ORGANIC FARMING ISINUSULONG NG AGSUR LGU SA PAMAMAGITAN NG AGRI-TOURISM

Organic farming isinusulong ng AgSur LGU sa pamamagitan ng Agri-

Tourism NI Jennifer P. Gaitano

Layon ngayon ng lokal na pamahalaan ng Sibagat, Agusan del Sur at Municipal Tourism Office na lalo pang umusbong ang turismo sa lugar at makilala bilang organic farm site.

Ayon kay Irene Peñas, Municipal Tourism Officer, bukas ang kanilang tanggapan para magabayan ang mga grupo o indibidwal na nais mahasa sa pagpapalago ng organikong pagsasaka ng iba’t-ibang pananim.

Handa ang kanilang tanggapan kasama ang Municipal Agriculture Office sa farm visits, “pick-and-eat” ng mga sariwang prutas o gulay, at educational learning session ukol sa organic farming.

May gagawing pagsasanay din para sa mga residente upang makatulong din sila sa inisyatibong ito. “Magsasagawa ang lokal na pamahalaan ng Sibagat ng mga pagsasanay tulad ng community tour guiding, Filipino branding, at magkakaroon din ng mapping para sa pagpapatatag ng indigenous practices,” ani ni Peñas.

Ipinagmalaki naman nina Pedro at Allan ang kanilang nakukuhang benepisyo mula sa organic farming.

“Naging interesado ako sa organic farming dahil nalaman ko ang mga benepisyo nito. Maliban sa may sarili ka ng pinagkukunan ng pagkain, at ‘yung surplus value nito ay pwede mo ring ibahagi sa iyong kapwa, kapitbahay at maging source of income,”

Evangelista

pahayag ni Pedro Fenis, Jr., gardener mula sa Brgy. Poblacion, Sibagat, Agusan del Sur.

“Para sa mga tulad kong nagpapalago ng chicken farming, ipagpatuloy natin ang organikong pagsasaka dahil maliban sa ligtas ito, marami din itong naibibigay na benepisyo,” banggit din ni Allan Perez, Jr., presidente ng Sibagat Organic Farmers Association.

Tiniyak naman ni Mayor Maria Liza Evangelista na patuloy ang kanilang ibinibigay na tulong teknikal para sa mga residente upang mapabuti pa ang kanilang pananim at mas kumita pa.

“Nasimulan na sa mga barangay ang ating family farms program bilang parte sa implementasyon ng organic farming culture dito sa atong lungsod, dahil naniniwala tayo para masigurong may sapat na pagkain ang ating mamamayan, kailangan nating palaguin din ang mga maliliit na family farms,” ani ni Mayor Evangelista. (JPG/PIA-Agusan del Sur)

NATIONAL NEWS

Palace observes International Women’s Day, cites laws on women’s rights

Malacañang on Tuesday, March 8, 2022, paid tribute to the important role of women at homes and in society as the nation observes International Women’s Day.

“Kinikilala po natin ang nakapahalagang papel ng ating mga kababaihan hindi lamang sa ating tahanan, kundi pati na rin ang kanilang konstribution sa ating lipunan,” said Presidential Communications Secretary and Acting Presidential Spokesperson Martin M. Andanar during his press briefing.

Secretary Andanar then cited some of the most important pieces of legislation signed during the Duterte Administration which aim to improve women’s rights and welfare.

One of these laws is Republic Act No. 11148, or the “Kalusugan at Nutrition ng Mag-Nanay Act,” which scaled up the national and local health programs through a strengthened integrated strategy for maternal, neonatal, child health and nutrition in the first 1,000 days of life.

The Palace official also mentioned Republic Act No. 11210, or the “Expanded Maternity Leave Act,” which increased the maternity leave period to 105 days for female workers adding that these are all paid leaves.

Also signed during the Duterte Administration is Republic Act No. 11648, which increased the age for determining statutory rape to 16 years old.

“We are pleased to inform everyone that the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has congratulated the Philippine government for this milestone as it fulfills the children’s right to protection, which according to UNICEF, is enshrined in the Convention on the Rights of the Child to which the Philippines is a signatory,” Andanar underscored. ### OPS

Philippines, a shining beacon of gender equality, women empowerment - President Duterte

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte talks to the people after holding a meeting with key government officials at the Malacañan Palace on March 7, 2022. KING RODRIGUEZ/ PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO

Expressing pride over the country’s success in attaining gender equality and women empowerment, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte said the Philippines can do more to protect Filipino women and develop their potential.

“I am truly proud of the Philippines’ distinction as a shining beacon of gender equality and women empowerment in the world. Be it in politics, business, academe and local communities, most especially in our homes, women have occupied and continue to occupy positions of power and influence in our society,” President Duterte said in a message Tuesday during the celebration of International Women’s Day 2022 (IWD). “This emphasizes, not only our values as a people, but also the importance we put on women as vital partners in nation-building.”

“While a growing consciousness on equality is already an impressive feat and women are breaking the glass ceiling, I believe that we can do more.”

As Filipinos gain more access to education, information, and innovation, the President said more women will have the chance to meaningfully participate in many aspects of human development and change the mindset that continue to restrict women and other gender expressions. “So let us all come together in building a country where no one is left behind and everyone has the capacity to succeed,” he said in rallying public support.

International Women’s Day is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating women’s equality.

With the first IWD gathering in 1911 supported by over a million people, IWD has occurred for well over a century. Today, IWD belongs to all groups collectively everywhere although it is not country, group or organization specific. PND

Gov’t ties up with medical organizations anew in launching 4th Nat’l Vaccination Day

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte talks to the people after holding a meeting with key government officials at the Malacañan Palace on March 7, 2022. KING RODRIGUEZ/ PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO

The government will once again ask the assistance of medical organizations and professionals for the conduct of the fourth National Vaccination Day on March 10 to 12, aimed at immunizing millions after the country experienced a drop in the number of people getting COVID-19 shot last month, the country’s vaccine czar said on Monday.

In his report to President Rodrigo Roa Duterte, Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr., said that to achieve the government target for the National Vaccination Day, they will coordinate with the Philippine Medical Association and other medical professionals to join the nationwide mobilization.

“We will also involve the pharmacies and clinics and we will expand more the numbers of those who are volunteering. We will also direct all government agencies and private sector to vaccinate their government employees and economic frontliners,” he said. JAB Fair in the JOB sites will be launched, said Galvez, who is also the chief implementer of the National Task Force Against COVID-19.

All local government units (LGUs) and Department of Health’s (DOH) regional offices and local health centers will also conduct house-to-house vaccination.

“We will also ask DepEd and CHED to continue their aggressive vaccination through Vax To School program,” he said.

“Ito po ay talagang nirerecommend ni Secretary Karl Chua na magkaroon na po tayo ng back to school at iyon po ang nire-recommend po namin na ang DepEd at saka CHED ay magkaroon po ng Vax To School na program.”

Galvez also said they asked the assistance of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and other big establishments to provide more incentives to people who received their boosters. agencies, our T3 partners, our private sectors, LGUs, itong sa mga ecozones, ang ating AFP and PNP to participate in our massive vaccination day on March 10 to 12.”

The massive drive will target eligible sectors for boosters from aged 18 years and above, as well as those who haven’t received COVID-19 jab and second dose.

The vaccine czar encouraged those who haven’t received second dose to come to vaccination centers for their shot.

“At ang mga remaining senior citizens and 12 to 17 years old and above ay kailangan na po nating makuha at ang target natin na 1.8 million to 2 million ang ating mababakunahan sa ating gaganapin na three days na vaccination,” he said.

Galvez said the government targets to inoculate more or less 3 million in addition to another 3 million minors aged 12 to 17 years.

The vaccination campaign will be simultaneously undertaken in 16 regions including Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM). PND

Filipinos attain feat in reducing COVID-19 cases, says President Duterte

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte presides over a meeting with key government officials prior to his “Talk to the People” at the Malacañan Palace on March 7, 2022. TOTO LOZANO/ PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte on Monday praised the overall practice of Filipinos that helped reduced COVID-19 cases in the country, a feat that must be emulated.

During his weekly Talk to the People, President Duterte expressed his gratitude for the “decorum” exhibited by the country’s law enforcers in implementing the governmentmandated health guidelines.

“There is no telling that one of these days, another vicious virus will visit the country or the world all over. At panibagong ano ito, far different from what we have now,” President Duterte said.

“It would not be us who would face that problem anymore but the incoming or whoever wins, dapat malaman nila ito na the good practices of the Philippines,” he added. During his weekly address, President Duterte asked Health Secretary Francisco Duque III on how the Philippines reduced the number of COVID-19 infections, comparing the county’s case with other wealthy nations.

Duque told President Duterte that vaccination, natural immunity, and adherence to the minimal public health standards have contributed to the drop in COVID-19 infections in the country.

Compared to other nations in Southeast Asia, the Philippines has the lowest daily new confirmed COVID-19 cases per million people at 8.82, according to the health secretary.

Singapore has 3,000 plus per million population; Vietnam, 1,300; and Malaysia, 845. instances in other nations will decrease as well, adding that the Philippines was the first to experience a rise in cases in January.

According to Duque, new COVID-19 cases were just 700 or so on March 7, the seventh day in a row that the country had fewer than 1,000 new cases.

The health chief added the country’s mortality rate is also lower than the global average of 2.04 percent, at 1.5 percent. Countries like the United States has far more caseload than the Philippines considering it is far more advanced in terms of military, science, and research and development (R&D).

The concept of a new normal, he said, will be accepting that the virus will persist and that people would have to learn to live with it. PND

Next admin should adopt good practices in fight vs. Covid-19

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte (File photo) President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday urged the next administration to adopt “good practices” that are currently being implemented in the fight against Covid-19, noting that these would come in handy should there be another global health threat in the future.

Duterte made this remark after Health Secretary Francisco Duque III attributed the decrease in Covid-19 infections in the country to vaccination, natural immunity, and compliance with minimum public health standards.

“There is no telling that one of these days, another vicious virus will visit the country or the world all over. At panibagong ano ito (And this will be new), far different from what we have now. Gusto ko lang malaman (I just want to know) what caused the numbers to go down because it would come in handy,” Duterte said in a pre-recorded Talk to the People.

“It would not be us who would face that problem anymore but the incoming or whoever wins, dapat malaman nila ito na (should know) the good practices of the Philippines,” he added.

Meanwhile, Duterte thanked “disciplined” Filipinos for bringing Covid-19 cases down by getting vaccinated and observing health protocols.

He also expressed appreciation for the “decorum” adopted by the country’s law enforcement officers in implementing rules.

Last month, Duterte said seeing the majority of the Filipino population fully vaccinated will make him happy when he steps down from office.

He urged the residents of various areas that are still lagging in their vaccination drive to avail of the free jabs.

The Department of Health (DOH) has reported 6,297 confirmed cases from March 1 to March 7.

A total of 63,690,701 individuals have been fully vaccinated in the country. On Monday, OCTA Research said the number of Covid-19 cases in the country may drop as low as 300 cases per day by the end of March.

At least 38 areas, including Metro Manila, are currently under the lowest Alert Level 1 status. (PNA/ Azer Parrocha)

Boosting vax output crucial to transition in new normal: Galvez

More innovative strategies are needed to further boost the nationwide Covid-19 vaccination output with the country’s ongoing transition to the new normal, National Task Force Against Covid-19 chief implementer, Secretary Carlito G. Galvez Jr., said Wednesday.

“With the declaration of Alert Level 1, we have been experiencing a saturation point in our vaccination centers with only the pediatric sector that dominates our vaccination sites,” Galvez said in a news release.

Galvez, also the vaccine czar, said most of the vaccination sites are now vacant with only a few people getting vaccinated.

“So we will be needing other strategies to gather more vaccinees,” he added.

Galvez noted the government has been intensifying its efforts to make the Covid-19 vaccines more accessible to the people such as houseto-house inoculation for the vulnerable sectors, workplace vaccination efforts, or the “Jabs on the Jobs” program, and the conduct of a massive national vaccination drive (NVD).

The fourth leg of the NVD will be held from March 10 to 12, aimed at administering at least 1.8 million doses of

SAFE DISTANCE. Workers queue for Covid-19 vaccines at the Teleperformance Center Ayala in Makati City on Tuesday (March 8, 2022). The event precedes the fourth national vaccination days on March 10 to 12 and underscores the government’s drive to provide protection to front-liners and hasten the country’s economic recovery. (PNA photo by Jess M. Escaros Jr.) primary series and booster shots to the adult population and increasing the number of fully vaccinated individuals under the 12 to 17 age group. “Hihikayatin nating bumalik ang mga dapat makareceive ng second dose dahil karamihan po sa mga second dosers natin ay hindi po nakabalik (We will encourage more people to get their second doses because most of those second dosers were not able to go back for their full doses),” Galvez said.

In partnership with the private sector, Galvez said the government also targets to ramp up the administration of booster shots.

Eligible individuals availing of the booster doses may receive several incentives, rewards, and discounts from the business establishments.

Galvez emphasized that getting enough protection against the Covid-19 infection is crucial to the country’s goal of pushing total economic recovery.

So far, only 14.71 percent or 10,616,590 fully vaccinated Filipinos out of the 72.16 million target population for vaccination, have received booster shots.

The Philippines has already administered a total of 137,351,822 doses nationwide, with 63,992,620 Filipinos completing their full doses, including those who received the single-shot Janssen and Sputnik Light jabs. (PNA/ Lade Jean Kabagani)

Gov’t eyes use of over 400 testing labs for non-Covid diseases

The government mulls to maximize the country’s Covid-19 testing laboratories nationwide to test even non-coronavirus diseases, presidential adviser for Covid-19 response, Secretary Vince Dizon, said Wednesday.

Dizon, who is also the country’s testing czar, said there are over 400 Covid-19 testing laboratories have been established nationwide—either operated by the private sector or the government.

“When we started this nightmare of Covid-19 in early 2020, we had [only] one laboratory that could test Covid-19,” Dizon said. He recalled the country has to send specimens to Australia for Covid-19 testing with only 1,000 test kits being used per day for the entire country.

“Now we have over 400 [laboratories] nationwide. This is really the effort of the Department of Health,” he said. “Talagang napadami natin ang testing labs nationwide (We really increased our testing labs nationwide).”

Despite having many laboratories nationwide, Dizon said the Philippine government’s strategy in Covid-19 testing has been “riskbased.”

“Ang tinitest lang talaga natin ay yung sa tingin natin kailangan itest. Sino-sino ang mga iyan? Iyan yung may mga symptoms, yung mga close contact and vulnerable (We are just testing those who we think should be tested. Who are they? They are the ones with symptoms and the close contacts),” he added.

Dizon emphasized the government has never advocated for “mass testing”.

“Unang-una, kasi ang Covid, hindi mo naman talaga dapat itest yung hindi mataas ang risk na magka-Covid o yung exposure niya ng Covid (First of all, you don’t need to test those who are not a high risk to infection or those with low exposure),” he said.

Under Alert Level 1 status, Dizon explained those individuals who are unvaccinated or have higher exposure risk to infection are prioritized in Covid-19 testing, pursuant to the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) Resolution No. 148-B and No. 149, s. 2021.

In addition, testing using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) is recommended and prioritized for senior citizens, persons with comorbidities, and healthcare workers.

The protocol added that testing “shall be optional for other groups not stated above” and shall not be recommended for asymptomatic close contacts unless symptoms will develop and should immediately isolate regardless of test results. Instead, symptom monitoring is recommended.

Dizon said the Department of Health is planning to maximize the use of these laboratories even for non-Covid diseases.

“We can use them to test for dengue, we use them to test tuberculosis, and we can use that to test for other chronic diseases. And that really gives us now this whole network of laboratories that can best serve our public health system. So that’s the plan,” he said.

Dizon added: “it’s a long response but I think it’s important for the public to understand, what will happen to these laboratories.” (PNA/ Lade Jean Kabagani)

(PNA file photo)

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