekly fuel price increases brought about by the Ukraine crisis.

“ WE faced a major challenge to keep the lights on. One year later, I can say thanks for the cooperation of all, including you, the electric co-operatives. We have survived the most difficult year,” the Energy chief said.

He added: “The previous year has revealed a number of weaknesses and not just strengths. One of the things that I have indicated to you is our ability to respond to the needs for repair and rehabilitation, especially during national disasters.”

“And since extreme events will continue to come more often, and in fact in the

greater intensity as climate change also happens, our preparation for these should even be greater,” Lotilla said. He said underperforming ECs must improve, while those that are performing well were reminded to continue to be a role model to ECs that are lagging behind.

“As I have said, we will give you full support to the extent that you are able to deliver. But there are also other electric cooperatives that need to consider other forms of delivery service to our people,” said Lotilla. Lenie Lectura

The visit of the US-Asean Business Council comes a day after the courtesy call of US Senator Tammy Duckworth with the President, where they talked about the country’s possible partnership with Washington on electric vehicle batteries and healthcare.

Marcos noted he is open to having more partnerships, which will help maintain the momentum of the country’s improving bilateral relations with the US.

“P resident Biden and I have identified concrete steps to ensure that our alliance and

partnership remain relevant, responsive to the current emerging challenges in the defense, security and economic spheres,” the President said in his meeting with the US-Asean Business Council members.

Established in 1984, the US-Asean Business Council is an advocacy organization with 170 member-companies.

T he said companies operate in Asean member-states and generate almost $7 trillion in revenue and employ more than 14.5 million people.

DENR EYEING MULTIPURPOSE WATER SUPPLY INFRASTRUCTURE

THE Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) will work closely with various national government agencies (NGA) to look into the possibility of building public water supply facilities for multiple usage that will include irrigation, power generation, industrial and commercial use as well as domestic consumption, DENR Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo-Loyzaga said on Wednesday.

The DENR, which is mandated to manage the country’s natural wealth, was also tasked to head the Water Resource Management Office (WRMO) created by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. by virtue of Executive Order No. 22.

Aside from the WRMO, other water-related agencies like the National Water Resources Board (NWRB), River Basin Control Office (RCBO) are under the DENR.

“We are looking at our respective budgets and our programs to see how we can design multipurpose infrastructure to actually serve the different needs of agriculture, power, water for domestic use, and for industry,” YuloLoyzaga said in a news statement.

The plan, according to the country’s steward of the environment and natural resources, is part of the move to refocus the government’s water security strategy to optimize and maximize utilization of the country’s water resources through infrastructure that enables “multitasked” usage of the national resource.

This even as the government is also looking to tap water from other sources and to promote wastewater recycling on account of the need for stable and steady water supply increases on the back of growing demand and threats from the El Niño weather condition.

Yulo-Loyzaga said the DENR and DPWH are jointly studying the construction of more water collection and impounding systems as well as flood control structures as mitigation measures in face of climate change and its impacts.

Yulo-Loyzaga added that water conservation and efficiency, along with multipurpose water infrastructure such as dams, reservoirs, sewage treatment plants, associated irrigation canals, and water supply networks may be used for more than one purpose for economic, social and environmental activities will address the different dimensions of water security in the country.

The DENR is also working with the Department of Finance to see how the government can incentivize public-private partnerships for bulk water supply and other projects that can deliver water where it is most needed.

Meanwhile, the World Bank has expressed interest in funding multipurpose infrastructure to address sectors that are critically in danger because of climate change. Jonathan L. Mayuga

By Joel R. San Juan @jrsanjuan1573

THE Supreme Court (SC) has junked the plea of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s justice secretary Hernando Perez and a businessman to set aside the resolutions issued by the Sandiganbayan denying their motion to dismiss the forfeiture cases filed following accusation that they allegedly extorted $2 million from the late former Manila 6th District Rep. Mark Jimenez.

I n a 52-page ruling penned by Senior Associate Justice Marvic Leonen, the High Court’s Second Division dismissed Perez and Ernesto Escaler’s plea for “lack of merit,” holding that the anti-graft court did not commit grave abuse of discretion in issuing its April 18, 2016 and January 17, 2017 resolutions.

The anti-graft court, in the said resolutions, denied Perez and Escaler’s petition to dismiss   the forfeiture cases despite the dismissal of the extortion and robbery cases against them due to inordinate delay, which was upheld by the SC in its 2014 ruling.

Although the criminal cases in People v. Sandiganbayan and the forfeiture proceeding involve similar parties, it bears stressing that their causes of action and respective issues are different. Forfeiture proceedings are civil in nature. While the forfeiture proceeding here emanated from the same set of facts as the criminal cases in People v. Sandiganbayan, it is nevertheless separate and distinct,” the SC explained.

The Court further explained that the causes of action in the criminal cases are premised on their’ supposed violations of Section 3(b) of Republic Act No. 3019, or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, and commission of robbery under the Revised Penal Code.

O n the other hand, the cause of action in the forfeiture proceeding emanated from Perez’s supposedly unlawfully acquired properties that are disproportionate to his salary and legitimate income during his incumbency.

“Contrary to petitioners’ assertions, the civil liability therefrom does not arise from the commission of the criminal charges but emanates from the provisions of Republic Act No. 1379, a law which protects the right of the State to recover properties illicitly acquired,” the SC added.

A s to Escaler, the SC explained that the anti-graft court also did not gravely abuse its discretion in not dismissing the forfeiture case since the Office of the Ombudsman has the authority to file the petition for forfeiture and had conducted a previous inquiry similar to a preliminary investigation in criminal proceedings before commencing the action w ith the Sandiganbayan.

“As Republic Act No. 1379 covers situations where properties unlawfully acquired by a public officer are concealed or transferred under the name of another, Escaler’s insistence that he is not covered as he is not a public officer fails,” the SC said.

“Moreover, since the complaint specifically alleges his participation in the bank transactions involving the money presumed to be unlawfully acquired by Perez during his incumbency as a public officer, respondent did not err in impleading his name in the petition for forfeiture,” it added.

The forfeiture cases stemmed from Perez and Escaler’s alleged unlawful acquisition of properties when they extorted the amount from Jimenez in exchange for not pressuring him to execute affidavits against personalities involved in the plunder case of former President Joseph Estrada and to ensure his coverage in the Department of Justice-administered Witness Protection Program.

Perez served as justice secretary from July 1, 2001 until his resignation on January 1, 2003 due to the controversy.

Escaler got involved in the mess as he allegedly gave the instructions on how the money extorted from Jimenez would be moved through a series of bank transfers.

Crying time again? Romualdez confirms rise in price of onions

By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz @joveemarie

of the House of

-

W ith this, Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez ordered a renewed campaign to bring down the price of onions in the market. He noted that the monitoring of the House Committee on Agriculture and Food has shown that the price of onions in the market is starting to rise again from P90 to P180 per kilo recently.

Onion hoarders and price manipulators are starting to become active again. We will nip this problem in the bud. We will not allow its price to rise beyond the reach of ordinary Filipinos,” the House leader vowed.

Romualdez said that he has asked officials of the Bureau of Plant and Industry (BPI) to report to his office so they can explain to him and

other House leaders why hoarders are able to manipulate the price of onions once again.

He explained that onion farmers had already sold their harvest to wholesalers, yet the supply remained scarce, leading to a higher price of onions. According to the report we received, the farmers have already sold their harvest. This means that they are already in cold storage and are only being held back from release to the market to increase the price. This is the modus operandi discovered by the House Committee [on Agriculture], which is why we stopped it then,” he added. “ If they don’t release their products, the government might be forced to import onions. The farmers will not be affected because they no longer have their products. The hoarders and price manipulators are sure to lose if there is importation,” Romualdez added.

Shift

MEANWHILE , as the damage to the agriculture and fisheries sectors caused by typhoon “Egay” reached P1.53 billion, affecting 99,272 farmers and fisherfolk in eight regions as of July 30, House Committee on Labor and Employment chairman Fidel Nograles underscored the need to shift to climate-resilient agriculture and fisheries to avoid the crippling effects of disasters on the livelihood of farmers and fisherfolk.

“ We need to prioritize the shift to agriculture and fisheries that can cope with the harsher effects of climate change. The sooner we do this, the sooner we can help our farmers and fisherfolk escape the ever-deepening mire of poverty,” Nograles said.

T he lawmaker bemoaned that the livelihoods of farmers and fishermen are endangered whenever typhoons occur.

H e stressed that more needs to be done besides giving aid

after typhoons.  Until we transform our systems of agriculture and fisheries, our farmers and fishermen will be dependent on aid that will never be enough to recoup their losses,” he said.

The Department of Agriculture (DA) also reported the loss of at least 66.075 metric tons (MT) of produce, including rice, corn, highvalue crops, livestock and poultry, and fisheries,  in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), Ilocos region (Region 1), Cagayan Valley (Region 2), Central Luzon (Region 3), Calabarzon (Region 4), Mimaropa (Region 4-A), Western Visayas (Region 6), and Caraga (Region 13). A side from crop seeds, drugs and biologics for livestock and poultry, and fish fingerlings, the DA said that farmers and fisherfolk may also avail of the P25,000 loan under the Survival and Recovery Loan Program from the Agricultural Credit Policy Council.

Group pushes IP Code amendments to boost fight against online piracy

By Rizal Raoul S. Reyes

THE Marcos administration was asked on Wednesday by CitizenWatch Philippines to certify as urgent the passage of anti-online piracy legislation now pending in the Senate to address the challenges of online piracy and accelerate the digitalization program of the government.

T im Abejo, co-convenor of CitizenWatch Philippines, said it is high time to amend 26-year-old Intellectual Property (IP) Code to respond to the context of digital online platforms.

Further, Abejo added the country needs a new intellectual law to boost the creative economy, prevent opportunity loss, protect the interest of the Philippines’ rich and diverse talent pool, and even shield our citizens, especially the vulnerable, from online predators.

“Online piracy harms the viability of the creative sector and undermines the values and creative spirit of our people,” Abejo noted.

It also unduly incentivizes those whose only contribution is to find ways to profit from what is not theirs to begin with,” he added.

A t present, electronic and online content are currently not included in the IP Code’s definition of pirated goods.

Meanwhile, House Bill 7600, which amends the IP Code, most notably in allowing authorities to block sites that provide pirated content, was approved last May in the House of Representatives.

T he bill gives authorize the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHIL) to block websites that violate the IP Code and expands its enforcement functions to investigate, gather intelligence, and develop countermeasures to piracy. It also establishes guidelines for Internet service providers in blocking websites hosting pirated material.

Nevertheless, a counterpart bill in the Senate has yet to be passed, even as at least one version sponsored by Sen. Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr.

proposes a definite timeline of five days for IPOPHIL to process piracy complaints by content owners.

Pirates are fast and cunning. We must be faster and more aggressive. We can’t be stuck deliberating whether the present mechanisms are enough. While we are still talking about all these, these pirates and violators are already on their next move and profiting from their criminal acts,” Abejo said.

D ata from the Philippine Statistics Authority show that the creative industry is a vital contributor to the country’s Gross Domestic Product, accounting for approximately 7.3 percent or P1.6 trillion of the gross value added in 2022.

T his figure, however, is already lower than the 7.5 percent share reported in 2018, primarily due to piracy.

T he local film industry, specifically, bear the brunt of online piracy, even as it is already struggling to compete with foreign productions and streaming platforms. A

2018 report by the Motion Picture Association (MPA) revealed that online piracy caused a 47 percent decline in box office sales and a 72 percent drop in legitimate online transactions in the Philippines from 2012 to 2016.

T he pandemic-driven lockdowns enabled the pirates to gain heavily, with an estimated P1 billion in potential revenue losses to local video producers, distributors and aggregators, according to Media Partners Asia in 2020.

Instead of finding right value for their work and being compensated commensurately for it, those in the creatives industry continue to struggle against economic realities aggravated further by online piracy,” Abejo said.

He also warned that failure to protect intellectual property of the local talents might force them to seek opportunities where their works are protected complemented by fair compensation.  I f this happens, Abejo pointed out the creatives industry, driven

PHL and Jordan eye bilateral agreement on deployment of skilled Pinoy workers

By Malou Talosig-Bartolome @maloutalosig

JORDAN and the Philippines will soon negotiate for a new bilateral labor agreement that would allow Filipino skilled workers to work in the Arabian state.

Around 95 percent of the 43,000 OFWs in Jordan are domestic workers.

Jordan’s Ministry of Labor Secretary General Farouq Al-Hadidi met with Philippine Ambassador to Amman Wilfredo Santos, which “set in motion” the prospects of issuing “specialized work permit” for Fili-

pino skilled workers.

I f Manila and Amman agree to deploy Filipino skilled workers to Jordan, it would “change the demographics of the Filipino workers in Jordan,” Santos told the BusinessMirror D uring their meeting, the labor minister “acknowledged the contribution of Filipino workers and informed the Ambassador of the increasing demand from various sectors for Filipino skilled/ specialized workers.”

He [Secretary General] informed the Ambassador of the

Kasuso Foundation seeks

CONGRESS should consider transferring even a small part of the P10-billion confidential funds in the 2024 budget to save the roughly 9,000 Filipinas who die of breast cancer every year.

In behalf of our Filipina sisters who are suffering and whose pain can be prevented and eased, Kasuso Foundation is joining other cancer groups in asking Congress for more funds for early cancer detection and treatment,” said Aileen Antolin, convenor of the Kasuso Foundation that has

Ministry’s enthusiasm to open proper channels with the Embassy and discuss ways and means to facilitate the entry to Jordan of these skilled workers,” the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said in a statement.

A mbassador Santos welcomed the offer and expressed his gratitude to Jordan for opening its doors to the 43,000 OFWs.

L ikewise, he thanked the Jordanian labor official for the “guarantees” instituted by the Jordanian government to promote the rights and protection of OFWs.

[Ambassador Santos] assured the Secretary General that the Embassy will work closely with the Ministry on this new endeavor and will continue to partner with the Ministry in other areas of mutual concern,” the DFA said.

N egotiations for the deployment of Filipino skilled workers will be led by the Philippine Department of Migrant Workers.

Accompanying the Ambassador to the meeting were Third Secretaries and Vice Consuls Angeli A. Payumo and Sheila Marie G. Andales and Labor Attaché Armi Evangel Peña.

bite from confi funds for cancer fight

been trying to educate women on cancer prevention and survival.

E very year, around 27,000 new breast cancer cases are found among local women, while 9,000 who were diagnosed in previous years die.

D ata show only 1 percent of Filipinas get tested for cancer each year, probably the lowest in the world with neighboring countries posting around 20 percent and rich countries around 50 percent.

T he congressional budget for cancer was only about P1 billion and

raised last year to around P1.5 billion.

A ntolin said the budget must be increased so if possible all public hospitals all over the country and even private ones can test women to prevent their cancer, if found positive, from progressing. At the moment, only about 23 public hospitals offer such service, denying an unknown number of women from such tests in the provinces.

For treatment, there are even fewer hospitals and the budget must be taken also from the P1.5 billion which can accommodate only from

200 to 300 cancer patients who must undergo 18 cycles of treatment using chemotherapy and/or targeted therapy, which does not kill healthy cells and has milder side effects.

Women, she said, usually come for help only when it is too late because they have no money for the early detection tests and because they know about the financial hardship they and their families have to suffer if found positive.

“ Let us save our women. Pakurot naman sa confidential funds,” she added.

by the artistry, inventiveness, and skills of Filipinos, will suffer losses and demoralization. “Online pirates take away the rightful reward and recognition for their work, and this will eventually discourage creativity and innovation among our people and investors.”

To exacerbate the situation, Abejo noted some sites also carry content promoting the Online Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of Children (OSAEC), whereby minors are exploited to perform sexual acts and streamed online. Other sites deceive users to share sensitive data for cyber-attacks on individuals or institutions alike.

“ Right now, swift site blocking power is the apparent response to these threats,” Abejo said.

That technology creates boundless possibilities is proven true, and in this case, the possibilities go both ways,” he added. “We have to do everything in our power to limit the bad and destructive ways that technology can be used to the detriment of our people.”

Continued from A14

Moreover, the nutrition official said the measure will support the local economy, especially the farmers.

Diokno explained that the proposed tax program on junk food would impose P10 per 100 grams or P10 per 100 milliliters tax on prepackaged foods “lacking nutritional value” and those that contain nutritional levels “exceeding” the DOH’s specified thresholds for fat, salt, and sugar content.

The proposed tax measure would cover confectioneries, snacks, desserts and frozen confectioneries. Diokno disclosed that the DOF plans to hike the current sweetened beverage tax regime to P12 per liter regardless of sweetener used. Diokno added that the tax rate will be “indexed annually by 4 percent and exemptions would be eliminated to broaden the tax base.”

Diokno said the increase in sugar tax aims to “strengthen” the effectiveness of the current tax regime by “further discouraging the consumption of such beverages.” (Full story here: https://businessmirror. com.ph/2023/06/22/dof-doh-pushsugar-and-salt-tax-eye-p76-b-morerevenues/ ) Andrea E. San Juan

THE leadership

Representatives on Wednes

day said its monitoring reports indicating that hoarders are active once again in manipulating the price of onions.

SC allows forfeiture case vs Nani Perez, bizman Ernest Escaler to continue

‘JUNK FOOD TAX SHOULD PROMPT INNOVATION’

a

18.

NAM, HYEONWOOK Customer Support Representative Brief Job Description: Responsible for engaging with customers on behalf of the company, including answering phone calls or email, and process orders, and modifications and escalate complains.

trustworthy, and proficient in speaking and writing in English & Korean Hangul.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: College graduate/ bachelor’s degree, at least 1-2 years working experience in the related position, flexible, trustworthy, and proficient in speaking and writing in English & Korean Hangul.

Salary Range: Php 30,000

20.

LIN, HUAJUN Mandarin Field Service Coordinator

Brief Job Description: The Mandarin field service coordinator will be a strategist and a leader able to steer the company in the most profitable direction while also implementing its vision, mission, and long-term goals.

and presentation skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Proven experience as a Mandarin field service coordinator, excellent communication, interpersonal and presentation skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

CMEC OFFICE IN PHILIPPINES Unit 717 High Street South Corporate Plaza, Tower 2 26th Street, Bgc, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig

Manager

21.

Job Description: The Mandarin marketing manager will be a strategist and a leader able to steer the company in the most profitable direction while also implementing its vision, mission, and long-term goals.

Basic Qualification: Proven experience as a Mandarin marketing manager with familiarity, knowledge, and awareness of machinery and electrical products used by the company. Demonstrable experience in developing strategic business plan. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Editor: Jennifer A. Ng

Agri-fisheries output falls by 1.3% in Q2–PSA

“The value of palay production increased by 1.1 percent, while corn declined by -0.8 percent.”

The livestock subsector also saw a slight increase at 0.7 percent in April to June. Its output was valued at P63.5 billion or 14.8 percent of the total value of agri production.

“Hog, the major contributor to the value of livestock production, increased by 1 percent.”

At current prices, PSA said the value of production in agriculture and fisheries amounted to P551.50 billion or an annual growth of 3.4 percent.

Last May, the PSA reported that agriculture and fisheries output grew by 2.1 percent year-on-year to P428.69 billion.

PSA said the value of agriculture and fisheries production at constant 2018 prices fell by 1.3 percent yearon-year to P427.69 billion.

“This was attributed to the reduction in the value of fisheries production. Meanwhile, crops, livestock, and poultry posted increments in the value of production.”

According to PSA, the fisheries

subsector recorded a 14.2-percent contraction in the value of its output which reached P58.81 billion in the second quarter. It contributed 13.8 percent to the total value of production in agriculture and fisheries.

“All fish species, except tiger prawn [sugpo] and roundscad [galunggong] posted contractions in

PCA sets sights on boosting coco production to cut imports

MANILA is implementing a program that aims to boost the productivity of the local coconut sector to reduce the Philippines’s copra imports.

The Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) said the country is currently importing copra from Papua New Guinea to augment domestic supply, which has been reduced due to the low productivity of trees.

“The current average yield of 44 coconuts per tree each year could rise to 80 to 100 through the use of hybrid varieties,” PCA Administrator and CEO Bernie Cruz after the agency signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with two groups on Wednesday.

The PCA sealed an MOU with the Confederation of Coconut Farmer’s Organizations of the Philippines (CCFOPCONFED) and the Philippine Rural Reconstruction Movement (PRRM) to “reinvigorate the coconut industry.”

“Doubling the yield, even if copra prices remain steady, will definitely double farmer incomes,” Cruz said.

Coconut production in 2022 reached 14.93 million metric tons, up 1.5 percent year-on-year, according to data from the Philippine Statistics Authority.

The PCA said it will target to plant 100 million coconut trees in the next 5 years.

Despite years of stagnation and decline, Cruz said the coconut industry remains as one of the country’s top dollarearning industries.

“We expect to significantly increase coconut productivity, boost diversified production, and engage more of our farmers in higher value-adding activities, which would contribute to economic growth and substantially increase and even double farmers’ incomes.”

Aside from massive planting and replanting, PCA and its partners will intensify farm diversification, foster coconut processing by small and mediumsized enterprises, and revitalize coconut research and development.

“The urgency of helping coconut farmers, organizing and strengthening cooperatives, and providing support

services such as shared facilities and processing centers to capacitate the coconut planting and replanting program.”

Cruz said that such interventions should encompass all provinces viable for coconut farming and further enhance best practices of the vibrant coconut industry in provinces such as Camarines Sur and Quezon Province, as well as in the highest coconut-producing areas in the Davao Region, Zamboanga Peninsula, and Northern Mindanao.

The PCA is the sole government agency tasked to develop the coconut industry to its full potential in line with the new vision of a united, globally competitive, and efficient coconut industry.

Palm oil imports

MEANWHILE , a group warned against imposing unnecessary restrictions on the importation of palm oil, saying this will price lead to higher food prices.

“We had been informed that the DA [Department of Agriculture] is considering some policy proposals that will surely hurt Filipino consumers,” Lester Codog, Bantay Palengke convenor said.

“We have been monitoring issues being raised by various sectors including some quarters that are competing with the palm oil industry and we are wary that they have misguided our policymakers on this issue.”

Codog said that among the proposals include the prohibition of palm oil trading, which is necessary for backyard feed producers to continue operating.

“If we allow this prohibition on palm oil trading, palm oil importation will now solely be the domain of large scale feed manufacturers. This triggers monopoly pricing and a potential abuse of dominant position,” he said.

“It will marginalize backyard feed producers which rely on affordable palm oil and other materials to remain viable livelihood endeavors. It will also marginalize small-scale and mediumsized feed mills, as they have limited capacity to store various raw materials, including imported palm oil.”

Raadee S. Sausa

the value of production during the second quarter of 2023.”

In contrast, the value of crop production went up by 1.2 percent

to P240.83 billion, according to data from the PSA. The crops subsector accounted for 56.3 percent of the total value of farm output.

Poultry production was also higher by 1.5 percent during the period. It accounted for P64.54 billion or 15.1 percent of the total value of production in agriculture and fisheries.

PSA said chicken and duck exhibited improvements in the value of production during the period.

“This was due to the annual increases in the value of production of crops, livestock, poultry, and fisheries.”

The crops subsector again buoyed the performance of Philippine agriculture as it posted a 1.7-percent increase in terms of the value of its output. Palay and corn registered increases of 5.2 percent and 3.2 percent, respectively. Raadee S. Sausa

Solons push for postharvest facilities in PHL rice areas

By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz @joveemarie

LAWMAKERS have proposed the construction of postharvest facilities in every palayproducing city and municipality in the country to help raise farmers’ incomes and reduce rice prices.

In filing House Bill (HB) 7711, Davao City Rep. Paolo Duterte, Benguet Rep. Eric Yap, and ACT-CIS Partylist Rep. Edvic Yap said the construction of these postharvest facilities could begin with building a rice mill and a warehouse in every legislative district with at least one rice-producing town.

Duterte said the proposal, which aims to achieve this goal, provides that the construction of these postharvest facilities be later expanded to include every rice-producing municipality and city in the country.

“While the government is focused on intervention programs to boost rice production, the impact of these initiatives will be signifi -

cantly lessened if rice-producing areas lack the facilities they badly need to reduce post-production losses,” Duterte said.

A study done by the Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization, an attached agency of the Department of Agriculture (DA), found that postharvest losses among major farm commodities in the Philippines range from 10 to 50 percent of production output. This means that at least 10 percent to about half of all land, inputs, and labor used to produce rice and other major crops go to waste.

“Equally focusing on preventing postharvest losses would not only turn this wastage into higher profits for our farmers but would also help bring down prices of locally produced rice,” said Duterte.

He said passing HB 7711 into law could later encourage the private sector to invest in modern storage solutions and new technologies to augment, or improve upon, the basic postharvest facilities

constructed under the measure.

Under HB 7711, the DA and Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) are tasked with implementing the measure in coordination with the Department of Public Works and Highways and in consultation with farmers’ cooperatives.

The Department of Trade and Industry, in consultation with the DA, DAR, and farmers’ cooperatives, will provide the equipment and machinery, including transport facilities, necessary to complement and operate the warehouses and rice mills, according to the bill.

Warehouses and rice mills, including the equipment, machinery, and transport facilities required to operate them, must later be sold to the beneficiary farmers’ cooperatives.

The beneficiary cooperatives will be given 25 years within which to amortize the cost of these facilities without interest, Duterte said.

HB 7711 provides for an appropriation of P1 billion for the initial

implementation of the postharvest program.

“Thereafter, the amount necessary to pursue the program shall be incorporated in the General Appropriations Act, funding of which shall be partly sourced from the savings realized from the phasing out of palay and rice subsidies and from amortizations accumulated thereof,” the bill read.

“The Philippines as a major rice importer faces many challenges. The countries that we rely on for imports could, at any time, opt to restrict selling to other countries like what India is doing now. We also have to deal with extreme weather disturbances like the El Ninõ and La Ninã phenomena.”

According to the bill, all of these factors lead to higher rice prices. Cutting post-harvest wastage by even 1 percent through the construction of basic facilities like rice mills and warehouses, could significantly boost local production and raise the incomes of palay farmers.

Veggie meat cuts income of Monde Nissin in Jan-June

By VG Cabuag @Villygc

MONDE Nissin Corp. said its attributable core income fell 14 percent to P3.5 billion in the first half from the previous year’s P4.08 billion mainly on the continuing losses of its meat alternative business.

The maker of Lucky Me! Noodles and Skyflakes said it also incurred higher marketing expenses for its Asia Pacific branded food and beverage (APAC BFB) business and foreign exchange losses.

“The APAC BFB business saw top line growth moderate during the second quarter as volume growth slowed down in all categories, most noticeably in

noodles. This reflects what we have observed over the past few months and what appears to be an overall macro trend of more modest consumption across many food and beverage categories,” Henry Soesanto, the company’s CEO, said.

“However, despite this slowdown, we saw good improvement in our gross margin compared to the previous quarter as well as year-over-year which we expect will continue as the year progresses. Looking ahead, we expect the third quarter to show better yearon-year growth, being helped by last year’s lower base.”

Soesanto said the restructuring of its veggie meat business has been completed and that it is on

Modi may give farm handouts as food export bans hit rural India

PRIME Minister Narendra Modi may offer handouts to Indian farmers ahead of the elections as food commodity export bans to control inflation begin to hurt incomes and could cost him some votes.

Modi’s administration banned exports of some rice varieties last month along with wheat in 2023 and imposed curbs on stockpiling some food staples with an eye to keeping inflation in check. There’s cause for a concern: ruling parties in the past have lost the national vote because they couldn’t control the price of essential items like onions.

The export bans however come with a price and is likely to hit incomes in rural India where around 65 percent of 1.4 billion people live, a vote bank for Modi who is seeking a third term in elections next summer. Agriculture

alone accounts for about 20 percent of the Indian economy—one of the fastest growing in the world.

Economists say Modi needs to act sooner than later given inflation is outpacing incomes in rural areas. Farm wages grew at around 5.5 percent during the October-March period, according to data from Citigroup—slower than inflation averaging 6.16 percent.

“By initiating an export ban and imposing a stocking limit, you are strangulating the markets and imposing an implicit tax on the farmers,” said Ashok Gulati, an agriculture economist at the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations. The “proconsumer and anti-farmer bias” of policies will need some intervention, he said. The government sets a minimum support price for several crops and has increased the

ceiling every year during Modi’s time in power. But limited state procurement has done little to shield farmers from selling crops at lower or even distressed prices.

“While farm input costs have come down sharply from last year, the farmers terms of trade have not improved enough due to these falling output prices,” said Samiran Chakraborty, economist with Citigroup Inc. A “rural-focused stimulus may be timed closer to the general elections,” Chakraborty said.

The government has a policy toolkit in place to support rural areas. Economists say there could be higher wages under a jobs guarantee initiative and an extension of a free grains program for 800 million people beyond December.

Farmers who own smaller plots of land are given 6,000 rupees ($72) a year for their

financial needs and economists say that payout may increase. Adding benefits under a crop insurance initiative and increasing state procurement could be on the cards.

The jobs guarantee program “should be the most important policy focus in the shortterm,” said Kunal Kundu, an economist with Societe Generale SA, as it provides social safety net for the most vulnerable. However, the government cut the allocation by 38 percent to 600 billion rupees for the current fiscal year. Kundu said reducing taxes on fuel, and food items such as milk “would go a long way in reducing rural household stress.”

Such measures are likely to complicate government plans to keep the deficit goal at 5.9 percent of GDP for the year ending March 2024. The fiscal gap stands at about a quarter of the target and Finance Minister

track to deliver previously guided savings.

“Despite the continued category challenges, the EBITDA [earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization] improved during the second quarter and we are cautiously optimistic that this will continue in the coming quarters,” he said.

Consolidated sales for the first half grew 7 percent to P39.19 billion from the previous year’s P36.63 billion. Of the sales, a huge chunk came from its branded business at P32.1 billion, 10 percent higher than the previous P29.17 billion. The rest came from its meat alternative at P7.09 billion, down by 5 percent from the previous P7.46 billion.

On a comparable basis, its branded business in the Philippines grew 9 percent to P30 billion in the first half due to the moderated growth in the second quarter at 3.7 percent, reflecting the continued growth in biscuits and other categories offset by the softening demand for noodles. International revenue rose by 20 percent to P2.1 billion due to the robust growth in biscuits.

Core EBITDA of the meat alternative was a loss of P106 million for the first half due to lower revenues and gross profit.

On a reported basis, revenue for the first half in the United Kingdom declined by 5.5 percent on a constant currency basis in the first half due to the challenging retail market.

THE fisheries subsector pulled down the country’s agricultural output in the second quarter, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported on Wednesday.

FARMERS in Palawan are preparing to plant rice in this BusinessMirror file photo.

Ukraine accuses Russia of targeting rescue workers with consecutive missile strikes

By Hanna Arhirova The Associated Press

The strikes Monday evening in the downtown district of the city of Pokrovsk killed at least seven people, including an emergency official, and wounded more than 80 others, most of them police officers, emergency workers and soldiers who rushed to assist residents, Ukrainian officials said.

The Russian missiles slammed into the center of Pokrovsk in the eastern Donetsk region, which is partially occupied by Russia. Emergency crews were still removing rubble on Tuesday. The Iskander missiles, which have an advanced guidance system that increases their accuracy, hit within 40 minutes of each other, according to Donetsk Gov. Pavlo Kyrylenko said.

Since the start of the war,

Russia has used artillery and missiles to hit targets and then struck the exact same spot around 30 minutes later, often hitting emergency teams responding to the first blast.

The tactic is called a “double tap” in military jargon. Russians used the same method in Syria’s civil war.

“All of (the police) were there because they were needed, putting their efforts into rescuing people after the first strike,”

Ivan Vyhivskyi, chief of Ukraine’s National Police, said Tuesday.

“They knew that under the rubble were the injured—they needed to react, to dig, to retrieve, to save. And the enemy deliberately struck the second time.”

Russia’s Ministry of Defense

Covid-19 hospitalizations in the US on the rise again, but not like before

By Carla K. Johnson AP Medical Writer

HERE we go again: Covid-19 hospital admissions have inched upward in the United States since early July in a small-scale echo of the three previous summers.

With an updated vaccine still months away, this summer bump in new hospitalizations might be concerning, but the number of patients is far lower than before. A look at what we know:

How bad is the spike?

FOR the week ending July 29, Covid-19 hospital admissions were at 9,056. That’s an increase of about 12% from the previous week.

But it’s a far cry from past peaks, like the 44,000 weekly hospital admissions in early January, the nearly 45,000 in late July 2022, or the 150,000 admissions during the Omicron surge of January 2022.

“It is ticking up a little bit, but it’s not something that we need to raise any alarm bells over,” said Dr. David Dowdy, an infectious disease epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

It’s likely that infections are rising too, but the data is scant. Federal authorities ended the public health

emergency in May, so the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and many states no longer track the number of positive test results.

What about deaths?

SINCE early June, about 500 to 600 people have died each week. The number of deaths appears to be stable this summer, although past increases in deaths have lagged behind hospitalizations.

How are we tracking the virus?

THE amount of the Covid-19 virus in sewage water has been rising since late June across the nation. In the coming weeks, health officials say they’ll keep a close eye on wastewater levels as people return from summer travel and students go back to school.

Higher levels of Covid-19 in wastewater concentrations are being found in the Northeast and South, said Cristin Young, an epidemiologist at Biobot Analytics, the CDC’s wastewater surveillance contractor.

“It’s important to remember right now the concentrations are still fairly low,” Young said, adding it’s about 2.5 times lower than last summer.

And while one version of Omicron—EG.5—is appearing more frequently, no particular variant of

claimed it hit a Ukrainian army command post in Pokrovsk. Neither side’s claims could be independently verified.

Among those injured was Volodymyr Nikulin, a police officer originally from the now Russianoccupied port city of Mariupol.

Arriving at the scene after the first missile strike, Nikulin was wounded in the second strike when shrapnel pierced his left lung and left hand.

“Today is not my happy day because Russian criminals committed another awful crime in Pokrovsk,” he said in a video he sent to The Associated Press from a hospital ward.

In the video, he is seen lying on a bed shirtless, with dried blood

the virus is dominant. The variant has been dubbed “eris” but it’s an unofficial nickname and scientists aren’t using it.

“There are a couple that we’re watching, but we’re not seeing anything like Delta or Omicron,” Young said, referencing variants that fueled previous surges.

And mutations in the virus don’t necessarily make it more dangerous.

“Just because we have a new subvariant doesn’t mean that we are destined to have an increase in bad outcomes,” Dowdy said.

When is the new vaccine coming?

THIS fall, officials expect to see updated Covid-19 vaccines that contain one version of the Omicron strain, called XBB.1.5. It’s an important change from today’s combination shots, which mix the original coronavirus strain with last year’s most common Omicron variants.

It’s not clear exactly when people can start rolling up their sleeves for what officials hope is an annual fall Covid-19 shot. Pfizer, Moderna and smaller manufacturer Novavax all are brewing doses of the XBB update but the Food and Drug Administration will have to sign off on each, and the CDC must then issue recommendations for their use.

Dr. Mandy Cohen, the new CDC director, said she expects people will get their Covid-19 shots where they get their flu shots—at pharmacies and at work—rather than at dedicated locations that were set up early in the pandemic as part of the emergency response.

“This is going to be our first fall and winter season coming out of the public health emergency, and I think we are all recognizing that we are living with Covid, flu, and RSV,” Cohen told The Associated Press last week. “But the good news is we have more tools than ever before.”

on his side and covering his left hand. He moves with pain to show his wounds.

Pointing his camera to show other wounded security forces in the ward, he says: “Look, these are Ukrainian heroes who helped (injured) people.” He told the National Police in a video that he feared a second strike but went to help anyway.

There were so many injured at the hospital that Nikulin was still waiting for surgery on Tuesday morning. He was later transported to a hospital in Dnipro, where he was to have the shrapnel removed.

Nikulin had already witnessed some of the war’s horrors. He helped an AP team escape after

Russian troops that besieged Mariupol entered the downtown area and searched for them.

He was featured in the awardwinning documentary “20 Days in Mariupol,” a joint project between The Associated Press and PBS “Frontline” about the earliest phase of the invasion of Mariupol.

In a statement, the U.N. humanitarian coordinator in Ukraine, Denise Brown, described the latest attack as “absolutely ruthless” and said it was “a serious breach” of international law and violated “any principle of humanity.”

Since the beginning of Russia’s invasion in February 2022, 78 employees of Ukraine’s State Emergency Service have been killed and 280 have been wounded while responding to Russian missile strikes, according to agency spokesperson Col. Oleksandr Khorunzhyi.

Ukrainian officials say rescuers are protected by international conventions as they are providing humanitarian assistance and are not engaged in combat operations.

The head of the Pokrovsk city administration, Serhii Dobriak, described the attacks as “a typical Russian scenario,” with 30 to 40 minutes between missiles.

“When rescuers come to save people’s lives, another rocket arrives. And the number of casualties increases,” he said in a video comment to local media.

Kyrylenko, the regional governor, said that 12 multistory buildings were damaged in Pokrovsk, as well as a hotel, a pharmacy, two stores and two cafes.

The roof of one building was partially demolished, and rubble filled the sidewalk outside. Across the road, a children’s playground was wrecked.

Russian missiles, drones and artillery have repeatedly struck civilian areas in the war. The Kremlin says its forces target only military assets and claims other damage is caused by debris from Ukrainian air defenses.

Meanwhile, an overnight attack on the town of Kruhliakivka, in the northeastern Kharkiv region, killed three people and injured nine others, Gov. Oleh Syniehubov said.

Russia also dropped four guided bombs on a village near Kupiansk, in the Kharkiv region, killing two civilians, Ukraine’s presidential office said. Rescuers later came under fire, and two of them were wounded, it said.

Also on Tuesday, Russian-installed authorities of the Donetsk region accused Kyiv’s forces of shelling the region’s namesake capital and killing three people. The Moscow-appointed leader of the Donetsk region, Denis Pushilin, said Ukrainian shelling of the Russian-held city of Donetsk also wounded 11.

Temperatures soar in Iberia as wildfires force the evacuation of 1,400 in Portugal

By Barry Hatton The Associated Press

LISBON, Portugal—More than 1,000 firefighters are battling a series of wildfires in Portugal as it and neighboring Spain experience several days of extreme summer heat, with temperatures in many areas rising above 40 degrees Celsius (104 ° F).

Three major fires raged in Portugal on Tuesday, with the biggest in the southwest near the town of Odemira, where on Monday about 1,400 people were evacuated from villages and a camp site as a precaution. They were gradually returning home on Tuesday.

The National Civil Protection Service said about 1,000 firefighters, 320 vehicles and nine aircraft were deployed at that fire on Tuesday. It has so far scorched around

7,000 hectares (17,300 acres).

The recent spate of wildfires came as temperatures have spiked. On Monday, the city of Santarem, about 80 kilometers (50 miles) northeast of the capital, Lisbon, set the year’s highest temperature at 46.4 C (115.5 F). Temperatures are forecast to fall nationwide from Tuesday, though they will mostly remain above 30 ° C (86 ° F).

Spain is faring better with its wildfires this week despite the high temperatures of the country’s third heat wave this summer.

Officials said three fires that started over the weekend have been brought under control or had been extinguished Tuesday.

The biggest blaze, in the northeast, burned about 600 hectares (1,500 acres) and required the evacuation of 150 people.

The only fire out of control in

European scientists make it official: July was the hottest month on record by far

By Seth Borenstein AP Science Writer

NOW that last month’s sizzling numbers are all in, the European climate monitoring organization made it official: July 2023 was Earth’s hottest month on record by a wide margin.

July’s global average temperature of 16.95 degrees Celsius (62.51 degrees Fahrenheit) was a third of a degree Celsius (six tenths of a degree Fahrenheit) higher than the previous record set in 2019, Copernicus Climate Change Service announced Tuesday. Normally, global temperature records are broken by hundredths or a tenth of a degree, so this margin is unusual.

The United States is now at a record 15 different weather disasters that caused at least $1 billion in damage this year, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced Tuesday. It’s the most mega-

disasters through the first seven months of the year since the agency tracked such things starting in 1980, with the agency adjusting figures for inflation.

“These records have dire consequences for both people and the planet exposed to ever more frequent and intense extreme events,” said Copernicus deputy director Samantha Burgess. There have been deadly heat waves in the Southwestern United States and Mexico, Europe, and Asia. Scientific quick studies put the blame on human-caused climate change from the burning of coal, oil, and natural gas.

The previous single-day heat record was set in 2016 and tied in 2022. From July 3, each day has exceeded that record. It’s been so warm that Copernicus and the World Meteorological Organization made the unusual announcement that it was likely the hottest month days before it ended. Tuesday’s calculations made it official.

Spain is in the southwest near the Portuguese border. Some 20 people in two rural hostels were evacuated. Strong winds were reported to be complicating firefighting efforts.

Spain’s AEMET weather agency said temperatures will continue to rise at least until Friday, with some areas of the southern Andalusia region hitting 44 ° C (111° F). A drought in Spain for the past two years has led to water restrictions in several parts of the country. Spain’s Ecological Transition Ministry said Tuesday that reservoirs nationally were at 41% of their capacity owing to high temperatures and the severe lack of rain.

The Associated Press writers Ciarán Giles in Madrid and David Brunat in Barcelona, Spain, contributed to this report.

“We should not care about July because it’s a record, but because it won’t be a record for long,” said Imperial College of London climate scientist Friederike Otto. “It’s an indicator of how much we have changed the climate. We are living in a very different world, one that our societies are not adapted to live in very well.”

The global average temperature last month was 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer than pre-industrial times. In 2015, the nations of the world agreed to try to prevent long-term warming—not individual months or even years, but decades—that is 1.5 degrees warmer than pre-industrial times.

Last month was so hot, it was .7 degrees Celsius (1.3 degrees Fahrenheit) hotter than the average July from 1991 to 2020, Copernicus said. The world’s oceans were half a degree Celsius (0.9 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer than the previous 30 years and the North Atlantic was 1.05 degrees Celsius (1.9 degrees Fahrenheit) hotter than average. Antarctica set record lows for sea ice, 15 percent below average for this time of year.

KYIV, Ukraine—Ukrainian officials on Tuesday accused the Kremlin’s forces of targeting rescue workers by hitting residential buildings with two consecutive missiles—the first one to draw crews to the scene and the second one to wound or kill them.

In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Emergency Service, rescuers evacuate people from a damaged building after Russian missile strikes in Pokrovsk, Donetsk region, Ukraine on Monday, August 7, 2023. UKRAINIAN EMERGENCY SERVICE VIA AP

The World

Thousands of LA workers join wave of strikes disrupting key industries

By Laura Curtis & Nadia Lopez

LOS Angeles is embroiled in a summer of labor unrest as thousands of city workers joined a wave of strikes across the area’s major industries, demanding higher wages and better working conditions.

More than 11,000 municipal employees walked off the job for 24 hours on Tuesday, causing minor disruptions for trash collection, airport, postal, and port services. They’re uniting with actors, writers, and hotel workers who have taken to picket lines in recent months to protest stalled contract negotiations, while advocating for issues like affordable housing and curbing Hollywood’s use of artificial intelligence.

The surge of union activity in Los Angeles reflects a broader trend of labor unrest in the US, where workers have been emboldened by the economic recovery from the pandemic and frustrated by rising inflation and inequality.

“This has been called hot labor summer and I think that that is completely accurate,” said Kent Wong, director of the UCLA Labor Center, in an interview. “I have not seen this level of strikes as well as worker activism in decades.”

The city workers who are participating in the one-day strike are represented by SEIU Local 721, the largest public sector union in Southern California with more than 95,000 members. They include sanitation workers, mechanics, traffic officers and engineers who work for various city departments.

The workers say their pay has not kept up with the cost of living and that they need better benefits. They also accuse the city of violating labor laws by imposing changes to their working conditions without bargaining.

The wide gap between the rich

and poor in Los Angeles coupled with its expensive living conditions have fueled the labor unrest, said Wong. “You have communities of Bel Air, Brentwood, Beverly Hills, Malibu, where every single house is worth millions of dollars,” he said. “And yet on the other side of town, you have conditions that rival some of the poorest parts of the developing world.”

LA Mayor Karen Bass has said that she respects the city’s employees and their right to fair contracts. The city has been “bargaining in good faith with SEIU 721 since January” and is committed to reaching an agreement as soon as possible, said Bass.

“The city will always be available to make progress 24 hours a day, seven days a week,” she said.

The strike is the first to be held by the city’s employees in more than 40 years, according to the union. They are held rallies at the Los Angeles airport and City Hall on Tuesday morning before joining picket lines at various locations across the city.

Dae Levine, a spokesperson for the airport, warned travelers to allow extra time to come and go during the planned action.

Another potential flashpoint is the twin ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, which together form the largest container hub in the US and one of the region’s most important economic engines.

The strike was unlikely to have a major impact on cargo operations, since most of the workers who unload container ships belong to a different group, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union. Dockworkers with the ILWU reached a tentative agreement at all 29 West Coast ports earlier this year, following a win for LA school district support staff.

“The Port of Los Angeles respects the fair bargaining rights of all employees,” spokesman Phillip Sanfield said in a statement.

Bloomberg News

Stuffed Russian grain ports show risk of escalation in the Black Sea

By Áine Quinn

RUSSIAN grain ports are overflowing after two big harvests. That means any military escalation in the crucial Black Sea risks depriving the world of huge amounts of crops it’s counting on.

Port capacity is being stretched as the wheat giant struggles to clear the volumes despite massive exports. Russia shipped 4.4 million tons of wheat in July, a record for the month and almost 60% above average, according to consultant SovEcon.

Some terminals on the Azov Sea stopped accepting grain due to lack of storage capacity, SovEcon said. That’s a problem for farmers if the situation in the Black Sea between Ukraine and Moscow worsens and slows Russian flows, because they’ll have nowhere to send their harvest that’s critical to global food supplies.

Top wheat shipper Russia, which last month exited a deal allowing Ukraine to export from Black Sea ports, moves most of its grain through the waterway. The country started the export season with the largest wheat stockpile in three decades, according to the US government. The big supplies have helped make Russian wheat among the world’s cheapest.

Russian sales slowed in recent weeks because of bottlenecks caused by handling so much grain, according to SovEcon.

“You have rail traffic jams and delays around seaports and it

China slides into deflation in July as consumer, factory prices drop

By Bloomberg News

snowballs,” SovEcon Managing Director Andrey Sizov said. “Everything is used almost.”

For now, Russia’s smaller ports on the Azov Sea are more overloaded than the main Black Sea grain port of Novorossiysk, SovEcon said. Vessels sailing from Azov Sea ports usually unload onto bigger ships at the Kerch Strait, which sail onward through the Black Sea, but navigation through the strait has been restricted for safety reasons after an attack on the Kerch Bridge earlier this month.

Black Sea

ANY escalation in the Black Sea could have big knock-on effects for global grain trade. Kyiv hit a Russian oil tanker over the weekend and warned that more attacks could follow, as it seeks to retaliate for the Kremlin’s efforts to cripple Ukrainian grain exports. That may make some ship owners more cautious about calling at Russian Black Sea ports. If the backup persists or worsens, that could create storage headaches for the country’s grain growers and force them to pile more up at farms. For example, they may not have space to store different kinds or classes of wheat separately, according to Dmitry Rylko, director of Moscow-based consultant IKAR.

“The storage situation is quite tense,” he said. “Despite the high exports there’s still a lot of grain, and the south is expecting the second wave of the harvest.”

The consumer price index dropped 0.3 percent last month from a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics said Wednesday, marking its first decline since February 2021. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg had predicted a 0.4 percent decline in prices.

Producer prices fell for a 10th consecutive month, contracting 4.4 percent in July from a year earlier, slightly worse than expected. It’s the first time since November 2020 that both consumer and producer prices registered contractions.

China is experiencing a rare period of falling prices as consumer and business demand weakens after an initial burst in the first quarter following the ending of pandemic restrictions. A prolonged property market slump, plunging demand for exports and subdued consumer spending are weighing on the economy’s recovery.

“China is in deflation for sure,” Robin Xing, chief China economist at Morgan Stanley, said in an interview with Bloomberg TV. “The question is how long. It’s up to the policymakers—will they react with coordinated fiscal and monetary easing.”

The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index trimmed earlier losses of as much as 0.9 percent to trade 0.2 percent lower as of 11:35 a.m. local time. The onshore benchmark CSI 300 Index of stocks also fell slightly by the mid-day break. The yuan traded offshore gained 0.2 percent to reach 7.2212 per dollar.

More stimulus

INVESTORS are betting the weak inflation data will prompt the People’s Bank of China to add more monetary stimulus,

like cutting interest rates. However, the central bank is facing several constraints that’s making it cautious, such as a weaker yuan and elevated debt levels in the economy. Fiscal support has also been moderate, given the financial pressures many local governments are facing.

“They need to accelerate all the government spending, raising government debt and do coordinated monetary and fiscal easing, to break this debt deflation trap,” Xing said.

Another thing holding authorities back from further policy loosening: Fears about whether the money released into the banking system by the PBOC would be stuck there, rather than used to fund productive activity.

“Some companies are reluctant to expand production” as their expectations about profit soften, the Economic Daily wrote in a front-page article on Wednesday. The newspaper is affiliated with the State Council, China’s cabinet.

That weak demand for financing among those firms “drove them to put loans obtained immediately into deposits,” according to the article. “Liquidity is flush in the financial system.”

The statistics bureau attributed the decline in consumer prices to the high base of comparison with last year, saying the contraction is likely to be temporary and consumer demand continued to improve in July.

“With the impact of a high base from last year gradually fading, the CPI is likely to rebound gradually,” Dong Lijuan, chief statistician at the NBS, said in rare additional comments to accompany the official data.

Beijing has tried to downplay

the risk of deflation in the economy with some Chinese-based analysts saying they were instructed by regulators and their companies not to discuss the matter publicly. PBOC officials said last week that China will avoid deflation in the second half of the year, with consumer-price growth likely to trend closer to 1 percent by the end of the year.

Falling prices also suggest real financing costs in the economy are going up, which some economists argue should add to the urgency for the PBOC to take action to prevent growth momentum from weakening further.

“CPI and PPI both dropping into negative territory in the short term has in fact lifted real interest rates,” Bruce Pang, head of research and chief economist for greater China at Jones Lang LaSalle Inc.

“There’s a greater necessity to cut the RRR than interest rates in the short term, as there’s still room for various structural monetary policy tools and policy bank financing tools,” he said, referring to the amount of cash banks are required to keep in reserve.

Food prices

THE core inflation measure, which excludes volatile food and energy costs, picked up to 0.8 percent from 0.4 percent, a sign of underlying—although subdued—demand in the economy. A breakdown of the consumer inflation figures showed prices for household goods, food and transport contracted, while prices of services spending, like recreation and education, climbed.

“We expect CPI will be negative

Pakistan’s imprisoned former prime minister appeals his conviction and 3-year sentence

By Munir Ahmed The Associated Press

ISLAMABAD—Pakistan’s imprisoned

former Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday appealed his conviction and three-year sentence in a graft case, one of his lawyers said.

The development is the latest in the political drama in Pakistan surrounding the former cricket star and top opposition leader ahead of upcoming parliamentary elections.

The 70-year-old Khan, who was ousted in a no-confidence vote in April 2022, was arrested over the weekend and sentenced for concealing assets after selling state gifts he received while in office.

Khan has denied the charge, saying he did not violate any laws.

Naeem Haider Panjutha, Khan’s lawyer, said the Islamabad High Court would hear the appeal on Wednesday. The lawyer met with Khan on Monday at the high-security Attock prison in eastern Punjab province.

Speaking to reporters after filing the appeal in Islamabad, Panjutha said Khan’s conviction should be declared “illegal and

without lawful authority.” He also asked the court to acquit Khan, claiming he was arrested illegally.

Separately, Khan’s defense team is petitioning the court for better prison facilities for the former prime minister, Panjutha said.

Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party and critics have said the former premier was being politically victimized by his successor, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, a charge the government denies.

Sharif said he would step down on Wednesday, after the five-year term of the current parliament runs out and ahead of the next parliamentary elections, expected in October or November.

Sharif spoke on Tuesday to a gathering of families of fallen soldiers and members of the country’s security forces killed in fighting militants. “They sacrificed their lives for the motherland, and the whole nation is proud of them,” he said.

Under Pakistan’s constitution, after Sharif steps down and the parliament is disbanded, a caretaker government is installed to run day-to-day affairs and lead the country to the next election.

Sharif’s ruling Pakistan Muslim League party is expected to face tough competition from Khan’s party—though Khan himself would be unable to contest the election unless his appeal is granted and he is released from prison.

Pakistan’s Election Commission on Tuesday disqualified Khan from running for office for five years, based on his conviction and sentence. Under Pakistan’s laws, no convicted person is eligible to lead a party, run in elections, or hold public office.

Panjutha earlier in the week said Khan was in good spirits and maintaining “a high morale” despite the harsh conditions at Attock prison, which was established in 1905 during British colonial rule. The facility holds convicted militants and the most hardcore criminals during trial proceedings.

Panjutha said Khan is being held in a “small room at the prison where there is no air conditioner and where there are flies in daytime and insects at night.”

Khan was previously arrested in May on corruption charges, triggering a wave of violent protests across the country. Days later, Pakistan’s Supreme Court ordered his release, saying his arrest was illegal.

only for the short term, like for one to two months,” said Ding Shuang, chief economist for Greater China and North Asia at Standard Chartered Plc. “Food and energy prices are more likely to go up instead of going down in the second half of the year. That means the drag on CPI seen in the first half from food and fuel will like ease.”

“Details in the data suggest this marks a nadir. A month-on-month rise in the CPI and a pickup in the core gauge are early signs that CPI inflation is bottoming out.

The PPI is starting to stabilize as base effects turn more favorable. Stepped-up policy support for the economy will probably help prices rebound in the second half the year,” said Bloomberg economist Eric Zhu.

While PPI has likely bottomed out, “it will be rather hard to emerge from deflation in the rest of the year,” he said.

Using the gross domestic product deflator—a measure of economy-wide prices—China was in deflation in the first half of the year. The International Monetary Fund defines deflation as “a sustained decline in an aggregate measure of prices,” such as the CPI or the GDP deflator.

Unlike the temporary drop in consumer prices in late 2020 and early 2021 driven by falling pork prices, the contraction this time around is driven by more longerterm factors such as falling external demand and the property downturn. With export prices falling, China is set to pass on deflationary pressure to other countries via its massive goods trade.  With assistance from Zhu Lin and Wenjin Lv/Bloomberg

children

By Reed Stevenson

AN estimated 42 percent of adult Japanese women may end up never having children, the Nikkei newspaper reported, citing a soon-to-be-published estimate by a government research group.

In a more optimistic scenario, a quarter of women born in 2005 may end up not having offspring. The midpoint estimate by Japan’s National Institute of Population and Social Security Research calls for a third of them not having children, the newspaper reported Wednesday.

Birthrates are a critical issue for Japan and other countries with rapidly aging populations.

The island nation posted the fewest births in its recorded history last year, continuing a sevenyear decline. With a smaller workforce and fewer taxpayers to sustain the world’s third-largest economy, Japan has become one of the world’s most indebted countries.

The percentage of childlessness is even higher for men, with as many as 50 percent never seen having children, according to the report, the Nikkei said. With assistance from Marika Katanuma/Bloomberg

CHINA’S consumer and producer prices both declined in July from a year ago, a sign of deflation pressure that’s likely to be temporary as policymakers face pressure to step up monetary and fiscal support.

IT’S the first time since November 2020 that both consumer and producer prices registered contractions. BLOOMBERG

42% of Japanese women may never have

editorial

It’s every Pinoy’s right to have medical care

PresIdent Marcos highlighted in his recent state of the nation Address that the administration’s nation-building efforts couldn’t succeed without providing adequate attention to the population’s health. In line with the government’s efforts to prioritize health-related expenditures, the President said the department of Health’s budget is now the third highest after education and Public Works.

To help the poor and keep more people healthy, Marcos said that prices of essential medications have decreased by about 40 percent. In addition, 60 specialty centers opened to the public in 2022, while 3,400 projects to construct more public health facilities were completed.

“As of this year, more than 80 percent of our eligible children have been vaccinated against measles, rubella, and polio,” the President said, adding that PhilHealth’s Konsulta Package has increased the number of free dialysis sessions to 156 from 90 in 2022.

Marcos recently vowed to make medical care more accessible in underserved communities through the capacity building for local government units (LGUs) and the construction of new facilities such as the Clark Multi-Specialty Medical Center (CMSMC). (Read, “PBBM vows wider medical care access,” in the BusinessMirror , July 18, 2023).

“That is why it is a fundamental part of the services that this government will bring to our people. It is not a privilege to have healthcare,” Marcos said during the recent site inspection for the CMSMC at the Clark Freeport Zone in Pampanga. “It is a right and that is how we will approach this problem, and that is how we will continue to make our healthcare system better for all Filipinos in whatever capacity that we are able to do.”

Citing the important role played by the healthcare sector during the pandemic, the President said he will prioritize making health services available at the local level through his administration’s Health Facility Enhancement Program (HFEP).

The comprehensive HFEP includes establishing the “Botika de Barangay” or barangay pharmacies program, rural and barangay centers, as well as medical special centers such as the CMSMC.

“This is part of a larger system of healthcare provision that we are putting together to service our citizens so that they don’t have to wait [or] get very very sick before they go to the big hospitals. We are bringing healthcare down to the people,” the chief executive said.

Marcos is also pushing for more public-private partnerships (PPP) to improve healthcare delivery across the country. During the groundbreaking ceremony of the St. Bernadette Children and Maternity Hospital in San Jose del Monte, Bulacan, the President said the government and private sector must work together to make healthcare more accessible and affordable to every Filipino.

Marcos urged the private sector and medical professionals to support the administration’s healthcare programs. “I am encouraging the private sector and medical professionals to support and advocate for our healthcare programs in the government, such as medical services and funding health infrastructure, especially in far-flung and disadvantaged communities,” he said.

Stressing the need for a whole-of-society approach to enforce effective health policies that leave no one behind, Marcos said only when we have a healthy citizenry could we establish a progressive Philippines where no one is left behind. After all, as Winston Churchill eloquently said, “Healthy citizens are the greatest asset any country can have.”

Surviving stock market risk/reward

John Mangun

OUTSIDE THE BOX

IHAve always assumed that the only place to find “life” is on planet earth. I believe this because from the simplest single cell bacterium to the epitome of complex life forms (humans) staying alive is a lot of work. survival is a constant, never-ending battle and eventually everything loses the war against becoming individually extinct. Why bother?

But from that Gram-negative, facultative anaerobic, rod-shaped, coliform Escherichia coli bacterium running around in your lower intestine, all the way up the food chain to you and me, every living thing wakes up with the same thought. “What the hell. I’ll give this life-thing one more day to see how it works out.”

The ultimate battle that we wage every living moment is figuring out how to handle risk and reward. Reward is something that we want. Risk is the price we might have to pay to get the reward. We learn from a very early age about the risk/reward equation. Is the risk worth the reward? More importantly, is the probability of gaining a reward greater than the potential of suffering the risk?

Therefore, our quest is to find the optimal risk-reward balance, a

The ultimate battle that we wage every living moment is figuring out how to handle risk and reward. Reward is something that we want. Risk is the price we might have to pay to get the reward. We learn from a very early age about the risk/reward equation. Is the risk worth the reward? More importantly, is the probability of gaining a reward greater than the potential of suffering the risk?

delicate act of weighing these two critical components. We must somehow measure the odds of “winning” against losing and then, is the reward beneficial enough to offset the pain of losing?

Running across a busy street, dodging cars, is probably not worth it if you are just going to lunch. Running across a busy street, dodging cars, might be worth it when being chased by a horde of brain-eating zombies.

The key to handling risk/reward is finding a quantitative measure of the relationship between the two factors, the Risk-Reward Ratio. Simple example. The odds of winning the PCSO jackpot Mega Lotto 6/45 are approximately 1 in 8,145,060. The cost for a ticket is P20. In other words, if you win a jackpot paying

P8,145,060, your Return on Investment (Reward) is P407,253 for each

P1 put at Risk.

Does buying a 6/45 lotto ticket with that eight million jackpot make sense on the Risk/Reward equation?

No because your odds of winning are much worse than the possible reward if you do win.

However, for stock market investing, considering the dynamics of external uncertainties and inherent volatility, it is not as simple as calculating odds as for the lotto because there are not any hard odds to calculate. Reward probability then becomes straightforward as “How much can I make and how much could I lose?”

For me then, the best thing is to assume that at best case, the “odds” are fifty-fifty that the price will go

up or down. How do we calculate a sensible Risk/Reward equation?

The stock price tends to go higher from a support level and to go lower from a resistance level. A price that breaks below support will probably go lower. The strategy then would be to buy at support level with the profit potential at a higher, preferably much higher, resistance price.

Assume the price is P5 and that is a strong support level from which the price has usually gone up. The historic resistance has been at P6 so if the price moves from support (P5) to resistance, the profit potential is 20 percent. But at what price do I cut loss if it breaks below P5?

Theoretically—and I don’t follow theories unless they start with “Newton,” “Einstein,” or “Planck”— you should hold until the next lower support level or at a set percentage loss. That is a great way to lose a lot of money. The number one “theory” is “Sell until you can sleep.” The moment and at a price I begin to feel uncomfortable and uneasy thinking the increase from support is not going to happen, I sell. I never regret cutting a loss. I always regret watching a losing position get larger.

Survival, not profit, is always the number one priority.

E-mail me at mangun@gmail.com. Follow me on Twitter @mangunonmarkets. PSE stock-market information and technical analysis provided by AAA Southeast Equities Inc.

100 percent support for the 500 reservoirs program

Thomas M. Orbos

STREET TALK

WAter, as we know it, is life—for us to drink, to grow the food we eat, and the source of electricity we need. And water is a resource that we need to protect. despite the heavy downpour resulting in massive flooding that we experienced last week, most parts of the country remain to be without water. And not just drinking water but even the power outages we have experienced is affected by the amount of water supply our country has. that is why the announcement of President Marcos to build water impounding areas and reservoirs is an innovative and bold idea that may not have been appreciated immediately by those presently affected by the floods, but definitely a solution for long term flood mitigation as well as for water resource management of our country.

The globe, as we now realize, is facing a severe shortage of clean water. Climate change, the loss of watersheds and forests as well as an increasing global population will stress out this valuable resource all the more. It is not far-fetched that future wars will be fought in the same manner that oil and gas are now the subject of regional conflicts. It therefore comes as no surprise that govern-

ments of both developed and developing nations are stocking on their supply through water impounding infrastructures. Just in our region alone, Vietnam has accumulated an annual 473m/capita of water storage, Malaysia—722m/capita, Thailand has 1,1145m/capita. And the Philippines? We, on the other hand have an estimated water stored for each Filipino at 68m/capita!

We are facing a national water crisis that will only worsen. The rains that flood us and cause much damage can be the valuable resource that will make a difference for future generations. Our scarce water resource needs to be managed well and protected. The 500 Reservoirs Program of Marcos should be supported and embraced 100 percent!

The pronouncement of Marcos stems from a cabinet presentation, made by the Department of the Environment and Natural Resources and under the leadership of Secretary Maria Antonia Y. Loyzaga, which calls for a national plan for water impounding in select areas nationwide. Veering away from just the traditional dredging and dike infrastructure solutions to flood mitigation, water storage facilities, aside from being an additional flood control measure, will also provide reliable potable water supply, sustained irrigation for agri and aquaculture, as well as enhanced year long supply for hydropower generation. In a World Bank study made in 2022, Philippine Country Climate Change and Development Report, “increasing

water storage capacity of vulnerable areas is a complementary strategy for flood mitigation and a key adaptation measure for the Philippines.”

Discussing this with DENR Undersecretary CP David, the plan calls for the building of at least 500 reservoirs strategically located throughout the archipelago. This can be realized through the refurbishment and repurposing of old dikes and the construction of low height dams, which will in turn become local storage and water retarding facilities. And where would the money to build these come from? The government spends close to P300 billion annually on flood control, usually in the form of rivers and coastal dikes that outline our silted riverbanks. The problem with this is that it not only cost much, dikes also directs and drains out the water resource we direly need out to the ocean. So, rather than just mega dikes, the program would redirect the flow of excess water during the rainy season to these reservoirs. And the cost? David estimates this to be not more than 10 percent of the flood control budget of the national government. The government need not even spend on the construction and maintenance of some of these water

US warned Japan of China hacking defense networks, officials say

By Katrina Manson & Annmarie Hordern

THE US warned Japan over the course of a year that Chinese state hackers had infiltrated its defense networks before Tokyo took sufficient action to try to secure them, according to current and former US officials.

Senior US national security officials grew increasingly concerned that sensitive information that the US shares with some allies could be at risk as a result of the breach, which was discovered several years ago. That prompted multiple US delegations since 2020 to fly to Tokyo to warn Japan, according to the officials, who asked not to be identified discussing the sensitive matter.

Still, the US saw insufficient evidence Japan was taking action to secure its networks despite warning of a problem, said a former intelligence official. General Paul Nakasone, director of the National Security Agency and commander of US Cyber Command, was among US officials who visited Tokyo to flag the issue.

But Japan wanted proof of the infiltration, said the former official, who added that intelligence is sometimes too sensitive to share specifics. Japan also was reluctant to let the US into its networks, the former official said.

Only after Anne Neuberger, deputy national security advisor for cyber and emerging technology, visited Japan in mid-November 2021 did the US and Japan chart a successful way forward, according to the officials. Japan has since set about boosting its cybersecurity defenses, although the US is eager to see it do still more, according to statements from both countries this year, in addition to national security experts.

The breach and the US warnings were reported earlier by the Washington Post, which cited multiple current and former US and Japanese officials it didn’t identify.

‘Not confirmed’

YA SUk A ZU H A MADA Japan’s defense minister, declined to comment on the Washington Post report, telling reporters in Tokyo on Tuesday that it doesn’t comment on individual cyberattacks and how they are handled.

“I won’t comment on the details due to the nature of the matter,” Hamada said. “We have not confirmed that classified information held by the Defense Ministry has been leaked due to a cyberattack.”

The Embassy of Japan in Washington didn’t immediately respond to messages requesting comment.

Japanese investments soar under PBBM

ment Centers in Osaka and Tokyo. The recent Philippine-Japan Investment Fora offered the prospects of investing in the Philippines on several sectors such as manufacturing, IT-BPM, agro-processing, and the academe and this signifies Japan’s growing interest to continue investing and expanding operations in the Philippines.

Tensions between the US and China are increasing due in part to concerns of a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, which would likely be accompanied by cyberattacks, particularly in the early stages.

In 2019, the US and Japan agreed that a cyberattack against either country in Japan could, in certain circumstances, constitute an armed attack. The US has about 56,000 troops based in Japan, according to the US Defense Department.

In August 2021, Yasuhide Nakayama, who was then Japan’s state minister of defense, said he and Nakasone were “opening a new chapter in our joint efforts in cyberspace” as part of a visit to US Cyber Command to discuss security challenges in cyberspace and bilateral cooperation, according to US Cyber Command.

Japan established a Cyber Defense Group in 2014, as part of its Self-Defense Forces. But amid a growing spate of cyberattacks, it reorganized and launched a full cyber defense command in March 2022, along with a commitment to engage in offensive cyber operations and plans to expand to 4,000 people by the end of 2027, according to Japan’s Ministry of Defense.

In addition to visits to Japan by both Nakasone and Neuberger, then National Cyber Director Chris Inglis also visited Japan in December 2022.

In a statement provided to Bloomberg News, the US Defense Department described the US-Japan Alliance as the cornerstone of peace and security in the Indo-Pacific and said it was strengthening cyber cooperation as part of “Alliance modernization efforts.”

In January, the US and Japan agreed to “intensify collaboration to counter increasingly sophisticated and persistent cyber threats” following security talks to strengthen the alliance in Washington DC.

“The United States welcomed Japan’s initiatives to bolster its national cybersecurity posture,” said a joint statement, citing the creation of a new organization to coordinate whole-of-government cybersecurity policies and a new framework set to “provide a foundation for a wider range of US-Japan cooperation.” With assistance from Isabel Reynolds /Bloomberg

Pheu Thai adds more allies to coalition to form government

By Patpicha Tanakasempipat

PHEU T HAI, a party backed by former premier Thaksin Shinawatra’s family, has added six more partners in a coalition it’s steering to form a government and end a political stalemate following the May general election.

The new groups added 16 more lawmakers to the alliance in the elected lower house, Pheu Thai leader Cholnan Srikaew said on Wednesday. More parties may pledge support to the bloc in the coming days, he said. The alliance’s support in the 500-member House of Representatives now stands at 228.

Earlier this week, Pheu Thai joined hands with conservative Bhumjaithai Party, which finished third in the May 14 election. Most of the new joiners were previously part of a pro-democracy coalition formed by reformist Move Forward Party, which was disbanded after Pheu Thai’s departure last week.

The news of Pheu Thai making progress in broadening its support may help ease the uncertainty around Thailand’s government formation, which has kept the nation on

THE fruits of the travel tree are bountiful and this is clearly manifested in the number of foreign investors coming to the country, and the amount of dollars they bring. Add the number of Filipinos they employ and the potential labor to be hired by the new and expanding business ventures located at our economic zones under the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA), and you can say you have a bonanza.

Investor confidence in the first half of the year looks so real as it soars under President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s initial 12 months in office. Director General Tereso Panga of PEZA, during our discussion, proudly told me that in the recent Japan trip of the President, he lauded the Japanese businessmen for their consistent interest in the Philippines. PBBM even proclaimed that “you (Japan) have played a major role in the Philippines,” adding that “when you think growth, think Philippines…. so that together, we will reap the benefits of robust, sustainable, and inclusive growth for our businesses

and for our peoples.”

On track to achieving its conservative 10 percent investment target growth for 2023, PEZA constantly strengthens economic ties with Japan, its top country investor, as it seeks to attract more foreign investments in the country. This is in line with fulfilling the number one goal of the Marcos administration’s 8-point socioeconomic agenda. This comes as DTI and PEZA concluded a strategic outbound mission to Japan on July 16-22, 2023, co-organized with the Aboitiz InfraCapital (AIC) Economic Estates and the Philippine Trade & Invest-

PEZA received interest both from Japanese big-ticket investors and small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Most noteworthy would be the commitment of Ichijo Corporation to finalize its expansion plans in 2024 to increase its annual housing delivery capacity from 15,000 units to 20,000 units. This plan will contribute significantly to local employment with an additional 3,000-4,000 new jobs to their current 23,000-strong manpower complement of skilled workers, plus the possible expansion plans of the ShinEtsu Corporation, OB kogyo, Ltd., and NEC Networks & System Integration Corporation.

OB kogyo, Ltd., a die and mold company, expressed their intent to reinvest $3 million in their Philippine plant over the next 3 years, bolstering local manufacturing capabilities. On the other hand, ShinEtsu Corp., the global industry leader in the production and research of highperformance rare earth magnets, informed PEZA of its possible expansion plans, which are dependent on the growth of the global electronic vehicle (EV) sector.

Aside from the garnered investment pledges during the recent outbound mission, PEZA approved three big-ticket Japanese investments for this year, namely, Green Energy with Torrefaction Technology, Inc., Asian Transmission Corp., and Pricon Microelectronics Inc. Collectively, the three investments bring in a total of P20.6 billion, with a projected employment of 1,973 direct workers.

Panga is convinced that these recent big-ticket investments proved that there is trust and confidence in investing in our country, particularly from our long-standing trade partner, Japan, where it is at an alltime high.

Led by no less than President Marcos, PEZA will be doubling down on its aggressive and targeted approach to investment promotion. To date, 881 Japanese companies are registered with PEZA, bringing in P766.5 billion worth of investments in the country, with exports of $5.362 billion and generating up to 340,601 direct jobs for Filipinos.

To give our readers an idea how the PBBM travel tree is bearing fruits, from January to July, investments reached P97.16 billion compared to 2022’s P22.48 billion.

Exports of these investors will hit $2.20 billion compared to $747 million last year. What an amazing travel tree!

For comments, tweet@billy andal or e-mail@ andalbilly@yahoo.com

Lula enlists neighbors in Brazil’s battle to save the Amazon

Hard-to-reach consensus

By Andrew Rosati & Simone Iglesias

THE leaders of South America’s Amazon nations gathered in Brazil on Tuesday as President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva pushes for a united strategy to save the world’s largest rainforest— and pressures the planet’s richest countries to help.

The Amazon Summit, a series of conferences and closed-door meetings, is taking place in Belem, the rainforest city that is slated to host the United Nations’ COP30 climate meetings in 2025.

Presidents from Bolivia, Colombia and Peru, the prime minister of Guyana, and top officials from Ecuador, Suriname and Venezuela joined Lula for the first meeting of the eight-member Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization since 2009.

Leaders from other tropical forest countries, including Indonesia, Congo and the Republic of Congo, also planned to take part in the two-day event.

For Lula, the summit is part of a push to reclaim a leadership role for Brazil in global climate negotiations, a seat it largely abandoned under former President Jair Bolsonaro, who rolled back environmental protections and drew international scorn as rates of deforestation rose.

Lula said.

On the eve of the summit, a coalition of major financial institutions, including Brazil’s national development bank and the Inter-American Development Bank, pledged funding to support sustainable development in the Amazon. The exact amount hasn’t been defined, but initial estimates suggest it could be as high as $25 billion, local newspapers reported.

Lula earlier this year secured promises from the US, U k and other nations for hundreds of millions of dollars in commitments to the Amazon Fund, a Brazil-led initiative that finances forest protection.

Since taking office in January, the leftist leader has sought to reduce deforestation rates that under Bolsonaro led financial institutions to threaten to divest holdings in Brazil. European supermarkets also restricted purchases of Brazilian beef, one of the country’s most important exports.

CONSENSUS may be difficult to achieve in a commodity-dependent region where about a third of the population lives in poverty and economic development remains the primary concern.

Colombia President Gustavo Petro highlighted “disagreements” between countries’ policies in his opening remarks, while reiterating his call for bans on new oil exploration. Lula’s government has taken a more measured approach, seeking to balance future development with its environmental aims—and is currently mired in a dispute over state-controlled oil company Petrobras’s drilling plans near the mouth of the Amazon River.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, meanwhile, oversees an oildependent economy and has shown little interest in curbing deforestation in the Amazon. He has also faced condemnation from the UN over human rights abuses related to the participation of state forces in gold mining.

Outside the event, dozens of Indigenous activists protested against resource extraction in the region.

Peruvian Environment Minister Albina Ruiz indicated was a donedeal last month, now appears to be a longshot.

Brazil is nevertheless confident the event will serve as a launchpad for future agreements, with a joint declaration expected to be inked by the end of Tuesday.

“I believe we start the conversation about defining goals at the summit,” Andre Lima, the secretary of deforestation control at Brazil’s environmental ministry, said in an interview. “A perspective can emerge for the adoption of common goals.”

One area of potential progress is on a strategy to combat increasing violence and criminal activity in the Amazon. A UN report released in June indicated that significant parts of the forest are “wracked by a complex ecosystem of drug crime,” with proceeds from sophisticated trafficking operations funneling into illegal logging, ranching and gold mining.

edge and rattled investors. Foreign investors have dumped a net $3.8 billion worth of Thai stocks this year, driving the nation’s benchmark equity gauge 9 percent lower, the worst performing major market in Asia.

“To solve this crisis, we need to end political polarization. We need cooperation from all sides, all groups, everyone, to form a government,” Cholnan said, adding that unity and reconciliation were its “top national agenda.”

While Pheu Thai executives have said they are confident of forming a government with majority support in the lower house, it’s still not clear how it will ensure a win for its prime minister candidate Srettha Thavisin.

The former property tycoon will need the backing of the majority of the 750 lawmakers in a joint sitting of the lower house and the militaryappointed Senate.

Deputy leader Phumtham Wechayachai said Pheu Thai will meet with Move Forward on Wednesday afternoon, potentially to seek the backing of its 151 lawmakers for Srettha’s nomination. Pheu Thai has also been asking senators for support, he said. Bloomberg

Brazil has “managed to turn the sad page of its history,” Lula declared Tuesday morning, while also stressing that the need for regional and global cooperation on climate change has “never been so urgent.”

His goal is to draft a joint agreement between the nations ahead of November’s COP28 meetings in Dubai, where he plans to push wealthy countries to follow through on a stalled pledge to increase climate aid for the developing world.

He has specifically demanded the $100 billion per year promised more than a decade ago that could be used to maintain forests and preserve biodiversity.

“Rich countries that have already destroyed their forests need to take responsibility for financing our efforts to protect our peoples,”

Orbos

continued from A12

storage facilities. There will always be takers from the private sector, who will take interest and operate these facilities that can be the source

Preliminary government data released last week showed that deforestation in the Amazon fell 66% in July from a year ago. But Lula is still trying to win over skeptics, including French lawmakers that want to add tougher environmental restrictions to a pending trade deal between the European Union and Mercosur, a bloc of South American nations that includes Brazil.

The importance he is now placing on regional cooperation reflects Brazil’s belief that a united front can help attract additional funding and avoid future sanctions, said Matias Spektor, an international relations professor at the Getulio Vargas Foundation in Sao Paulo.

“Coalition politics are back,” he said. “The rationale in Brasilia is that Brazil should not act alone.”

of potable water and hydropower generation, under a public-private partnership initiative. This is no rocket science and it is a no brainer. I remember in our younger years as a married couple, my wife would use rainwater and water draining from our air-conditioning

Inside, Peru President Dina Boluarte urged her counterparts to remember the “human face” of the Amazon, and called on the international community to make the well-being of the forest’s estimated 30 million inhabitants—and especially its Indigenous populations— its top priority.

Domestic concerns pose another challenge. Ecuador is focused on looming special elections to replace President Guillermo Lasso, who is not attending. Boluarte is in Belem, but is facing record-low approval ratings at home. And the recent arrest of Petro’s son has exacerbated the political woes of Lula’s closest environmental ally in the region.

The combination has made it unlikely that this week’s summit will result in major binding commitments. An attempt to coalesce the region behind Brazil’s pledge to end illegal deforestation by 2030, which

units, collected in several containers, for watering the plants in our garden and cleaning our vehicles.

We are facing a national water crisis that will only worsen. The rains that flood us and cause much damage can be the valuable resource that will make a difference for fu-

Lula has unveiled a series of new environmental safeguards and deployed the military to target networks of wildcat miners on Indigenous lands. Populations that face similar challenges throughout the region could benefit from a coordinated approach, said Beto Verissimo, the co-founder of Imazon, an environmental think tank in Belem.

Even if concrete commitments don’t materialize, Lula is likely to continue his efforts to convince Brazil’s neighbors that they are stronger as a bloc, especially amid debates over how much donor countries and major development banks should help fund green transitions in low- and middle-income nations.

The urgency of climate change means that “all the rules are being contested,” said Ilona Szabo, president of the Igarape Institute, a think tank in Rio de Janeiro. “Brazil is keen to negotiate the importance of the region.” With assistance from Guilherme Bento / Bloomberg

ture generations. Our scarce water resource needs to be managed well and protected. The 500 Reservoirs Program of Marcos should be supported and embraced 100 percent!

The author may be reached at thomas_orbos@ sloan.mit.edu

‘JUNK FOOD TAX SHOULD PROMPT INNOVATION’

THE industrial sector should learn how to innovate when it comes to food manufacturing once the twin taxes on junk food and sweetened beverages are implemented, according to an official of the National Nutrition Council (NNC).

Jovita Raval, chief of nutrition information and education of the NNC, said the government’s plan to tax junk food and sweetened beverages could be in place within this year or early next year.

A ccording to Philippine Exporters Confederation, Inc. (Philexport)’s statement issued on Friday, Raval shared this information last month during an online forum on creating a healthier food landscape in Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean).

Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno announced in June 2023 a proposal for a junk food and sweetened beverage tax to be jointly pursued by the Department of Finance (DOF) and Department of Health (DOH) as a “proactive” measure to tackle diabetes, obesity, and non-communicable diseases related to poor diet.

T he proposal, however, attracted different views from some business groups last June.  F or one, Management Association of the Philippines (MAP) President Benedicta DuBaladad said the business group “supports the measure but the

money collected from the new tax should be earmarked to support and incentivize research and development, and production and supply of cheaper food and food supplements with high nutritional value.”

For its part, the Joint Foreign Chambers (JFC) said in June that the government should reconsider the proposals to impose new taxes on junk food and increase the existing tax on sugar sweetened beverages, saying this will be “inflationary” for Filipino consumers and “discriminatory” to certain businesses.

T he JFC said it believes it is “not the right time” to introduce additional taxes on products primarily consumed by middle- and lower-middle-class households because the country is still recovering from the pandemic and a prolonged period of high inflation.

Meanwhile, Raval in her presentation said that aside from improving Filipinos’ diet, the tax initiative will also drive the industry to innovate.

We look at the industry to come up with new products with less processing and more on whole foods,” the nutrition official said.

S he added that in times of bountiful harvests, produce [could be preserved rather than just let it go to waste]. “So there’s a market for food preservation of whole foods.”

ADB: Grab key driving force in PHL economy

THE Asian Development Bank

(ADB) found that Grab is a “key driving force in the Philippine economy,” as it provides “sustainable livelihood opportunities” for delivery riders.

In a study conducted by the multinational lender, Grab was found to have helped offset the rise in unemployment during the pandemic, providing livelihood opportunities for “thousands of Filipinos” that had to “weather economic adversity.”

“GrabFood delivery drivers in the Philippines report positive feedback on their job experience due to three main reasons: flexibility in working hours, decent earnings, and independent working conditions,” the ADB report attached to a statement read.

T he study surveyed 1,200 GrabFood delivery riders across Metro Manila, Cebu, and Davao.

A ccording to the study, 81 percent of the respondents considered the flexibility of work hours as a leading factor for entering and keeping their jobs, citing time management and independence as key ingredients to a good working environment.

T he study also revealed that the average daily income of GrabFood delivery was “approximately double the minimum wage across all three regions.”

G iven these encouraging factors, 95 percent of the respondents said they intended to continue to seek earning opportunities on the GrabFood platform even after the pandemic.

A nd due to their positive experience, 74 percent said they would recommend Grab as a platform for livelihood opportunities, to their female relatives or friends.

Grab Philippines Country Head

Grace Vera Cruz said the data reflect the “versatility and criticality of the gig economy.”

“ The findings of the Asian De -

House adopts report fixing issues from CREATE IRR

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz @joveemarie

gistics service enterprises (LSEs) to VAT zero-rating on their local purchases.

So, piece by piece, the DOF, DTI, and BIR are responding to the recommendations of the committee,” he said.

be resolved through executive issuances.”

velopment Bank’s survey reaffirms that we are indeed living out our mission of creating flexible earning opportunities for thousands of Filipinos. We are committed to continuously enhance the livelihoods of our partners, deliver value to our consumers, while building a sustainable ecosystem for all our stakeholders,” she said.

T he ADB study noted, however, that there are operational hazards on this type of career and emphasized the need for affordable medical insurance schemes to promote the long-term sustainability of this flexible self-employment model.

Vera Cruz noted that Grab Philippines has a comprehensive health and safety policy to support its delivery-partners. This includes accident and life insurance, medicine allowance, access to prepaid ER HMO, hospital assistance, 24/7 Grab Safety Hotline, Grab Academy safety training, and telemedicine services.

S he also claimed that Grab is the first platform in the Philippines to offer a “robust and comprehensive social protection scheme to its partners - with Grab even subsidizing its partners’ first-month contributions.”

Vera Cruz was referring to contributions to the Social Security System, Pag-IBIG Fund, and PhilHealth.

She noted that the findings of the ADB study reveled that Grab “is not only a tech success story, but a resilient economic pillar supporting the livelihoods of countless Filipinos.”

“ This report also reminds us that there is always room to kaizen. We will continue to seek innovative solutions to further enhance our drivers’ welfare and safety while delivering exceptional services to our customers. Our goal is not just to be a super app - we aim to be a super partner to every Filipino,” said Vera Cruz. Lorenz S. Marasigan

T he report, written by the Committee on Ways and Means chaired by Albay Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda, was the result of extensive deliberations called for by House Resolutions No. 490 and 611.

A ccording to Salceda, he received assurances that the Department of Finance would act on the resolution.

“

In the coming days, they will issue amendments to the CREATE Law IRR so that registered export enterprises can continue to avail of VAT zero-rating throughout

the transition period and that domestic market enterprises inside ecozones will be allowed to register as VAT taxpayers so they can avail of the VAT refund system,” Salceda said.

“ We hope to put all questions about CREATE’s IRR to rest before the year ends,” Salceda added.

D uring the course of discussions for the Committee Report, the lawmaker said the DOF and the BIR also issued Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) RMC No. 24-2023 clarifying the entitlement of lo -

The committee found glaring inconsistencies between the letter and intent of the CREATE law and the rules and regulations issued to implement its provisions. These inconsistencies were abject in (1) the disrespect for the transition period prescribed under Section 311 of the Tax Code about the VAT privileges attached to the preferential five percent (5%) tax on gross income earned (GIE); and (2) the distinction between registered domestic and export enterprises in applying VAT privileges, when the law did not make such distinctions,” said the report.

W ith the coming amendments, Salceda said, “We expect issue no. 1 to be resolved. Issue No. 2 will still be pending, so we hope the DOF and DTI can resolve that.”

S alceda said the committee came up with the 68-page report to emphasize “that the problems cited about CREATE Law are matters of interpretation and can

Representatives from the business sector have brought these VAT issues to the President’s attention and have cited them as affecting our competitiveness as an investment destination. So, we worked with the DOF, DTI, and other agencies to address them as much as we can,” Salceda added.

A part from issuances related to the CREATE Law, the committee report also recommended that the DTI-BOI expand its reach as a nonzone-based investment promotion agency (IPA) by integrating incentive promotion in its DTI regional offices.

T he report also recommended that the BIR improve the processing of VAT refund claims and that the concerned government agencies submit periodic status reports to the committee pursuant to Section 290 of the NIRC of 1997, as amended.

“

The DTI and BOI have to proactively expand access to investment promotion services across the regions, and the BIR must take cognizance of its role to enable businesses so that we can collect more revenues from a bigger pie,” he said.

P2.4-T infra projects set for Mindanao–DOF

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas @jearcalas

THE Department of Finance (DOF) said about 30 percent of the administration’s infrastructure flagship projects (IFPs) would be implemented in Mindanao with a total estimated cost of P2.4 trillion.

I n a Philippine Economic Briefing in Davao, Finance Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno said about 76 out of the 194 IFPs of the Marcos Jr. administration are located in Mindanao.

T he current administration’s 194 IFPs is estimated to be worth P8.3 trillion, Diokno added.

Let me repeat that, 2.4 trillion pesos right here in Mindanao,” Diokno said in his speech on Wednesday.

D iokno disclosed that the Mindanao projects include the Davao Public Transport Modernization Project, considered as the country’s first-ever network solution to urban congestion.

We also have the Mindanao Railway Project, the Samal IslandDavao City Connector Bridge, the Davao City Expressway, and the Panguil Bay Bridge, which will be finished by June next year,” he said. Increasing the capacity of our airports is especially critical to

revitalize tourism, which is expected to be a significant growth sector for the Philippines,” he added.

D iokno emphasized that economic liberalization would “help” in closing the country’s infrastructure gap “more quickly” and could boost investments in  renewable energy, telecommunications, toll roads, expressways, shipping, and airports.

“ These measures open new sectors for international firms to invest in. And these also allow foreign investors to form joint ventures with Filipinos, and facilitate knowledge and technology transfer,” he said.

THE House of Representatives has adopted Committee Report No. 638, recommending the rectification of inconsistencies between the CREATE Law and its implementing rules and regulations, primarily on the imposition of value-added tax (VAT) on importation and local purchases of goods and services by registered business enterprises (RBEs) in special economic zones.

“ Seventy-six are located right here in Mindanao

Companies

Editor: Jennifer A. Ng

Thursday, August 10, 2023

Strong consumer demand lifts SMIC H1 profit–exec

By VG Cabuag @villygc

Consolidated revenues rose 18 percent to p 2 86.3 billion in the January to June period from p 242.6 billion in the same period

last year.

“SM delivered strong results in the first half, driven by solid consumer sentiment on the back of a positive economic environment. our performance was driven by fundamental demand, without the added benefit of postpandemic revenge spending that contributed to last year’s results,” SMIC president and Ceo

Frederic C. d yBuncio said.

“We experienced robust consumer confidence, consistent with the philippines’s overall economic growth, record low unemployment and improving inflation environment. This provides us with a solid basis for the balance of the year, in which we typically see our strongest quarters.” of total net earnings, retail accounted for 17 percent, property contributed 26 percent while banking accounted for the largest share

at 47 percent. portfolio investments contributed 10 percent.

SM Retail’s net income grew 21 percent to p8.4 billion from the previous p7 billion. Revenues were up 15 percent to p188.9 billion from last year’s p164.3 billion.

The company said the revenue growth mirrored vibrant shopping activity supported by improving employment. As a result, revenues for the department store grew 27 percent while specialty retail revenues rose 18 percent.

Food retail revenues went up by 10 percent. Alfamart was the fastest-growing food business, as its revenues jumped by 26 percent in the first half.

As of end-June, Alfamart had a total of 1,528 stores.

“Consumer spending was notably strong in discretionary categories such as fashion, dining out, and entertainment, reflecting increased spending power on lifestyle and experiences, underpinned by stronger consumer confidence.”

In the first half, SM Retail and its affiliates added 174 stores, bringing the total retail network to 3,677 stores. SM pr ime holdings Inc.’s consolidated net income grew 38 percent to p19.4 billion in the first half from p14.1 billion in the same period last year.

Bdo Unibank Inc. posted earnings of p35.19 billion in the first half, up by 47 percent from the previous year’s p23.94 billion, driven by broad-based growth across its core businesses.

Improving demand for tourism and transport, energy and consumer spending ensured a good performance by portfolio investments, the company said.

The philippine Geothermal production Co., SMIC said, continues to lead in its advocacy for green energy with new projects in Northern luzon slated to increase steam production. These are in Kalinga, da klan, and Cagayan and also in southern lu zon at Mount l abo and Malinao.

First Gen H1 income rises to ₧9B

By Lenie Lectura @llectura

Lopez-led First Gen Corp.

(First Gen) posted a recurring net income of p9 billion in the first semester, up by 30 percent from last year’s p7 billion, due to the strong performance of its subsidiary, energy development Corp. (edC).

“It was edC that mainly delivered higher earnings as a result of better operating income from higher electricity prices,” First Gen reported on Wednesday.

Revenues stood at p71 billion at end-June this year, up from p66 billion from last year’s level. The company attributed this from elevated natural gas and Wholesale electricity Spot Market (W eSM) prices.

The natural gas portfolio accounted for 63 percent of First Gen’s total

consolidated revenues, while 34 percent came from edC ’s geothermal, wind, and solar plants. The company’s hydro plants accounted for the remaining 2 percent.

The natural gas platform reported a 5-percent decrease in recurring earnings to p5 billion.

The 1,000 MW Santa Rita and 500 MW San l orenzo power plants posted lower net incomes as their depreciation costs and interest expenses rose.

In contrast, the 420 MW San Gabriel power plant as well as the 97MW Avion power plant enjoyed better recurring earnings due to the full availability of both plants for the period and lower fuel costs.

The geothermal power plants under ed C recorded higher sales and operating income as they benefited from higher electricity prices.

Furthermore, ed C had fewer purchases of replacement power due to its higher generation. The 150 MW Burgos wind facility likewise benefited from a better wind regime in 2023.

edC ’s recurring and attributable earnings at p4 billion was 106 percent higher than its recurring income of p2 billion.

The hydro platform’s contribution to First Gen’s recurring earnings declined by 41 percent year-on-year to p278 million due to lower energy sales.

The 132-MW pantabangan-Masiway power plants saw a reduction in the volume of electricity sold due to lower reservoir levels and the transfer of its power supply contract to edC last August 2022.

The decrease in electricity sold was partially offset by an increase

in W e S M volumes sold, higher market prices, and lower purchases of replacement power. The decline was likewise buffered by savings in administrative expenses and higher interest income.

“We hope to carry over the good performance of the first half in the next six months. We are looking forward to a number of significant milestones that are expected to happen for the remainder of the year,” First Gen president Francis Giles puno said.

These include the commercial operations of its liquefied natural gas terminal at the First Gen Clean energy Complex and the closing and turnover of the 165MW Casecnan hydroelectric power plant the company purchased last May from the power Sector Assets and liabilities Management Corp.

B1

Co N V e R G e ICT Solutions Inc. emerged as the “best internet service provider” or IS p for Netflix users, according to the latest data from Netflix.

Citing the first-half data of Netflix’s IS p Speed Index report, Converge said it “delivered the best speeds among local telcos with an average of 3.4 Mbps from January to June this year.”

“It is our pride to have been consistently recognized for the quality of our service to customers. Rest assured that they can rely on us for their daily entertainment needs as we continue to give them only the best possible online experience,” Converge C e o and Co-founder d e nnis Anthony Uy said.

Measuring the prime-time Netflix performance of IS p s , the speed index assesses the networks based on picture quality, start times, and fewer interruptions to Netflix users. Lorenz S. Marasigan

CeNTURy pacific Food Inc.

(CNpF), the po -led food canning firm, said its income rose 8 percent to p3.19 billion in January to June, from the previous year’s p2.95 billion, mainly due to its strong performance in the second quarter.

Revenues for the period rose 7 percent to p33.44 billion from the previous year’s p31.28 billion.

For the second quarter alone, the company’s revenues rose 9 percent to p17.82 billion from the previous year’s p16.48 billion, as its branded business, such as Century Tuna and 555 sardines, was up by 15 percent.

Net income for the April to June quarter rose 10 percent to p1.7 billion from the previous year’s p1.54 billion.

“All things considered, we are grateful for the company’s performance in the first half of 2023. We attribute this to the all-weather nature of our portfolio, which has the flexibility to deliver in an evolving market landscape. Inflationary pressures are beginning to abate, which we take positively, but consumers are still feeling the crunch,” Richard Kristoffer S. Manapat, the company’s

CFo said. “We expect the branded segment to sustain its growth momentum, supported by resilient domestic demand. however, uncertainties remain, especially in oeM [original equipment manufacturing] exports. our gross margin outlook in the coming months is favorable, and we aim to reinvest these gains in demand generating activities, brand building, and innovation.”

The branded business—composed of marine, meat, milk and other emerging segments—catered predominantly to the domestic market.

Meanwhile, CN p F ’s o e M tuna

Che M ICA l manufacturer d&l Industries Inc. said its income declined by 28 percent to p1.24 billion in the first half from the previous year’s p1.71 billion on higher inflation and the costs it incurred for its new plant in Batangas. despite the company’s financial performance during the period, d&l president and Ceo Alvin l ao said optimistic about its long-term prospects.

“It’s really to emphasize that this [Batangas plant opening] is a game changer for us. This is really a big reason to be very optimistic about the company,” l ao told reporters in a press briefing.

“When it’s finally up and running, it will more than offset a lot of these costs. And as as we get to being fully operational, that’s when we will start to see the benefits coming in.”

he said the company will continuously ramp up the operation of the plant for the next 3 years.

e x cluding the Batangas plant capital expenditures, the company the drop in its net income in January to June would have reached only 13 percent to p1.48 billion from the previous year’s p1.71 billion.

Sales during the period fell 27 percent to p16.23 billion from the previous year’s p22.32 billion.

l ao said the company’s perfor-

mance during the first half was also a result of base effects.

The company said revenues from its high-margin specialty products returned to prepandemic levels at 63 percent from 51 percent last year. The rest were from commodity products, from yield smaller earnings. o ver time, as commodity sales continue to normalize and as the company continues to allocate much of its resources in growing the highmargin business, the company said it expects to see a continued increase in revenue contribution from highmargin products.

“In terms of outlook for the year, it’s hard to say; I can’t give any specific numbers. But definitely there are more challenges this year compared to what we were expecting when we were when we were doing our planning last year,” l ao said.

The consumer products segment saw its income grow by 41 percent year-on-year for the second quarter, while food ingredients business saw its margins recover, increasing by almost 7 percent during the first half. e a rnings of Chemrez, its biodiesel arm, declined by 47 percent due to the high-base effects and also due to inflation, weaker consumer spending and the highly competitive landscape in the biodiesel business.VG Cabuag

and coconut exports business saw a 7-percent year-on-year decline in sales in the first half on the back of high base effect and soft markets.

In terms of profitability, the company began to see an uptick in its gross margin only in the second quarter at 24.4 percent, improving by 80 basis points versus the first quarter as commodities trended downward and the higher cost inventory carried over from the year before was depleted.

CNpF said its first-half gross margin contracted by 110 basis points to 24 percent. VG Cabuag

The National Grid Corporation of the p h ilippines (NGCp) has assured the energy Regulatory Commission (eRC) of its full compliance with the rules and guidelines concerning the transmission sector.

The grid operator said it has discussed with the regulators the streamlining of its regulatory compliance with the commission. Those involved in the discussion were NGCp Vice Chairman henry Sy Jr., NGCp president Anthony Almeda, director paul Sagayo Jr. and Vice p resident and head for Revenue and Regulatory Affairs Maria Cynthia Manrique. The NGCp officials met with eRC Chairperson Monalisa dimalanta.

“our meeting with chairperson dimalanta will hopefully pave the way for the efficiency of our regulatory compliance processes and timelines. We were assured that all processes involving NGCp will be characterized by the enabling environment and rule of law mentioned by president Marcos in his State of the Nation Address,” said Sy.

NGCp holds the sole and exclusive concession and franchise for operating the philippines’s transmission network.

The eRC, for its part, said it regularly engages in discussions with regulated entities to identify valuable opportunities for enhancement within the regulatory framework. open dialogues play a crucial role

in fostering a collaborative strategy to address challenges on achieving a reliable and sustainable energy future exploring avenues to streamline regulatory compliance,” it said.

The meeting was held after NGCp presented its proposed Transmission de velopment pl an (T dp) for the years 2023-2040 to the eRC.

The Tdp is a strategic plan to address the country’s transmission infrastructure needs, and outlines the necessary expansion and upgrade of the transmission system, to ensure the reliable and efficient delivery of electricity across the country.

one of the highlights during the presentation was NGCp ’s roadmap to achieve the country’s generation targets, which is notably driven by renewable energy sources. These generation targets align with the target of the philippine energy plan (pep) which seeks to increase renewable energy generation to 35 percent by 2030 and 50 percent by 2040. Implementing the pep will require updating transmission lines to efficiently transmit additional supply to distribution utilities.

The NGC p also informed the eRC of the developments in the luz on, Visayas and Mindanao grids, such as the status of the MarivelesBalsik San Jose 500kV transmission time project, the Cebu-Negrospa nay 230kV backbone project, and efforts in deploying new power plants in the z a mboanga area and Caraga region. Lenie Lectura

SM Investments Corp. (SMIC), the holding firm of the Sy family, on Wednesday said its consolidated net income reached P36.5 billion in January to June, 32 percent higher than last year’s P27.7 billion.

‘Converge is best ISP for Netflix’

Rise in premiums to cut insurance coverage

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas @jearcalas

THE number of Filipinos with non-life insurance coverage could decline as premiums rise, driven by unprecedented increase in reinsurance costs due to a confluence of economic and calamity concerns, an executive of Malayan Insurance Co. Inc. warned.

Malayan Insurance senior vice president and chief underwriting officer Eden

R. Tesoro said non-life insurance premiums are increasing and are bound to increase further as reinsurance costs have ballooned by 50 percent already this year.

Tesoro explained that reinsurance costs have been priced “steeply” because of “rising” frequency and severity of natural calamities, the economic scars from the Covid-19 pandemic, global inflation, and the Ukraine-Russia war.

“The cost of reinsurance has gone up so much that it has forced reinsurers to pull out of the market simply because they cannot sustain these kinds of losses,” she said in a news briefing last Wednesday.

Tesoro pointed out that the doubledigit rate increase in reinsurance costs was unprecedented since its increase in the past 30 years prior to the Covid-19 pandemic has been stagnant to inch-spikes at most. She added they see the increase in reinsurance costs to linger until next

year “since these things tend to stick for a while” as reinsurers would want to recover some of their losses. “This is what drives the [premium] costs. [But] it is not just a desire to increase margins—it is about sustainability,” she said.

The “steep” hikes in reinsurance costs are pushing insurance companies to repackage their products that would mean a more limited coverage compared to what they are offering at present, Tesoro explained. Tesoro said insurance companies

might be forced to “withdraw” from the market to stave off further losses.

“This is not a fairytale. This is a global phenomenon—not just for Malayan [but] for our non-life insurance industry.”

A computation presented by Tesoro showed that the present non-life insurance premium average rate of 0.2 percent would increase to 0.3 percent. The 0.1 percentage point difference would spell an additional P1,000 in basic premium for a residential property worth P1 million.

Health& Fitness

Breastfeeding women lack support in the workplace—UNICEF, ILO

clusive and continued breastfeeding is a u niversal but unfulfilled human and labor right. Paid and job-protected maternity leave and adequate maternal and c hild healthcare are essential to the life, health, safety and economic fulfilment of women and their children. However, discrimination based on maternity persists f or many women in the Philippines and across the world,” said I l O P hilippines Country Director Khalid Hassan.

periods should be counted as compensable hours worked and not less than a t otal of 40 minutes for every eight-hour working period, with two to three breastmilk expressions lasting 15 to 30 minutes e ach within a workday.

Editor: Anne Ruth Dela Cruz

By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

Aljur and Anjoe, 14 and 17 years old respectively, started smoking at the age of 10.

Their exposure to cigarettes at an early age is now starting to take a toll on their bodies.

Now, the both of them say they now experience difficulty in breathing.

Despite this, they are unwilling to stop. In fact, both have shifted to using vapes as an alternative to cigarettes.

Both started vaping last year when vapes became more widely accessible and available.

In the Philippines, a 2019 study by the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) found that marriage and childbearing are associated with a significant decline in the female labor force participation. The Covid-19 pandemic also worsened the uneven share o f housework and family care between women and men, with over two million moms around the globe leaving the labor force in 2020.

Breastfeeding is one of the most accessible care policies that can be applied a t the workplace. It is a clear measure to help women transition back to work after giving birth.

“The benefits of breastfeeding for children, mothers, and society are widespread. Breastfeeding protects infants a gainst life-threatening infections, sup -

By Rizal Raoul S. Reyes Contributor

BY 2035, for every $1 the Philippines will spend in treating hepatitis, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), nonalcoholic fatty liver disease/nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NAF l D/NASH) and cirrhosis, the country will receive $2.23 in return, according to the Asia Pacific (APAC) l i ver Disease Alliance.

“Despite the large investment needed in treating HCC and other liver-related diseases, we should push for the elimination of hepatitis and other liver diseases,” said William Brown, moderator of the recent webinar on “Eliminating Asia’s Silent Emergency.” The l i ver Alliance’s White Paper was also launched during the forum. Brown added that countries such as Australia and Thailand have also realized the value of investing in treating liver diseases. For her part, APAC l i ver Alliance Director r o berta Sarno said the region should

ports healthy brain development in children, and prevents chronic childhood and m aternal illness, reducing health care costs,” said u N ICEF Philippines Deputy r e presentative Behzad Noubary.

I

Gender equality

N t he Philippines, the Expanded Breastfeeding Promotion Act of 2009 or r epublic Act 10028 mandates all establishments, public or private, whether operating for profit or not, to support breastfeeding in the workplace. r e cognizing the importance of this gender equality and health promoting practice for working women, paid nursing breaks, flexible a rrangements and workplace nursing facilities still remain untapped resources f or the large majority of women.

“Maternity protection to support ex -

For breastfeeding to succeed in the workplace, u N ICEF and I l O e ncourage employers to fulfill workplace provisions of the Expanded Breastfeeding Promotion Act of 2009 ( r A 10028), which mandates:

A workplace lactation policy with relevant provisions that is part of the general policy/manual of operations and widely disseminated among employees.

A dedicated lactation/breastfeeding station in the workplace not located within a toilet, where breastfeeding mothers can wash up, breastfeed or express t heir milk in comfort and store their breastmilk afterwards. The Department of l a bor and Employment (DO l E ) Department Order No. 143/2015 provides m odels and lists lactation station equivalences for establishments with peculiar w orkplace circumstances.

l a ctation periods that are in addition to the regular time-off for meals. These

Breastfeeding information that is easily accessible (posters, pamphlets, videos and other resources) or through counselling by trained individuals, or peer educators within the workplace or community. Activities must also follow the Milk Code and prohibit persons or companies from promoting, displaying or giving away infant formula and related products.

Good for moms, businesses

Su PPOr T ING b reastfeeding in the workplace is good for mothers, babies and b usinesses. Family-friendly workplace policies benefit employers by:

Improving the corporate image of businesses, showing that they care about t he health and well-being of working women and their families. r e ducing maternity-related absenteeism, which can translate into 30 to 7 0 percent fewer absences, increasing the retention of female workers, as they feel more supported by their employers.

r e ducing employee turnover rates, resulting in cost savings by eliminating the need to hire and train new staff.

part of essential national health benefit packages;

n Support political commitment to drive consensus on the need to stop the growing burden of liver diseases, and

Aljur has become dual user. When he has no money to buy vape juice, he smokes cigarettes. He said he consumes two packs of cigarettes a day. Anjoe has totally stopped smoking since last year and just vapes.

Despite the law that prohibits selling cigarettes to minors, sari-sari stores were not strict in implementing the law. They willingly sell to minors.

Aljur and Anjoe are both students who work at a fish port when classes are out.

On a good day, Aljur earns P1,100 while Anjoe takes home P2,500. Aljur gives P700 to his parents while Anjoe gives P1,500. They rest, they keep for themselves for personal expenses. Part of this is used to buy vape juice.

Their parents have scolded them and told them to stop vaping. But both of them ignored their parents’ advice.

Executive Order 106 prohibits vaping in public places, markets included. But the lax implementation of this order by the local government units makes it easy for vapers to vape in public areas.

One of seven Pinoys use e-cigs

T H E r E i s an estimated 82 million vape users worldwide as reported by the Global State of Tobacco Harm r e duction (GSTH r ) in 2021, or an increase of 17 percent from the previous year.

The same data showed that as of 2021, some 2.7 million Filipinos belong to this group—or around three percent of the world’s vape users.

A study monitoring youth tobacco use also reveals worrying statistics on the prevalence of use, lax regulations, and wide availability of tobacco products including e-cigarettes.

The results of the 2019 Global Youth Tobacco Survey (GYTS) revealed that there is a higher prevalence of the use of e-cigarettes than the use of any other tobacco products among Filipino students aged 13 to 15 years.

About 14.1 percent, or one in seven, students aged 13 to 15 said that they are currently using e-cigarettes.

act fast because 63 percent of the global deaths due to liver ailments are in the Asia Pacific region.

Sarno said the alliance was formed as a response to the increasing number of deaths and illnesses caused by liver diseases.

During the webinar, Sarno introduced to the participants the actions the organization will undertake. These are:

n Develop and implement their own comprehensive national liver disease action plans, within an overarching and integrated national policy that tackles hepatitis, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), nonalcoholic fatty liver disease/ nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NAF l D/ NASH) and cirrhosis;

n Set clear goals and targets to reduce the liver disease burden;

n Place a high priority on the prevention of liver disease through multi-sectoral action;

n Develop and implement strategies for early screening, surveillance, and

diagnosis of liver diseases, and promote awareness of the need of such strategies with the population and the healthcare workers;

n Promote services and programs tailored to the needs of affected populations in different settings, including centralized testing and treatment in urban and periurban settings and decentralized testing and treatment in rural and remote areas;

n Provide effective and timely treatment, rehabilitation and ongoing care;

n Support research programs to better measure, monitor and report liver disease, its risk factors, and the impact of interventions;

n Embrace, support and contribute to effective inter-country, inter-regional and global liver disease networks and partnerships;

n Allocate increased financial resources to liver diseases—through external or domestic funding – and include viral hepatitis and HCC prevention, early screening, diagnosis and treatment as

PHL’s pioneering cleft treatment hub launched

By Roderick L. Abad Contributor

SMILE Train and Noordhoff Craniofacial Foundation Philippines, Inc. (NCFPI) has launched the country’s first Cleft Leadership Center (CLC), strengthening their constant dedication to provide improved progressive treatment, especially for Filipinos in need of correcting this most common birth defect.

“Smile Train celebrates its 75,000 cleft surgery milestone this year and, as we recognize this significant accomplishment, we know there is still more work ahead of us. The launch of the CLC represents our commitment to continuously provide safe, high-quality, and timely care for the Philippine cleft community by building a stronger, comprehensive cleft care system,” said Kimmy Coseteng-Flaviano, vice president for Southeast Asia at Smile Train.

The facility serves as a regional hub for cleft care and training, anchored on the global organization’s comprehensive approach and sustainable model for cleft treatment. Likewise, it bridges the gap between the Philippine cleft community and their access to quality cleft care.

High-Quality Cleft Care

MANNED by a local network of medical professionals, the CLC is a multidisciplinary hub that provides pro bono comprehensive cleft care from birth to adulthood. S mile Train beefed up its existing partnership

with NCFPI, the leader for the standard of multidisciplinary cleft care in the country, to serve more Filipinos affected with cleft who would otherwise not be able to afford the needed treatment. The former provides the latter with the required resources to aid those in need.

n Promote greater public and political awareness of the importance of liver disease prevention, screening, diagnosis and treatment.

Nevertheless, the alliance will face a herculean challenge as APAC has more than half of the global population and accounted for 62.6 percent of global deaths due to liver diseases in 2015. Of the total number, 54.3 percent of global deaths are due to cirrhosis, 72.7 percent of global deaths due to hepatocellular carcinoma, and more than two thirds of the global burden of acute viral hepatitis occurred in this region in 2015.  The alliance lamented that the majority of the governments’ response has thus far been insufficient and quite short of funds.

To reverse the dire situation, Sarno said governments must have a renewed focus on prevention, early detection, timely referral, and research into the best means to introduce and improve health interventions to reduce the burden of liver diseases in the Asia-Pacific region.

“NCFPI is a long-time partner of Smile Train in bringing holistic cleft care to cleft-affected individuals in the Philippines. The CLC ensures that an individual’s treatment journey does not stop with cleft surgery but also requires other services necessary for them to live a full and healthier life,” said NCFPI President Dr. Bernard Tansipek.

The CLC’s comprehensive cleft care services necessary for holistic treatment and rehabilitation are now available in NCFPI’s two sites: the Smile Train Craniofacial Center in Joshua Center, which has orthodontic and speech therapy services; and at the Our Lady of Peace Hospital in Parañaque where surgeries, orthodontics and dental treatment, nutrition services, and counseling are conducted.

M ore than just a treatment facility, the CLC is also a training and educational hub for local medical practitioners. It boasts of skilled and experienced cleft teams and state-of-the-art technology that help build local medical capacity in treating various types of clefts. The launch of this pioneering hub signals a more optimal outcome for each surgery through continuous innovation and development of care.

F or more details, visit sm iletrain.org o r smletrain.ph, follow Smile Train Philippines on Twitter and Instagram @SmileTrainPh, and like Facebook at @SmileTrainPhilippines.

Overall, about one in eight students of the same age group (12.5 percent) are currently using various tobacco products. One in four (24.5 percent), meanwhile, have tried using e-cigarettes.

The GYTS also revealed how easy it is for the youth to buy tobacco products in the country, with about two in five students who currently smoke (37 percent) saying that it was easy for them to buy tobacco products regardless of their age.

“The GYTS offers compelling evidence that cigarettes and other tobacco products are widely accessible to minors even when a law restricts access to these products,” said r o meo Dongeto, Executive Director of the Philippine l e gislators’ Committee on Population and Development, the Convenor of Child r i ghts Network. “It is therefore, imperative, for government agencies to strictly implement the law to make sure that these harmful products cannot be accessed by children.”

Parents Against Vape, a nationwide organization of parents committed to protecting children and youth against the harms of vapes, agree.

“The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) must not – even for a day—waver on its commitment to monitoring the sale of e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products that violate the restrictions on flavor descriptors and marketing strategies that directly cater to the youth and children. We laud DTI’s initial efforts on crackdown of illegal vape shops, but this should continue in the years to come,” said PAV president Imelda Esposado-Gocotano.

Address vape epidemic

I N a j oint statement, C r N a nd PAV said the vape epidemic among the children and the youth is “alarming” and urged the government education agencies to “take a more active role” in implementing the Vaporized Nicotine and Non-Nicotine Products r e gulation Act or r A 1 1900 and strengthen the recent administrative order issued by the DTI.

“Although the DTI issued an administrative order to implement the law, we firmly believe that the education agencies are in a more strategic position to address the vape epidemic among our youth,” C r N C onvenor Dongeto said.

Nicotine is addictive

I N a n article authored by Michael Tan, a medical anthropologist, writer and academician, pointed out that vape liquid contains nicotine, the addictive chemical in tobacco.

“Vape manufacturers and other vape advocates say vaping helps nicotine addicts as they try to kick smoking. But it’s a crazy proposition for two reasons. First, there are other nicotine substitutes that are available and that have been approved by drug regulatory authorities. The substitutes come in ‘chewing gum’ format, as well as in skin patches. Second, the nicotine in vape products is addictive as well, and with young people as the target, the addictive potential is worst because young brains are quicker to get hooked on psychoactive substances,” Tan said in his article Turning the Nicotine Tide published last year.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse affirmed this as it said “most smokers use tobacco regularly because they are addicted to nicotine.” The u S Food and Drug Administration also noted that “tobacco products are addictive because they contain nicotine. Nicotine keeps people using tobacco products, even when they want to stop.”

In commemoration of World Breastfeeding Week from August 1 to 7, 2023, the U n agencies for children and labor rights, U nICEF and the International Labor Organization (ILO), called on employers in the Philippines to do more to support breastfeeding women.

Vape users among the youth on the rise–reports

Investing in the treatment of liver ailments now will reap rewards in the future–group

Clothes for kids with disabilities get better, but teens lack fashionable options

By Leanne Italie The Associated Press

NEW YORK—Mindy Scheier was working in fashion before her son, Oliver, was born with muscular dystrophy. As he grew, and she watched him struggle to get dressed, her eyes were opened to her industry’s limitations for people with disabilities.

At eight, Oliver wanted to ditch his daily sweatpants for jeans, favored by his peers. His mom couldn’t find any to accommodate his leg braces and difficulty working zippers and buttons, so she began making adaptations herself.

She put strips of fabric fastener on the inseams of the jeans, and she replaced the button and zipper on the front with the same. The difference to Oliver was immense.

Now, Scheier dedicates herself to raising awareness about the need for designers and retailers to embrace adaptive clothing through her Runway of Dreams Foundation and Gamut Management talent and consulting agency.

Scheier has brought on board some of the largest US brands and retailers. While adaptive clothes, shoes and other gear have made strides in the last few years, more in the industry need to get involved, she said.

“What we learned was brands were so afraid to get into the space for fear of doing it wrong, saying something wrong, not knowing where to start,” she said. “We work with brands to guide them through the process.”

‘It’s all about opportunIty’

OLIVER, now 18, is pleased with the progress, but he said melding fashion with functionality for his age group has lagged behind offerings for younger kids and adults.

“It’s all about opportunity and the chance for people like me and people my age to express themselves through fashion like any able-bodied person,” he said. “It says a lot about who I am on the inside, and adaptive clothing allows me to do that.”

It’s also about including people with disabilities in the design process, taking care to offer such things as hidden openings for medical ports, tubing and bags, or less bulk in the front and a higher rise in the back of pants for wheelchair users. Dressing without help is made easier with things like pull-on loops at the sides of skirts and pants, and wider necks on pullover shirts.

Shoes must be wide and sturdy enough on the inside to accommodate braces or prosthetics. Zippers or other fasteners make them easier to put on for people without full use of their hands.

Adidas was among the giants to work with Scheier. The company consulted Oliver and others with a wide range of disabilities on an adaptive backpack that has a flat bottom, wider loops on zippers, and straps that

are serving people with disabilities. JC Penney, Walmart, Kohl’s, Amazon, Uggs and Zappos also offer adaptive fare. Walmart is among the newest entrants, partnering with brands that specialize in adaptive. The company is working to get prices down and including more styles for older kids.

“Tweens are, in my opinion, an underserved customer holistically today,” said Brandy Lackey, a Walmart senior director of product development who worked on the recent rollout.

The adaptions required are as diverse as the people in need, including those with sensory processing issues who require softer fabrics, no tags and no-itch flat seams.

underserved

ERICA COLE, 27, lost a leg in a 2018 car crash. She found that offerings for pants to accommodate her prosthetic fell far short of fashion.

“The socket was so large on my first prosthetic. My calf was more of the size of my thigh. So I was wearing sweat pants that were three sizes too large and shorts

Family happiness starts with you

A GROWING number of Filipino adults are understanding the importance of mental health. Recognizing the profound influence of happiness on mental health and overall well-being, it becomes clear that each individual has the power to cultivate their own happiness. In fact, this relationship works both ways—a healthier person tends to be happier, and a happier person tends to be healthier!

According to an article by Dr. David Heber, MD, author, chairman of the Herbalife Institute, and Herbalife Advisory Board Member, happiness is the physical, mental, and emotional state of well-being. It can be achieved by boosting your physical health as well as optimizing your emotional and mental welfare. Following a healthy lifestyle of balanced nutrition and physical activity can result in a lower heart rate, blood pressure, and anxiety, all of which can be linked to happiness. Additionally, happiness is associated with the release of endorphins, serotonin, dopamine, and other neurotransmitters associated with brain health.

An Ipsos survey found out that for most people, “the greatest happiness” involves their health and well-being (both physical and mental), their family (partner/spouse and children), and having a sense of purpose. Next comes their living conditions, feeling safe and in control, being in nature, having a meaningful job, and having more financial security.

Here are several proactive tips that can help you in your happiness journey and in achieving better overall health long term:

n Fuel yourself. Science shows that healthy eating contributes to happiness. The physical state of well-being is largely determined by how you fuel your body, a vessel that can only run optimally the better you take care of it. Try adopting daily habits of practicing balanced nutrition and a healthy, active lifestyle.

n Exercise regularly. Exercising regularly

and maintaining an active lifestyle can benefit both our minds and bodies. When we exercise, our muscles and brain benefit from an increase in blood flow, delivering oxygen and nutrients to our brain cells. Our dopamine pathways in the brain are also stimulated which activate our pleasure center. For this reason, exercise is used for treating mood disorders, depression, and addictive behaviors including overeating.

n Make time to relax. There’s a reason why the worldwide interest in self-care is growing—making the time to relax and recharge is one of the best ways to find true happiness. The most effective way to do this is by igniting the relaxation response. This theory shows that relaxing has many effects on the body including lowering blood pressure, and pulse and calming the mind. The step-by-step process to triggering the relaxation response includes 1) Sitting quietly in a private spot 2) Relaxing your muscles from head to toe by contracting and relaxing each muscle 3) Focusing on your breathing 4) Breathing deeply and 5) Thinking of a relaxing image like ocean waves. Practicing this for just 20 minutes a day can recharge your mind and help you get better sleep.

n Finding your purpose. A key principle of “positive psychology” is finding your “why,” or your

hipster jeans and other pants with side zippers, less bulk at the front and stretchy waist bands for wheelchair and prosthetics users. She included front thigh pockets for easy access while seated.

Older kids, she agreed, remain underserved. No Limbits hopes to rectify that in future drops.

“We’ve been talking to a lot of parents and there’s a lot of anxiety around kids aging out of the kids sizes in adaptive clothing. Suddenly they’re in the junior section and there’s nothing. That’s still where the gap is,” Cole said. Kimberly Peterson in Knoxville, Tennessee, does everything for her 14-year-old daughter, Tilly, who was born with a rare genetic condition, Joubert Syndrome. The teen is non-verbal, in a wheelchair and severely developmentally delayed. Before openings for gastrostomy bags went on the market, Peterson cut her own. Today, she still struggles with long-sleeve tops, outerwear and sweaters for her 4-foot-8, 85-pound daughter. A full zip or fabric fastener in the back of winter jackets and long-sleeve tops would help, especially

purpose. True happiness comes from living a life that you choose because it fulfills your personal purpose. To find your purpose, elaborate on these four steps: 1) Find your passion or what you love, 2) Establish your mission or what you feel the world needs more of, 3) Work for which you can be paid, 4) Have confidence in what you’re good at doing.

n Remain grateful. Reframing your mindset can go a long way—rather than complaining about things that are wrong in your life, focus on the good things, large or small. While this may be easier said than done, psychological research shows that concentrating on what is good in your life and expressing gratitude will make you happier. Keeping a gratitude journal or making a brief gratitude list every day giving thanks for all you have can help improve your mood.

n Focus on things you can control. All of us have a circle of influence and a circle of concern. The circle of concern is made up of all the external factors that are out of your control, while the circle of influence includes things you can control, like your personal habits. Choose a proactive approach, and work on the things you can change rather than worrying about the things you cannot change. Having a proactive mindset allows you to focus on change, rather than being inactive, which paralyzes your growth through worry and anxiety. One of the best ways to improve your happiness is to develop healthy habits in all aspects of your life.

Happiness is not an accident, or something that just happens, but something that you make happen. It is a physical, emotional, and spiritual sense of wellbeing, that when found, should give you a lasting feeling of contentment. Use this month to consciously create your own happiness by implementing habits that will positively impact your physical and mental health, enabling you to maintain a sense of inner peace.

le arnIng platform solutIon enhances dynamIc educatIon

WiTH the recent addition of the University of Santo Tomas in the philippines and Duke University in the US, the learning management system Canvas created by global edtech firm instructure, has emerged as the preferred learning platform solution of four of the philippines’ top-rated universities and all ten top-rated universities in the United States.

Ateneo de Manila University (ADMU), De La Salle University (DLSU), University of the philippines (Up) and University of Santo Tomas (UST), which recently landed in the top ten places in the 2023 Times Higher Education impact ranking, use Canvas LMS to enhance the dynamic learning experiences of their students by providing a secure, interactive cloud-based platform that facilitates online, blended and face-to-face education.

The adoption reflects a substantial milestone in powering up the teaching and learning systems at the universities with the use of the instructure Learning platform, that includes Canvas LMS, impact, Canvas Studio, and Canvas Credentials.

“At instructure, we firmly believe that education is for all and are proud to power the best classrooms in the world,” said Steve Daly, CEO of instructure. “Through close customer partnerships, we intentionally design each of our products to elevate student success and amplify the power of teaching. We are working for the advancement of education worldwide by enabling more institutions to adopt technology that facilitates equal access to education and fosters lifelong learning.”

The decision to employ Canvas LMS bolsters the collective visions of the universities to administer an efficient grading scheme for teachers, enhance data and analytics usage, and content sharing and attain learning outcomes between students and faculty. Through Canvas, universities are able to deliver experiences that serve undergraduate, graduate-for-credit curriculums and co-curricular initiatives.

Envoys&Expats

French govt to boost health care, aid school kids’ feeding program

By Malou Talosig-Bartolome & Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

Led by France and Finland, more than 75 countries have joined the “School Meals Coalition” global initiative that aims for all children to have access to healthy and nutritious meals in schools by 2030. This was announced by French minister for development Chrysoula Zacharopoulou during her two-day visit to the country.

The two European countries have partnered with the World Food Programme (WFP) to help the Philippines solve nutritional problems of local school children. According to the United Nations Children’s Fund or Unicef, 1 out of 3 Filipino children below 5 years old are stunted due to malnutrition.

“The question of nutrition is very important, and we know very well that all around the world, there is a problem: children…don’t go to school because they have to also work,” the minister said in a news conference to cap her Manila visit. “Also, they don’t have access to [schooling because of missed meals].”

The Philippine government has joined the coalition’s grand ambition to feed all Filipino school children with nutritious meals by 2030. The Department of Education also recently embarked on a school-based feeding program which gives iron-fortified rice, while tapping local farmers for their produce.

“This coalition, guided by France and Finland with the WFP, is very important because we need to use everything to give access to food to the children,” said Zacharopoulou, who is also France’s minister of State for Development, Francophonie and International Partnerships.

She said France is also working with Philippine technical experts in drawing a road map for the Philippine food security, agriculture and nutrition.

Zacharopoulou—a medical doctor by profession and former co-chair of the Covid-19 Vaccines Global Access or COVAX Facility Shareholders Council—also met with Health

Secretary Teodoro Herbosa, as they spoke about helping the Philippine government develop vaccines and fight cancer.

Aside from her, the French side was led by Ambassador Michele Boccoz, Deputy Head of Mission Rémy Tirouttouvarayane, Scientific Cooperation Attaché Quentin Spooner. With Herbosa on the Department of Health’s (DOH) part was Chief of Staff-Undersecretary Dr. Gloria Balboa and Undersecretary Dr. Lilibeth David.

The health secretary thanked the French delegation for their unwavering support to the country, especially for its aid in the country’s Covid-19 response.

The two parties then proceeded to discuss capacity-building initia-

PHL Coast Guard, Navy ‘sitting ducks’ in WPS

IN case you missed it, the National Task Force on West Philippine Sea (WPS) held a joint press conference last Monday at the Department of Foreign Affairs, as it detailed the watercannoning by the Chinese Coast Guard (CCG) and the Chinese Navy on two wooden-hulled boats, or what is colloquially called “lantsa,” and two Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) vessels. Some video clips were shown, and they were painful to watch.

tives in improving opportunities for health-care workers, such as providing academic scholarships and strengthening primary care implementation.

This was confirmed by Zacharopoulou that her country will double the number of Filipino youth students who will be given medicaldegree scholarships.

“The DOH…thanks the delegation of the French Embassy for providing hands-on assistance to the Philippines to further ensure that all Filipinos are given quality healthcare services,” Herbosa said.

These initiatives, the DOH chief added, will bolster local health systems guided by the “8-point Action Agenda” aimed at full Universal Health Care rollout.

Koica, USAID to combat Manila Bay pollution

THE South Korean government, through the Korean International Cooperation Agency (Koica) and the United States government, represented by the US Agency for International Development (USAID), have signed a grant partnership agreement worth P27.7 million ($ 500,000) to address maritime pollution in Manila Bay.

According to the former’s embassy, the grant funding will supplement the existing P426.2 million ($ 7.7 million) allocated for the “Enhancement of Marine Litter Management in Manila Bay (EMLM)” project: a five-year initiative led by Koica and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

EMLM aims to strengthen Manila Bay's environmental protection system and promote behavioral changes to combat marine litter. It encompasses the development of a comprehensive “Marine Litter Management Strategy,” capacity-building programs, the construction and operation of a clean-up vessel, community-awareness initiatives, and the establishment of pilot communities showcasing effective waste collection and segregation practices.

Panamanian Embassy piques CSB’s SHS students’ interests

THE Embassy of the Republic of Panama in the Philippines led by Chargé d’Affaires Xiomara Perez and Consular Affairs Head Fabio Hidalgo recently welcomed senior-high school (SHS) students from De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde as part of the latter’s immersion on global exchange forums and understanding of bilateral ties.

The courtesy call allowed the 23 participants to understand the historical heritage and economic situations of the Central American country, as well as its political presence and bilateral relationship with the Philippines.

Student Aaron Joshua Go shared how active dialogues, followed by peaceful engagements, are the values of conflict-free discussions among nations. “It made me recognize the importance of representation in each country since they are the avenue for protection and legal actions that will help their citizens whenever they are in the world.”

“This goes to show that diplomats will always spread their love for their

Since 1995, when the Philippines accidentally discovered that China has been building something in the Mischief Reef, the Philippine government made only three major strides to support its claim in the WPS: filed thousands of diplomatic protests, ran aground BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal, and secured a United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea or Unclos-sanctioned arbitration ruling.

What protection are our Filipino fishermen in the Western part of the country, who are feeding half of the nation’s seafood diet, getting? Our troops stationed, it seems from my end, are just simply “sitting ducks.”

But what is the alternative? Can the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and PCG fight back? Can we really look back and tell our children in the future that we didn’t fight back and just relied on the Americans and other international allies to stand by us…in spirit?

Don’t take it personally. CCG, the Chinese Navy and their militia fishermen also harass and intimidate Indonesians, Malaysians, and Vietnamese in the disputed waters. But you won’t hear them complain.

Why? Because they fight back, and you won’t hear anything because they don’t broadcast it in the media.

Why can they fight back? Because their countries have submarines and fighter jets that can help support small maritime incidents.

I think it’s time for us not just to take a stand, but to act. We need a credible defense force: one that can support our sovereignty every time it is trampled upon. We already knew the solution in 1995; yet, our leaders dilly-dallied on what to do.

The war in Ukraine shows us that even if other countries support you in spirit, they will not be there to give unequivocal, no-holds-barred support. They have their own domestic interests to support, and may or may not align with our national interest.

Ayungin Shoal

ONE reporter fielded the last question during the press conference: “Why did the Philippines run aground the BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal?” I don’t know if AFP Col. Medel Aguilar was just being sarcastic about it, but his reply was tart and quite equally irritating for young reporters: “I think I need to do some research on that, Sir.”

Covering the WPS is no easy feat. One has to read a lot of histories, technical explanations of exclusive economic zones, territory, sovereignty, and take in answers such as “I don’t know…” or “That’s confidential…” from sources.

When the BRP Sierra Madre hit the

sands of Ayungin in 1999, China was already fortifying Mischief Reef. At that time, the latter’s excuse for building structures there was to provide shelter for fishermen. The Philippines had to do something, because the reef is just 200 nautical miles away from Palawan, and a few nautical miles from other Philippine-held islands such as Pagasa and Lawak islands.

Later, China turned the reef into artificial islands, and soon weaponized such. Blame them? No. They just outperformed Vietnam in building sprees. We only have ourselves to blame for not stopping the big ships carrying slabs and other construction materials.

Since I had been away from field coverage for a while, I asked former supreme justice Antonio Carpio and Prof. Jay Batongbacal about the renewed fuss about Ayungin Shoal.

Both maritime-law experts said the land feature is very strategically located. It is just 20 nautical miles away from Mischief Reef, and it became an outpost for Chinese activities. It is technically a large atoll with a lagoon, and if the Philippines did not occupy it, China would have converted it too as an artificial base island.

“If China succeeds in squeezing the Philippines out of Ayungin Shoal through this tactic of interfering with resupply missions, it will use the same… with every other Philippine outpost in the Kalayaan Island Group,” Prof. Batongbacal said.

It would be a “test case and proof of concept” for the so-called “cabbage strategy” of China, i.e. surrounding every rock formation with layer upon layer of forces such as its coast guard, maritime militia and navy. If this succeeds, then all vessels and aircrafts— including commercial ships bringing food, oil and all sorts of trade—will be under its mercy.

“If ‘Ayungin’ falls, the rest of Kalayaan Islands will follow. Without the Kalayaan Islands, we will not be able to protect our access to the [WPS, China will take over it,] and limit us to maybe just a few miles of nearshore waters close to our islands. China will achieve its goal of acquiring this side of the ‘Nine-Dashed Lines’ and the Philippines will lose its exclusive economic zone and continental shelf,” Batongbacal concluded.

For Carpio, he sees China’s intention in harassing Philippine supply vessels going to Ayungin Shoal as part of its strategy to stop the country from doing oil and gas exploration in the Reed Bank.

“Malampaya is running out of gas, and we need to start exploration of the Reed Bank,” Carpio explained.

“Ayungin Shoal is the gateway to Reed Bank.”

Expect more harassment in the WPS, Carpio said, as he cited a new law in China allowing the CCG to use all kinds of force. But the Philippines must protect Ayungin Shoal, and prevent the other from taking over neighboring Sabina Shoal.

Because in less than five years, when Malampaya runs out of gas and there will be massive brownouts, the only viable alternative would be to import liquefied natural gas, and expect a 50-percent increase in electric bills.

respective countries, wherever they are, and inspire others to do the same—all for the prolongment of peace,” fellow attendee Gabriel Angelo Aung Hein said.

The tour inspired learners such as Divine Cascia Jawid and Raisa Serene Romero to pursue a career in diplomacy and international relations. Chiara Alessandra Estrella, who also aspires to be an international affairs student, imparted how she personally treasured the lessons shared by Perez, as chargé d’affaires, on being a woman in a male-dominated field.

Prior to onboarding the Work Immersion Program, the students’ “Embassy Hopping” culminating activity formed part of the pupils’ learning exposure under the Benilde Senior-High School-General Academic Strand aimed at widening their perspectives on finding solutions to political, economic and social issues.

THE German-Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GPCCI) tackled updates on the Philippine government streamlining the filing of applications and business permits, with particular focus on the compliance report of the new Electronic Business One-Stop Shops, or eBOSS, for local government units through a digital portal, which was introduced by the Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA).

GPCCI board director Tore Henriksen, who is the president and managing director of Doehle Shipmanagement Phils. Corp., led a panel discussion that addressed expectations of the private sector from the government on improving local business operations such as predictability, regulation and

international norms.

Moreover, Henriksen presented the public sector’s efforts, particularly ARTA, on the ease of doing business and streamlining government processes, as he pointed out the importance of aligning international and local policies. He shared that “as long as there’s awareness in ARTA’s processes and practices, predictability remains existent.”

The forum featured Director General Ernesto V. Perez of ARTA—the government agency responsible for overseeing the implementation of Republic Act 11032 and its regulations, monitors compliance with the national anti-red tape policy, while fostering a business-friendly environment in the country.

THE French Embassy and the Health Department recently ideated plans for unified healthcare provision to all Filipinos, including healthy meals for school children.

CONSTANT DIALOGUE: KEY TO GREAT DIPLOMACY In a Senate meeting with the Japan-Philippines Parliamentarians Friendship League led by its president Moriyama Hiroshi, Senate President Juan Miguel F. Zubiri discussed stronger inter-parliamentary cooperation on trade, security and defense, agriculture, infrastructure, tourism as well as people-to-people exchanges. The occasion marked the first time in nine years that the organization had come to the Philippines for an official parliamentary visit. Present in the meeting were (from left) Amb. Kazuhiko Koshikawa, Hon. Aoyama Yamato, Hon. Miyauchi Hideko, Hon. Otsuka Taku, Hon. Okuno Shinsuke, Hon. Moriyama Hiroshi, Zubiri, Sen. Ma. Josefa Imelda

R. Marcos, Senate Pro Tempore Lorna Regina “Loren” B. Legarda, Sen. Ma. Lourdes “Nancy” S. Binay, Sen. Mary Grace S. Poe-Llamanzares, Sen. Mark A. Villar, Sen. Rafael “Raffy” T. Tulfo, Sen. Joseph Victor “JV” G. Ejercito, Sen. Sherwin T. Gatchalian, and Amb. Mylene Garcia Albano.

GPCCI gathering highlights ARTA’s EODB updates, urges ‘predictability’

AMBASSADOR Michele Boccoz (sixth from left, onward), Minister Chrysoula Zacharopoulou and Health Secretary Teodoro flanked by Health Department officials and members of the French delegation. FB: DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH

58th Singapore National Day

Sustainability and the Singapore Green Plan 2023

CLIMATE change is an existential threat for all of us, but especially for maritime nations like the Philippines and Singapore.

As a small, low-lying island state, Singapore is particularly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change like sea level rise. Although Singapore accounts for only about 0.1 percent of global emissions, the country has consistently pursued sustainable development to balance economic development with environmental protection and social inclusion.

Singapore Green Plan 2030

IN 2021, the Singaporean government launched the Singapore Green Plan 2030, a sustainability roadmap that outlines the country’s collective actions to tackle climate change, and commits Singapore to ambitious and concrete sectoral targets over the next ten years. It demonstrates the country’s commitment to ensure Singapore remains a green and liveable home for many generations to come. The Green Plan covers all dimensions of life in its five pillars: City in Nature; Energy Reset; Green Economy; Resilient Future; and Sustainable Living.

Since launching the Green Plan, Singapore has made good progress in its sustainability journey. In October 2022, Singapore committed to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 as part of the Long-Term Emissions Development Strategy, as well as the reducing emissions to around 60 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2030.

Leveraging technology to advance our Singapore Green Plan

SINGAPORE is interested in low-carbon technologies that will help the country achieve its net zero target. For instance, the Public Utilities Board (PUB) of Singapore has been actively replacing carbon-based energy sources with solar

photovoltaic systems deployed on its facilities rooftops and reservoirs. The government is also studying new technologies such as carbon capture, utilization and storage, as well as carbon removal solutions that can be integrated with its water treatment facilities.

PUB is working with the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) to capture carbon dioxide in seawater and produce hydrogen, and a stream of pre-treated seawater that can be desalinated at lower energy.

Under the Low-Carbon Energy Research Funding Initiative, the government has awarded S$55 million to projects aiming to improve the technoeconomic viability of low-carbon technologies such as hydrogen and carbon capture,

utilisation and storage. Another S$129 million has been set aside for research funding for the next phase of the Initiative.

International cooperation

INTERNATIONAL collaboration and partnerships are critical for small countries such as Singapore, with limited decarbonization options. The country’s small land size and high population density means it is alternative energy disadvantaged.

Singapore works closely with other countries and plays an active role at various multilateral platforms such as the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

SINGAPORE NATIONAL DAY MESSAGE 2023

Singapore is also committed to supporting developing countries in their efforts to address climate change through technical assistance such as our flagship Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP). Over the last three decades, close to 150,000 officials have participated in courses under the SCP, in areas such as education, sustainable development, urban planning, and transport management. With an abundance of natural resources and potential for renewable energy, the Philippines has emerged as a key partner for Singapore in its sustainability drive. The Singaporean government looks forward to working with the Philippines to find solutions to both countries’ common challenges.

BY AMBASSADOR IN MANILA CONSTANCE SEE PIXABAY

SINGAPORE celebrates 58 years of independence on August 9, 2023. am delighted to commemorate this special occasion here in the Philippines for the first time as the Ambassador of the Republic of Singapore to the Republic of the Philippines.

Since I assumed duties in June 2023, it has been an utmost privilege to experience the warm hospitality and friendship of the Philippine people. My family and I were welcomed with open arms and kind hearts, making us feel at home in this beautiful country. It is also truly heartwarming to witness the deep connections that many Filipinos have with Singapore through work, living or study experiences in the Lion City. These close people-to-people ties have formed the bedrock of our bilateral relationship.

The partnership between Singapore and the Philippines is deep and longstanding, with close cooperation across many domains. As founding members of ASEAN, we also share a similar outlook on key regional and global developments and work closely to promote regional peace and prosperity. In September last year, we welcomed President Ferdinand R Marcos Jr. to Singapore for his State Visit. During the President’s visit, our two countries signed agreements that will further strengthen our robust trade and investment, labor and defence ties. Our bilateral relationship will reach yet another milestone in 2024 when we celebrate 55

years of diplomatic ties. I am confident that we will continue to expand our collaboration including in emerging areas such as Fintech, digital economy, innovation and sustainability.

The articles published by BusinessMirror will provide some insight into the latest developments in Singapore and possible areas of bilateral cooperation.

On the joyous occasion of Singapore’s 58th National Day, please allow me to extend Singapore’s heartfelt appreciation to our close neighbours and friends, especially the Philippines, for your continuous support in our journey as a young nation. Thank you and Mabuhay!

Malixi in the hunt in Los Angeles

RIANNE MALIXI cruised to the US Women’s Amateur Match

Play with a second straight 70 she secured with a late frontside birdie as she tied for 18th place after the 36-hole stroke play qualifying at the Bel-Air Country Club in Los Angeles, California, on Tuesday.

M alixi eventually took the No. 23 seeding, matching her tied for 24th placing in last month’s US Girls’ Junior in Colorado that saw her dispatch five rivals in varying fashions in the knockout stage before yielding a one-hole result to Fil-Am Kiara Romero in the 36-hole final.

M alixi, who campaigned is sponsored by the International Container Terminal Services Inc., will face American Ellie Koo, who charged back with a 68 to tie for 39th, at 12:30 p.m.

T he unranked Californian from Harvard-Westlake Athletics wound up at No. 42.

A v ictory will set up the 16-yearold Malixi against the winner in the Malia Nam-Bailey Shoemaker duel.

M alixi, ranked No. 75 in the Women’s Amateur Golf, actually found Bel-Air’s surface a bit faster, three-putting the signature parthree No. 10 where she teed off. She regained the stroke with a five-foot birdie at the par-five No. 14, only to drop it on a missed green mishap on the next.

S he practically settled for regulation pars in the next nine holes before banging in a 12-footer on the par-4 seventh to turn in a pair of 35s and match her first round output for a 140 total at the demanding par-70 layout.

She tied the likes of world No. 17 Rin Yoshida of Japan, who also carded a 70, last week’s Canadian Amateur winner Lauren Kim, who fired a 69, and Thai Thanana Kotcha sanmanee, who made a 71.

A merican Briana Chacon, with a world ranking of No. 104, grabbed the low medal honors in record fashion, finishing with a 131 after an eagle-spiked 65, two strokes clear of Swede Andrea Lignell, the world No. 19 who also put in a fiveunder card laced with seven birdies against a double-bogey, for a 133.

C hacon’s nine-under total shattered the previous seven-under record set by Mariel Galdiano in 2016 which Lucy Li and Selin Hyun matched two years later.

PBBM PLEDGES MORE SUPPORT TO ATHLETES

By Samuel Medenilla

EMBARRASSED by the limited government support for Filipino athletes, President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. vowed more support for members of the national team starting with doubling the cash incentives of medalists in two major international competitions in Cambodia last May.

The President made the candid remark during the awarding of checks representing the medalists incentives from the 32nd Southeast Asian Games and 12th ASEAN Para Games in Malacañang last Wednesday.  “ We were unable to help many of them [athletes], who resorted to getting support from others. It is embarrassing [for us],” Marcos said in Filipino. “But the results were still successful. They are resilient and still make us proud. So just think what will happen if we support them.”

That is my dream. For us, to be able to say we were able to raise their standards in each of their sports and bring out the best from our Filipino athletes,” he added.

“Bambol” Tolentino, Philippine Paralympic Committee head Michael Barredo and Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. Chairman and CEO Alejandro Tengco.

T he chief executive said he hopes the cash incentives, which he distributed during the awarding ceremony, will help improve the competitiveness of the country’s athletes.

H e noted his administration is now thinking of ways to help not only the athletes but also their supporters, including their coaches, trainers, families and even drivers, who were crucial in improving their performance.

We have to give something back to all of you for your sacrifices and honor you brought to our beloved Philippines,” he added.

T he government, through the PSC, released P49.70 million as incentives to the medalist athletes and their coaches who brought home58 gold, 85 silver and 117 bronze medals from the SEA Games and 34 gold, 33 silver, and 50 bronze medals from the Para Games.

Tolentino thanked President Marcos Jr. for reiterating his full support to Filipino athletes and Philippine sports in general.

“ President Marcos Jr. welcoming the athletes in Malacañang and personally handing them their incentives is more than enough a strong gesture of his strong belief and confidence in our athletes,” Tolentino said.

And committing more incentives to the athletes shows that his heart and passion goes with Filipino athletes,” said Tolentino, adding that the President showed pure concern for the athletes by addressing not only their efforts but also the sacrifices made by their team and support group—from their coaches and trainers and more importantly, to their families.

“ President Marcos’s support to the athletes goes far, wide and deep,”

Tolentino said. “And I was touched by the fact that our President even praised the drivers who bring our athletes to and from their training and competition venues. That’s heart.”

“ President Marcos was pleased by the performance of our athletes, and we thank his generosity that would definitely boost the morale of our sports heroes,” said Bachmann, who hailed the athletes’ resiliency in both games.

With a great deal of challenge and circumstances, this batch of national athletes managed to overcome,” he said. “You have reminded this nation that our resiliency is a gift that allows us to conquer obstacles in pursuit of greatness.”

A lso present were PSC Commissioners Olivia “Bong” Coo, Fritz Gaston, Edward Hayco and Walter Torres and Executive Director Paulo Tatad. With Josef Ramos

an American opponent in the next stage.

More than 300 athletes and coaches participated in the ceremony also attended by Senator Francis “Tol” Tolentino, Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) Chairman Richard Bachman, Philippine Olympic Committee President Abraham

P resident Marcos committed to match the bonuses as provided for by Republic Act 10699 or the “National Athletes and Coaches Benefits and Incentives Act,”—thus a gold medal in both games will now be worth P600,000, silver P300,000 and bronze P120,000.

19 athletes—10 boys, 9 girls—vying in Jakarta Asean age group swim meet

NINETEEN athletes—10 boys and nine girls—will see action in the 45th Southeast Asian Age Group Aquatic Championships set August 24 to 26 in Jakarta.

A ll 18 homegrown tankers led by Multiple national 13-under record holder Jamesray Michael Ajido from Quezon City lead the homegrown swimmers who passed the qualifying standard set by the Philippine Swimming Inc. headed by Miko Vargas and secretary-general Eric Buhain during open tryouts staged last year in four areas.

US-based Clark Kent Apuada and Ava Samantha Bautista also made the grade as authenticated by US swimming leagues—Apuada

in boys’ 15-16 100 meters freestyle (53.72) and Bautista in girls’ 15-16 50m (28.44), 100m (1:03.20) and 200 (2:23.46) all in butterfly.

The national tryouts were staged at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex for the National Capital Region, Vigan City for Luzon and Dumaguete City for Visayas and Mindanao.

The best of the best as I see it and because we conducted tryouts, these swimmers are a representation of the regions,” said Buhain, an Olympian and now a representative for Batangas Province’s First District.

A five-member diving team coached by former Games campaigner Nino Carog is joining the team in Jakarta, along with head coach

Baluyot overpowers Catalan in URCC 87

TWO-TIME jiu-jitsu world champion Eros Baluyot pulled off the biggest win so far in his young mixed martial arts (MMA) career after beating veteran Rene Catalan by submission in the Universal Reality Combat Championship (URCC) 87: Heroes on Tuesday night at the Xylo at the Palace at the BGC in Taguig City.

B aluyot, 14 years younger than the 44-year-old Catalan, needed only 71 seconds in the first round to claim the victory with his patented ground game of the main event backed by www.crazywin.ph.

B aluyot applied a rear naked choke forcing Catalan to tap out.

I just did everything precise and safe during the fight,” said Baluyot, now 3-0 won-lost as an MMA fighter, who paid respect to Catalan—a former Asian Games wushu gold medal-

FIBA opens Hall of Fame ceremony to fans ahead of World Cup games

THE International Basketball Association (FIBA) Hall of Fame Ceremony is set August 23, two days before tip-off of the FIBA Men’s Basketball World Cup 2023.

This year’s ceremony at the Sofitel Tent comes with an exciting twist as FIBA has decided to open the doors of the ceremony to the public for the very first time since its establishment.

international basketball.

B asketball enthusiasts eager to be part of this historic occasion can secure their seats for the ceremony as the ticketing platform goes live on August 9 ( https://us.givergy.com/ fibahalloffame).

In the spirit of solidarity and giving back, all proceeds from ticket sales will be donated to the FIBA Foundation’s Basketball For Good projects.

Ramil Ilustre and assistant coaches Cyrus Alcantara, Manuel De Leon, Mark Pido and Wilfredo Cruz. Alido, 14, won two gold medals in the 13-under in last year’s edition in Kuala Lumpur.

He’ll now swim in the 14-15 class’s 200m individual medley (2:14.33) and his favorites 50m (26.12) and 100m (57.46) butterfly.

A lido’s fellow swimmer from Quezon and world junior campaigners Amina Isabelle Bungubung, Mishka Sy and Jalid Taguinod are also in the team.

The others are Makati Ivo Nikolai Enot of Makati City, Joshua Park of Parañaque City, Aishel Evangelista of Caloocan City, Estifano Joshua Ramos and Lance Rafael Cruz of Manila, Patricia Mae Santor  and Shairinne Floriano of Antipolo City and Peter Cyrus Dean also of Quezon. Midsayap (North Cotabato) will be represented by Jie Angela Mikaela Talosig, while Catherine Cruz will swim out of Mabalacat (Pampanga), Arabella Taguinota of Pasig City and Bea Mabalay and Jennuel Boo De Leon of Aklan. Juan Marco Daos qualified for the boys 16-18 200m fly (2:08.29) but opted to focus on training for the world junior championships slated September 4 to 9 in Israel.

A mong those set to join the pantheon of basketball greats are Yao Ming, double Olympic Champion Katrina McClain, and local legend Carlos Loyzaga, who will be inducted posthumously.

The basketball icons, alongside seven other extraordinary players and two exceptional coaches, will be honored for their remarkable contributions to the sport, leaving an indelible mark on the history of

The altruistic endeavor ensures that the power of basketball goes beyond the sport itself, making a positive impact on communities and promoting social change.

The FIBA Foundation is the social and legacy arm of FIBA that addresses the role of sports and particularly basketball in society, preserving and promoting basketball’s values and its cultural heritage.

BCDA starts bid process for Phase 2 of sports academy at New Clark City

ist and now an MMA coach—before and after their fight.

C atalan fell to 6-6 record.

In another MMA contest supported by Lucas Lepri BJJ gym, Rex De Lara wowed the crowd by pulling off a huge comeback win against Mhar John Manahan in their 145-lb contest.

De Lara survived Manahan’s ground-and-pound action and made him pay for failing to finish him in the second round.

T he referee stopped the contest after Manahan was knocked out cold, giving De Lara a rare takedown knockout win that moved him up to 12-8-1 and pulled Manahan down to 2-4.

“All fights were quality bouts. We are very happy to see how the Xylo crowd reacted each fight,” URCC coowner and general manager Alek-

sandr

THE Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) has launched the bidding process for the second phase of the National Academy of Sports (NAS) campus in New Clark City.

In separate bid bulletins posted on its website, the BCDA called for the submission of bids and eligibility documents for the design and build, as well as the construction management and supervision for NAS Phase 2.

BCDA is inviting interested companies to participate in the bidding for the construction of the second phase of NAS. We enjoin you to be part of the efforts to build the facilities for our next generation of sports champions,” BCDA President and Chief Executive Officer Engr. Joshua M. Bingcang said.

W ith an approved budget of P273.74 million, the first procurement involves the site development

of a 10,000-square-meter area, and the design, construction, and fit out works for three additional buildings in NAS, namely, the Sports Science and Sports Medicine Building, Sports Center with Multi-Purpose Covered Courts, and Staff Housing. I nterested bidders have until noon of September 5 to submit their bids.

The second procurement, which has an approved budget of P14.51 million, covers consultancy services for the management and supervision of the construction of the mentioned facilities.

PRESIDENT Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. welcome medalist athletes in last summer’s 32nd Southeast Asian Games and 12th Asean Para Games in Combodia in Malacañang. Joining them are Senator Francis “Tol” Tolentino, Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) Chairman Richard Bachman and Commissioner Olivia “Bong” Coo, Philippine Olympic Committee President Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino, Philippine Paralympic Committee head Michael Barredo and Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. Chairman and CEO Alejandro Tengco.

RIANNE MALIXI takes on

EROS BALUYOT takes down Rene Catalan as Universal Reality Combat Championship president Alvin Aguilar looks on.

LEYLAH ADVANCES Leylah Fernandez, playing out of Canada, celebrates her 6-3, 6-2 victory over Peyton Stearns of the US during the National Bank Open in Montreal, on Tuesday. AP

Sofronov said. “So for our next card, we guarantee everyone to put exciting and more innovative fights.”

The two grappling super fights saw Godwin Langbayan defeating Red Samson also by rare naked choke and Paige

Alitao beating Troy Legaspi on points.

I n the other pro MMA, Rufino Mante knocked out Mark Cuizon and Kerwin Tan scored a technical knockout victory after Marco Lampacan could not continue due to injury.

BUHAIN