More groups clamor for peace talks (http://www.mb.com.ph/PROV20090205147391.html)

Saying the survival of the country is at stake, more multi-sectoral groups, both Muslims and Christians, have renewed their call for the immediate resumption of the stalled peace talks between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and all revolutionary armed groups – Muslim secessionists and communist rebels.

In a manifesto sent to newly-installed Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Avelino I. Razon Jr., 15 leaders of the People’s Coalition for Peace (PCP) asked rebel groups "to consider the option of dialogues, peaceful engagements and the silencing of guns" to bring forth an atmosphere of peace.

"We firmly believe that all stakeholders should have an optimistic attitude in resolving the conflict," the manifesto said.

The 15 sectoral leaders cited the need to resolve the long-drawn conflict, especially in Mindanao because "we are talking about the survival of this country and its future development."

At the same time, the PCP gave their out all support for Razon as the new head of the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP).

"We are happy and confident with the efforts of the government, particularly with the appointment of Secretary Razon and the peace panel as a step for achieving peace" in the country, especially in southern Philippines, the manifesto said.

"Given his (Razon’s) credentials and work experience as former chief of PNP (Philippine National Police) and being part of the National Security Council, he could contribute a lot in the termination of hostilities in Mindanao and the entire country," they said.

They thanked former Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Hermogenes C. Esperon Jr. for his commitment to keep the peace process going during his seven-month stint as peace czar.

"The group is very optimistic in the new peace paradigm being pursued by the government through the efforts of its new presidential adviser and his predecessor, peace talks for all-projects for peace," the manifesto said.

They also expressed their support to the initiative of the government of conducting grassroots peace dialogues with various stakeholders and giving opportunities to the various members of the civil societies and the church to take part in such efforts.

The signatories were Sultan Mohammad Bano, PCP national chairman; Robertson G. delos Santos of the Youth League for Peace and Advancement and Development; Princess Jacel Kiram of the Youth and Student Power for Peace; Menchu Tabano of Ang Babae Ngayon, Inc.; Adel Lazaro of Akbay Pinoy of the Overseas Filipino Workers; Ricardo Lofranco of Brigada ng Mamamayan para sa Kapayapaan; Ramil Libornio of People’s Action and Response Against Terrorism;

Sheikh Shirad Manggis of the Muslim Peace and Order Coordinating Council; Sultan Sohaily Tanandato of the National Federation of Police Accredited Muslim NGO; Danny Quines of the Monitoring Group of the Philippines; Mavic Paguntalan of the Peace for Development; Letty Granito of Lakas at Gabay para sa Kababaihan; Councilor Cita Astal; Nolan Tiongco of Peoples Action and Response Against Corruption and Poverty; and Colins Asilo of the Coalition for Democracy and Reforms.

namingaw na man tonight?

ebay find: PI Moro Carabao Sled,Island of Mindanao postcard

http://www.yojikan.com/a12362.jpg

hehehe next time na pud kay daghan dili makakita kung magdali ta :D

P6-B projects to generate 1-M jobs (http://www.mb.com.ph/PROV20090206147474.html)

By MIKE U. CRISMUNDO

BUTUAN CITY — At least one million job opportunities will be made available in the agricultural sector when the Mindanao Rural Development Program 2 (MRDP 2) starts implementing some R6 billion worth of various projects in the region, it was learned yesterday.

It was gathered that for the rural infrastructure projects alone, at least P2 billion has been set aside this year for the construction and rehabilitation of farm-to-market roads, post-harvest facilities, irrigation systems, potable water systems and other farm projects.

These big and vital projects are currently supported by the priority shift of the Department of Agriculture (DA) from soft projects like fertilizer support to hard projects such as irrigation maintenance, post-harvest facilities, farm-to-market roads, and rural extension work.

The said priority is also in line with the directions now made under the MRD which requires local government units (LGUs) to implement at least one rural infrastructure subproject.

At least 10 jobs are created per P1 million worth of investment poured in a community, MRDP 2 sources also said.

Last week, President Arroyo visited the more than R300-million Baobo Irrigation Project in Veruela town, Agusan del Sur, where thousands of hectares of farmland-beneficiaries are benefited.

"We hope to fast-track the rural infrastructure components to generate more employment as instructed by President Arroyo," said Agriculture Undersecretary Jesus Paras, in a press conference in Davao City.

The Agriculture department is currently shielding farmers and fisherfolks from the effects of the economic crisis by immediately offering job opportunities.

It was also learned that the DA approved the joint implementation of Rural Infrastructure (RI) and Community Fund for Agricultural Development (CFAD) components of the MRDP.

It was further learned that rural infrastructures constitute about 60 percent of the total project cost of the said program.

tama. busy pud ko kaayo at work.

kudos to Region XI workers!:cheers:

PIA Press Release
2009/02/06

R-XI social workers assist DSWD Northern Mindanao

Davao City (6 February) -- Seven social welfare officers from DSWD Davao Region assisted DSWD Northern Mindanao in relief distribution and data gathering from January 14-16, 2009, when Cagayan de Oro was hit by heavy rains and flash floods. The team composed of Lolita Roble, Jeornalyn Añonuevo, Consolacion Abad, Lani Cudino, Marvin Samson, Cynthia Umbana and Nestor S. Estampa was requested to augment the DSWD X workforce.

Prior to deployment of the social workers to affected barangays, they were oriented on family access cards and reportorial requirements called for by the DSWD Disaster Response Operations Monitoring and Information Center (DROMIC).

"Your primary concern is gathering of data on the degree of effects to persons and families inside and outside evacuation centers, and promoting the use of the family access cards to City and Municipal Social Welfare and Development Officers," instructed Operations Division Chief Primitivo T. Rufin during the orientation at DSWD X Office.

Having visited and assessed 31 affected barangays, the team presented the Results, Findings, and Recommendations at an exit conference attended by DSWD Assistant Regional Director Aldersey Mumar-Dela Cruz and Chief Rufin.

In her closing statement, ARD Mumar-Dela Cruz thanked the team for the help extended to DSWD X. "I shall be presenting the full report prepared by the team from DSWD XI to the RDCC for their information and appropriate action."

For relief distribution, members of the team reached some barangays in Gingoog City but most were assigned in areas within Cagayan de Oro.

The group returned to Davao City on January 17, 2009, energized with the sense of fulfillment from having served and helped DSWD FO X and its constituents. But more importantly, they were fueled with the significant learnings they have gained anew from the experience in disaster operations in a neighboring region.

As Lani Cudino, one of the DSWD-XI's social worker said, "It was difficult seeing helpless victims up close in evacuation centers, but I am happy to have done my job well even if it was my first time to be directly involved in data generation and relief distribution." (DSWD/NSE/degsduron-PIA XI) [top]

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3046/3041114534_2f0baf9f84.jpg?v=0

FLICKR FIND

SIARGAO, SURIGAO
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1101/895107123_c01a359502_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3205/3041108176_30bff6775a.jpg?v=0

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1012/895106867_522ea6d861_o.jpg

kudos to Region XI workers!:cheers:

PIA Press Release
2009/02/06

R-XI social workers assist DSWD Northern Mindanao

Davao City (6 February) -- Seven social welfare officers from DSWD Davao Region assisted DSWD Northern Mindanao in relief distribution and data gathering from January 14-16, 2009, when Cagayan de Oro was hit by heavy rains and flash floods. The team composed of Lolita Roble, Jeornalyn Añonuevo, Consolacion Abad, Lani Cudino, Marvin Samson, Cynthia Umbana and Nestor S. Estampa was requested to augment the DSWD X workforce.

Prior to deployment of the social workers to affected barangays, they were oriented on family access cards and reportorial requirements called for by the DSWD Disaster Response Operations Monitoring and Information Center (DROMIC).

"Your primary concern is gathering of data on the degree of effects to persons and families inside and outside evacuation centers, and promoting the use of the family access cards to City and Municipal Social Welfare and Development Officers," instructed Operations Division Chief Primitivo T. Rufin during the orientation at DSWD X Office.

Having visited and assessed 31 affected barangays, the team presented the Results, Findings, and Recommendations at an exit conference attended by DSWD Assistant Regional Director Aldersey Mumar-Dela Cruz and Chief Rufin.

In her closing statement, ARD Mumar-Dela Cruz thanked the team for the help extended to DSWD X. "I shall be presenting the full report prepared by the team from DSWD XI to the RDCC for their information and appropriate action."

For relief distribution, members of the team reached some barangays in Gingoog City but most were assigned in areas within Cagayan de Oro.

The group returned to Davao City on January 17, 2009, energized with the sense of fulfillment from having served and helped DSWD FO X and its constituents. But more importantly, they were fueled with the significant learnings they have gained anew from the experience in disaster operations in a neighboring region.

As Lani Cudino, one of the DSWD-XI's social worker said, "It was difficult seeing helpless victims up close in evacuation centers, but I am happy to have done my job well even if it was my first time to be directly involved in data generation and relief distribution." (DSWD/NSE/degsduron-PIA XI) [top]

No matter what others may claim, they cannot deny that Davao is indeed the Big Brother of all cities and provinces in Mindanao in times of dire need. No wonder blessings keep pouring in. :cheers:

No matter what others may claim, they cannot deny that Davao is indeed the Big Brother of all cities and provinces in Mindanao in times of dire need. No wonder blessings keep pouring in. :cheers:
^^
Sad to say sa forum na to hindi ganun :ohno:

Tama. At hindi lang naman R-XI ang nagbigay ng assistance na taga Mindanao. Di nga lang alam ng karamihan kasi hindi naman ipinagmamalaki ang pagtulong. Sa madaling salita, maraming Big Brothers ang Mindanao na nagtutulungan sa panahon ng kagipitan. :lol:

^^
daghan pa man flag sa jolo after 1898 pero wala nako gi-post kay dako ang size :D

unsa imung reference ani tonight??..interesting lageh ning flags of jolo...^^

Tama. At hindi lang naman R-XI ang nagbigay ng assistance na taga Mindanao. Di nga lang alam ng karamihan kasi hindi naman ipinagmamalaki ang pagtulong. Sa madaling salita, maraming Big Brothers ang Mindanao na nagtutulungan sa panahon ng kagipitan. :lol:

Well said :okay:

guys and goys, I found a site which I believed is an off shoot of SSC Cities war...

the posters are shooting each other over a banana...

click the link ::)

http://tagalasang.wordpress.com/2009/02/04/maghilak-sila-sa-kasina/

looked like a war zone :ohno: I think @tagalasang just registered with SSC

^^
Sad to say sa forum na to hindi ganun :ohno:

tama na yang bangayan tungkol sa mga cities natin.....pare pareho tayong talo tayo pag nag away tayo....wag na lang natin pakialaman ang isat isa...GOD BLESS!

^^Hindi naman bangayan yan. Clarification lang para magiging "fair" sa lahat.

^^
nakita ra man nako sa net :D

Japan funds 2 vital projects in Mindanao (http://www.mb.com.ph/PROV20090207147558.html)

By MALU CADELINA MANAR

KIDAPAWAN CITY – The Japanese government launched this week two big projects designed to hasten child and maternal care and upgrade the global competitiveness of commercial products from the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

This developed after the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) vowed to fund the construction of two important projects in the region – the ARMM’s Regional Standards and Testing Laboratories at the ARMM regional complex in Cotabato City; and the Mother and Child Pavilion at the Maguindanao Provincial Hospital in Shariff Aguak town, Maguindanao.

The projects are under the ARMM Social Fund Project (ASFP), according to its manager, lawyer Mustapha Sambolawan.

The ASFP is under the ministerial control of ARMM Gov. Datu Zaldy Uy Ampatuan who serves as the conduit of the World Bank for its socio-economic projects in far-flung communities in the autonomous region.

It was gathered that the research and laboratory facilities would be built beside the ARMM’s Department of Science and Technology building inside the 32-hectare ARMM complex in Cotabato City.

Sambolawan said the facilities will enhance the quality of marketable products of industries in the autonomous region.

Earlier, ranking ARMM officials attended the groundbreaking rites for the facility, which costs some R5 million.

While the groundbreaking for the P11.5 million Mother and Child Pavilion was held inside the Maguindanao Provincial Hospital compound in Shariff Aguak, the capital town of Maguindanao.

The ARMM Health Secretary Hadji Tahir Sulaik said the pavilion would provide medical services and other interventions that can hasten the promotion of maternal and childcare in Maguindanao.

"It is very painful to see a mother losing her life just to give another life. We need to care for both mother and child, not just as humans that deserved to be served and cared for, both also as very important sectors of our society," Sulaik said during the groundbreaking rites for the pavilion.

tonight, asa na kaha ning mga flags ron? sa museum na ni? sa pinas? o sa gawas na? naa kay ideas?

tonight, asa na kaha ning mga flags ron? sa museum na ni? sa pinas? o sa gawas na? naa kay ideas?

^^
wala nako idea kung asa na karon ang mga flag, i'll try to find :)

Another Flags from Lanao


MARANAO ROYAL FLAG

http://www.webalice.it/paopadd/222011124.JPG

Yellow color on flags indicates high social status and Royalty.
It is the color of the Sultans. According to some maranaos existed an old yellow flag with the handle of a kampilan in vertical position placed on the center of the field.


MARANAO WAR FLAG

http://www.webalice.it/paopadd/222015212.JPG

Red color is a symbol of bravery and violence too; the display of a red flag among the maranao people indicates state of war or murder of some relatives. In time of war, during the maritime battles, the red flag (called "dopo" in maranao language ) displayed on the prow of a ship means that there are nobles on board ; when it flies on the stern the peoples on the ship are commoners. In the maranao society the red flag is also used to announce that a baby boy was born, a yellow flag if it is a baby girl.
This kind of rectangular flag is called:"dopo a mariga" ( for male sex) and "dopo a binaning " (for female sex ).


MARANAO RELIGIOUS FLAG

http://www.webalice.it/paopadd/22201441.JPG



PERSONAL STANDARD OF THE SULTAN OF PITAKES, TARAKA

http://www.webalice.it/paopadd/Personal%20flag%20of%20The%20Sultan%20-%20Pitakes%20Lake%20Lanao2.jpg

This standard , at present in an american museum have dark red field with the zul-fiqar on it ; between the two blades of the sword is placed a white disk with an arabic inscription, maybe the word: "Allah " .
At the hoist of the standard on a blue stripe who surround the field in three sides there are three stylized flowers. The fly of the standard doesn't have the blue stripe, according to someone to bring the name of God in the Land by the wind and to fight for him by the zul-fiqar.



MARANAO ROYAL FLAG

http://www.webalice.it/paopadd/maranao%20flag%20with%20kampilan.gif

According to some oral accounts this flag has the royal colors with the head of a kampilan in the center of it.


Source: http://www.webalice.it/paopadd

^^thanks for the efforts @tonight....:lol:^^

^^thanks for the efforts @tonight....:lol:^^

:)

Here are some of the images from the Madrid library and museums for Mindanao. You can also see some photos of Mindanao royalties with very nice and elegant Moorish attires.

http://www.seacex.es/documentos/imag_colonial_09_problema.pdf

Here are some of the images from the Madrid library and museums for Mindanao. You can also see some photos of Mindanao royalties with very nice and elegant Moorish attires.

http://www.seacex.es/documentos/imag_colonial_09_problema.pdf

excerpts:

http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b74/paulkrps/Picture10-2.png

http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b74/paulkrps/Picture11-2.png

http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b74/paulkrps/Picture12-2.png

Here are some of the images from the Madrid library and museums for Mindanao. You can also see some photos of Mindanao royalties with very nice and elegant Moorish attires.

http://www.seacex.es/documentos/imag_colonial_09_problema.pdf

so how come Moorish attires were in the Madrid library and museums? :ohno:

^^ what do you mean?

if you are asking why the interest in moorish (moors or moro) attires, spain was under the moors so many centuries ago (before the second millennium). that is one reason why the spaniards called the muslim inhabitants of southern philippines, mindanao specifically, moros.

Gensan Old Pics

http://img410.imageshack.us/img410/1922/oldcityhallgensanhq2.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
old municipal hall of gensan. present location: back of the new city hall

http://img17.imageshack.us/img17/1072/histquezonwb8.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
present location: queen tuna park

http://img17.imageshack.us/img17/7342/pioneeringchinesegensangx1.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
chinese pioneers. present location: gen. santos park

http://img17.imageshack.us/img17/1161/dolepiercu7.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
DOLE pier, calumpang, gensan

http://img240.imageshack.us/img240/2335/klinanriverkc7.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
klinan river, apopong

^^ what do you mean?

if you are asking why the interest in moorish (moors or moro) attires, spain was under the moors so many centuries ago (before the second millennium). that is one reason why the spaniards called the muslim inhabitants of southern philippines, mindanao specifically, moros.

ahh.so the Spanish brought those Moorish attires to the Madrid museum....yah..spanish called the muslim as moros. was dat in Sulu?

ahh.so the Spanish brought those Moorish attires to the Madrid museum....yah..spanish called the muslim as moros. was dat in Sulu?

as the americans have plundered us of our historical past, and so did the spanish. it's not of their own historical past that satisfied their curiousity of our own "moorish" culture but more of documenting their colonies. the spaniards were meticulous record keepers and providing proof of that is through specimens and relics of their colonies.

Mindanao dev’t authority pushed (http://www.bworldonline.com/BW020909/content.php?id=054)


A JOINT hearing of two committees of the House of Representatives is scheduled to hear tomorrow four legislative proposals seeking to form Mindanao-focused institutions, including the Mindanao Economic Development Authority (MEDA) which is designed to better integrate peace and development efforts on the island, a statement yesterday of the Mindanao Economic Development Council (MEDCo) read.

The House committees on Government Enterprises and Privatization and on Mindanao Affairs, led by Representatives Felix R. Alfelor, Jr. of Camarines Sur (4th District) and Datu Pax S. Mangudadatu of Sultan Kudarat (1st District), respectively, will jointly deliberate on two bills seeking to form MEDA, namely: House Bill No. 5255, authored by Deputy House Speaker Rep. Simeon A. Datumanong of Maguindanao and Mr. Mangudadatu and HB 5620 authored by Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus B. Rodriguez (2nd District).

The committees will also deliberate on:

HB 186, filed by Aurora Rep. Juan Edgardo Angara, which pushes the formation of the Mindanao Incentives Development Authority; and

HB 2303, filed by Camiguin Rep. Pedro Romualdo, which seeks to form the Mindanao Development Authority.

Heads of various regional line agencies and key leaders from across Mindanao have been invited as resource persons for the hearing.

HB 5255 proposes the formation of MEDA seeks to strengthen the existing MEDCo. Besides providing a permanent mechanism to "promote, coordinate and facilitate the active and extensive participation of all sectors to effect the socio-economic development of Mindanao," the envisioned MEDA is expected to keep Mindanao’s development needs constantly in National Government priorities.

Established in 1992 through Executive Order 512, MEDCo now operates as the only existing Mindanao-wide government mechanism that coordinates program and project implementation and monitoring, investment promotion, as well as policy advocacy for Mindanao.

Interregional coordination pursued by MEDCo resulted in the formulation of the Mindanao 2000 Development Framework Plan in 1995.

Mr. Datumanong underscored the urgent need for an institutionalized agency that looks beyond regional concerns in Mindanao.

"With its uneven development and peace-and-order problems, Mindanao needs to catch up with mainstream national development. To do that, we need to legislate an agency that seeks to address Mindanao’s development imperatives as well as issues of continuity and consistency of development efforts in the island-region," the MEDCo statement quoted Mr. Datumanong as saying.

MEDA, when formed, will "act as implementing agency for Mindanao-specific interregional and Mindanao-wide programs and projects," covering all provinces and cities in Regions IX, X, XI, and XII, as well as Caraga and the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

"While it has been a national government’s pronouncement to put special attention to Mindanao, there is a need for an agency that can actively articulate the Mindanao agenda and push it to become part of the national government priorities," said Mr. Mangudadatu in the same statement.

Compared to Luzon and the Visayas, Mindanao has the highest percentage of unpaved national roads at 37.81%; the lowest in irrigation development at 31.5% and the least in terms of farm-to-market roads paved at 19.68%, the MEDCo statement said.

Mindanao continues to lag behind in terms of economic growth, poverty and human development. Six out of the 10 poorest provinces of the country are in Mindanao while four of the bottom five provinces in terms of human development belong to Mindanao.

"If given a permanent mechanism that will see through the implementation of programs and projects in a sustainable manner, Mindanao can very well catch up with the rest of the developed regions and even with its neighboring counterparts in the BIMP-EAGA [Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines-East ASEAN Growth Area]," Mr. Mangudadatu added.

HB 5255 also proposes that MEDA serve as the Philippine Coordinating Office for BIMP-EAGA.

guys! im patrick from xavier university cultural dacne troupe. patabang lang tana ko panita pics of old cdeo, names of prominent people (past and present) this is for our show this this feb 18 sa xu gym.. sibol banahanding kagay-anon ang title. i'd appreciate if u help :)

browse lang sa backpages daghan ka makita pics.

Vol. XXII, No. 136
Wednesday, February 11, 2009 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES
Business World
The Economy
‘Davao’ brand chocolate launched in the US


DAVAO CITY — US chocolate manufacturer Askinosie Chocolate of Springfield, Missouri introduced to the US market its "Davao 77%" dark chocolate last Jan. 30, prompting the Davao City Council to pass a resolution commending the company for using Davao’s cocoa beans.

The company’s latest product adds to 13 other chocolate brands in its lineup.

For the first time since the mid-’80s, cocoa beans from this city’s Malagos and Calinan districts were exported to the US as the result of efforts of local group Success Alliance, the City Agriculturist Office and Mars Cocoa Development Center of Mars Inc., maker of chocolate brands M&M and Snickers.

The author of the resolution, Councilor Peter T. Laviña, committee chairman of commerce and trade, said the Davao chocolate was described as "dark and deepIt’s dry like full-bodied, well-aged red wine."

"This successful effort creates new opportunities for Davao cocoa farmers, breaks new export market in the US, and carves a new name for Davao as a premium brand of exotic chocolate," the official said.

A single Davao chocolate bar sells for $8.00, while a five-pack bar fetches $34.95.

Cocoa farmers made good on their commitment to supply the US importers with seven tons for the initial shipment in November last year, said Dagohoy P. Magaway, community organizer of the Mindanao Farmers Development Center (MFDC), one of the pioneering members of the group Success Alliance, which helps farmers link with cacao importers. The Alliance is a loose organization consisting of the departments of Agriculture and of Agrarian Reform, MFDC, Kinaiyahan Foundation, as well as cocoa farmers in barangays Sirib and Subasta, and five farmers groups in Davao del Sur.

Mr. Magaway said prices of dry cocoa beans initially reached P141 per kilogram when bought by Askinosie — due to steep margins commanded by middlemen — but have since dropped to about P91/kg.

As of 2006, the area planted to cocoa in Davao City was 394,128 hectares, but Mr. Magaway said that data needed updating since a lot of farmers in the outlying barangays had already shifted to banana and pineapple, which had been more profitable export crops.

On April 2 last year, Mars Inc. launched the Mars Cocoa Development Center inside the Malagos Garden Resort to serve as the model farm for sustainable cocoa cultivation.

The center sits on the 24-hectare cocoa plantation at the resort owned by the Puentespina family, better known for their exported or-chids and flowers, and will serve as a standard of excellence to sustain cocoa production in the Philippines. The center has trained about 3,000 farmers on modern ways to cultivate cocoa.

Howard Y. Shapiro, global director of Plant Science and External Research of Mars Inc., said the center will implement local and international best practices in all aspects of cocoa farming such as germplasm evaluation, breeding, farm rehabilitation methods, integrated pest management, post-harvest practices, and good agricultural practices.

"Mars is committed to long-term solutions to enhance the lives of the people and communities were cocoa is farmed, and we expect these collaborations to positively benefit thousands of Filipino farmers and their families," he said.

But Mr. Magaway said farmers may not be benefitting as much as they should due to middlemen.

"We are asking the government to look deeper into the issue if indeed the farmers have directly benefited from the export," he said, adding that they are looking either "for other traders to get a higher price" or to negotiate directly with the US importers. — Joel B. Escovilla

Mindanao businessmen launch drive vs corruption PDF Print E-mail
Nation
Written by Manuel Cayon / Reporter
Wednesday, 11 February 2009 22:59

DAVAO CITY—Anticorruption units would be formed by business chambers or their industry associations in cities and major provincial capitals this year, in what the Mindanao Business Council (MinBC) believes would be an aggressive posture to combat public dishonesty.

The planned Corruption-Prevention Units (CPUs) would be patterned after the similar bodies already organized by the Ombudsman in government agencies.

MinBC earlier signed an agreement with the Ombudsman on the creation of the corruption watchdog bodies.

During the signing of the agreement by Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez and MinBC chairman Vicente Lao, the British government was reported to have committed P3 milllion to support MinBC’s CPU program.

Ednar Carlos Dayanghirang, MinBC executive director, said the CPU program would be initiated in April, five months before the implementation of another anticorruption program, the Transparency and Accountable Governance (TAG) project ends.

The CPU would be one of the “four streams,” or thrusts, of the MinBC, along with the dialogues on the peace process, economic activities that include regional road shows and environmental projects, all to be done this year.

Maria Lourdes Arcenas, adviser of MinBC’s Sustainable and Responsible Investment Special Projects Unit, introduced the four streams to leaders or representatives of various business groups and corporate entities in a peace dialogue here.

She said the MinBC plans to assign local business groups as the “lead chambers” that would function or create “investigatory or recommendatory bodies” in corruption cases.

“This would be an aggressive program,” Dayanghirang told reporters.

He said, though, that it would still depend on the more than 40 business chambers spread across most of cities and major towns in Mindanao to accept the new role.

“We would expect some chambers to hesitate because of the more aggressive posture of business to confront graft and corrupt practices in the local governments.”

But where local chambers would decline, the other industry associations could pick up the responsibility, he said.

The CPU program would be a follow-through activity of the MinBC in promoting transparency and accountability. The TAG, Lao earlier said, does not identify itself as an anticorruption program.

“TAG actually encourages local governments to promote business and commerce in their areas. In the process, private sector and civil-society organizations were being invited in regular development planning and were being consulted more regularly,” he said.

The TAG project was funded by the US Agency for International Development (USAID).

Lao also disclosed that the USAID has also reportedly given its go-signal to replicate the TAG project in the Visayas and Luzon.

http://businessmirror.com.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5981:mindanao-businessmen-launch-drive-vs-corruption&catid=26:nation&Itemid=63

this news deserve a front page sir apo! i remember pag may economic crisis people start migrating to Mindanao. :cheers:

Davao agriculture to carry region thru crisis, says Yuchengco in speech
Written by Manuel T. Cayon / Correspondent
Wednesday, 11 February 2009 21:46

DAVAO CITY—This city and Davao’s agriculture sector would carry the region through the global economic recession that economist expect to bite harder this year.

“When all else starts to fail, the city can ride on the backbone of its strong agriculture industry,” said Alfonso Yuchengco, chairman of the Yuchengco Group of Companies that includes preneed companies, a bank and other interests.

Yuchengco said the city is known as “a high-caliber producer of fruits as well as vegetables and other high-value crops.” The sector accounts for 45 percent of the city’s economy.

In a speech during the induction of officers of the Davao City Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCCI), Yuchengco stressed that agriculture remains the strength of the city’s economy. His speech was read by his daughter Yvonne.

In the speech, the Yuchengco patriarch agreed with the assessment of DCCCI president Simeon Marfori II “that Davao City will remain economically stable because its strong food sector would be the last to be affected by the growing global economic [recession].”

Marfori’s “confidence, of course, rests in the fact that Davao City is known as the fruit basket of the Philippines,” he said.

He said “soothsayers—as well as economic experts—are one in saying that 2009 will be difficult for all of us.

They all caution us to brace ourselves for a deeper recession ahead, particularly in the second half of the year.”

“So we must all get down to business basics and see the positive sides to the situations we are in,” he added.

Yuchengco said this city’s export sector—“a billion-dollar industry”—supports Marfori’s optimism.

The city’s gross domestic output is nearly $3 billion.

“Private investments are growing steadily in the last two decades,” Yuchengco said in the speech, and pointed out that “another cause for much optimism is the national government’s thrust to prioritize agriculture and tourism. Davao City has indeed much to offer as it is classed among the 20 most livable cities in Asia, above Metro Manila and Metro Cebu.”

Davao City’s population of 1.3 million has entered the league of only Philippine cities with population of more than a million after the cities of Quezon, Manila and Caloocan.

As third-largest metropolis behind Manila and Cebu, this city’s strength could be seen in its environment—“fresh and clean”—according to Yuchengco, who also noted that “peace and order [here is] among the best in the region, public utilities and infrastructure are efficient, modern, readily accessible and cost-effective, and business and investments are competitively managed and easy to put up.”

He said, “Foreigners and locals alike are easily lured when all the elements that contribute to a total quality of life are present, like in Davao City,” he said.

Yuchengco said his group of companies took pride as one of the early believers in the city’s potential for growth and said his group has “already established and solidified [its presence here] with the Malayan Insurance and Great Pacific Life Assurance Corp.—the YGC’s bastion in both nonlife and life insurance fields—the first to recognize the importance of the provincial capital in helping businesses gain a foothold in Mindanao.”

These firms established offices here in the 1950s, or almost 20 years after Davao became a chartered city in 1936. Its bank, the Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., followed in 1964.

Apart from Marfori, who is putting in his second term in office, other officers of DCCCI who were inducted include Nelia Tumarao, executive vice president; Alberto Soriano, vice president for trade and commerce; Evelyn Laviña, vice president for agribusiness; Corazon Mae Baylon, vice president for professional and service ventures; Napoleon Liloc, vice president for industry; Dr. Ma. Lourdes Monteverde; corporate secretary; and Patrick John Castro, corporate treasurer.

Former chamber president, lawyer Domingo Duerme, was elected chairman of the board. The trustees of who are also former presidents include lawyer Bienvenido Cariaga, John Gaisano Jr. and Sofronio M. Jucutan. The other trustees are lawyer Enrique Diola, Vicente Lao, who is also chairman of the Mindanao Business Council, and Myrna Valdez.

http://businessmirror.com.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5954:davao-agriculture-to-carry-region-thru-crisis-says-yuchengco-in-speech&catid=45:regions&Itemid=71

:cheers:

New HACT Clinic opens at Davao Medical Center
Mindanao Daily Mirror
February 13, 2009

The Davao Medical Center officially inaugurated yesterday the new clinic for HACT, which means Health and Care Today.

Originally known as HIV and AIDS Core Team, the name was changed to make it sound happier, according to Dr. Larissa Lara Q. Torno, head of the clinic unit.

The clinic will help cater to the needs of HIV/AIDS clients or who has been tested positive for HIV/AIDS, she said.

Dr. Alicia Javier Layug, HACT over-all chairperson, said it costs around P350 per blood test but counseling is free already same with the confirmation test if the first blood test taken was positive. Along with the free services include the free ARV medication, which is a tablet taken twice a day.

Dr. Layug said the anti-retroviral medication would usually cost P30,000 per month. They are glad to have the Global Fund’s commitment to support the HACT clinic by giving free ARV meds for a lifetime particularly for HIV/AIDS clients at DMC.

She said DMC and Zamboanga Medical Cen-ter are the two HACT clinics that offer treatment such as ARV. But she clarified that ARV won’t completely heal the client, instead it will just help prolong life.

There are now 57 clients, who are mostly single in status, and this census is only based from DMC, Layug said. In Mindanao there are 132 cases already, he said.

Dr. Renee Faldas, Department of Health’s STI Coordinator, said regarding the expensive price of the blood test it can be talked about especially if the person has not enough finances. It can also be given as HIV/AIDS blood test if it’s a referral, she said.

As always, cases such as this will be considered very confidential and any information received from the client will be dealt only by the attending physician or person directly in-charge to his or her health as the law requires.

For further inquiries about HIV/AIDS blood testing, you can contact Dr. Layug thru cellular phone number 0922-8638102.

Ilaga nipalag (http://www.sunstar.com.ph/davao/ilaga-nipalag)


GIKONDENA sa mga opisyal sa Reform Ilaga Movement ang desisyon ni Norberto Manero alyas Kumander Bukay nga magpa-sakop sa Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF).

Si Manero, gitudlo sab ni MNLF Founding Chairman ug kanhing Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (Armm) Governor Nur Misuari isip Assistant Vice
Chief-of-staff sa Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces.

Gipahayag ni Kumander Mike Santiago, tigpamababa sa Ilaga, nga nakalitan sila ug wa makatuo sa gihimo ni Manero.

Matud niya, bisan ang ilang mga kaubanan nga opisyal ug mga sakop sa Ilaga Movement, wala gi-konsulta ni Kumander Bukay sa gihimo niining desisyon.

Matud ni Manero, iya kining kaugalingong desisyon ug wala siya magduha duha gumikan kay buot niini nga palig-unon pa ang maayong relasyon tali sa mga Kristiyano ug Muslim sa Mindanao.

Sigun niya, panahon na aron nga maghiusa ang Kristiyano ug Muslim alang sa kalambuan sa tanan.

Gidugang ni Kumander Doruela sa Reform Ilaga Movement, naglisud siya sa pagsabot sa desisyon ni Manero. Nagtuo matud pa siyang may mga adunahang tawo ang nagsulsol kang Kumander Bukay sa pagbalhin og grupo.

Hinuon, gisulti ni Kumander Doruela nga kun ugaling kalinaw lang gayud ang tumong sa lakang ni Manero, ila gayud kining tahuron.

Nagpabiling hilom si GRP Panel Chairman Secretary Rafael Seguis sa migawas nga taho nga himuon nga negosyador sa gobyerno si Misuari ug Manero ngadto sa MILF ug NPA.

New HACT Clinic opens at Davao Medical Center
Mindanao Daily Mirror
February 13, 2009

The Davao Medical Center officially inaugurated yesterday the new clinic for HACT, which means Health and Care Today.

Originally known as HIV and AIDS Core Team, the name was changed to make it sound happier, according to Dr. Larissa Lara Q. Torno, head of the clinic unit.

The clinic will help cater to the needs of HIV/AIDS clients or who has been tested positive for HIV/AIDS, she said.

Dr. Alicia Javier Layug, HACT over-all chairperson, said it costs around P350 per blood test but counseling is free already same with the confirmation test if the first blood test taken was positive. Along with the free services include the free ARV medication, which is a tablet taken twice a day.

Dr. Layug said the anti-retroviral medication would usually cost P30,000 per month. They are glad to have the Global Fund’s commitment to support the HACT clinic by giving free ARV meds for a lifetime particularly for HIV/AIDS clients at DMC.

She said DMC and Zamboanga Medical Cen-ter are the two HACT clinics that offer treatment such as ARV. But she clarified that ARV won’t completely heal the client, instead it will just help prolong life.

There are now 57 clients, who are mostly single in status, and this census is only based from DMC, Layug said. In Mindanao there are 132 cases already, he said.

Dr. Renee Faldas, Department of Health’s STI Coordinator, said regarding the expensive price of the blood test it can be talked about especially if the person has not enough finances. It can also be given as HIV/AIDS blood test if it’s a referral, she said.

As always, cases such as this will be considered very confidential and any information received from the client will be dealt only by the attending physician or person directly in-charge to his or her health as the law requires.

For further inquiries about HIV/AIDS blood testing, you can contact Dr. Layug thru cellular phone number 0922-8638102.

wow..Zamboanga and Davao lang tlaga ha..hehe

Japan provides homes for typhoon victims in Mindanao (http://www.gmanews.tv/story/148780/Japan-provides-homes-for-typhoon-victims-in-Mindanao)


MANILA, Philippines - With help from the Japanese government, several families in Maguindanao and Shariff Kabunsuan who lost their homes to Typhoon "Frank" last year will have their own homes - finally.

Japanese Ambassador Makoto Katsura turned over 50 housing units built with the help of the Japanese government and the Mindanao Tulong Bakwet Inc.

The grant of $81,954 constructed 30 housing units in Barangay Tambunan in Talayan town in Maguindanao; and 20 in Limbo villages in Sultan Kudarat town in Shariff Kabunsuan.

According to the Japanese embassy, these areas were among those hardest hit by Typhoon Frank in June 2008.

It said the project was implemented under the Japan-Bangsamoro Initiatives for Reconstruction and Development (J-BIRD).

Earlier Japan signified its assistance to people affected by fighting between government and Moro Islamic Liberation Front troops.

Japan had signed a grant agreement to assist Internally Displaced Persons in conflict-affected areas in Mindanao, with the program aiming to provide emergency food aid worth $9.5 million or 7,500 metric tons of rice, through the United Nation's World Food Programme.

napost na ba ni?

ebay find: Moro Market rppc People Mindanao Philippines ca 1916

http://i3.ebayimg.com/03/i/001/32/2e/66aa_1.JPG

http://mnlf.net/New_Images/Sultan%20Jamal%20ul-Azam%20w%20French%20Visitors.jpg

An interview granted by Sultan Jamal ul-Azam of the Sulu Sultanate
to some French Visitors (The chief qadi, an Afghan, sits behind the Sultan)

THE FLEET OF THE SULTAN OF MAGUINDANAO

http://www.webalice.it/paopadd/maguindanao%20fleet.jpg

COLLECTION OF MAGUINDANAO LANTAKAS BELONGING TO DATU UTO

http://www.webalice.it/paopadd/datu%20uto%20lantakas.jpg

This collection of Maguindanao lantakas was a part of the equipment belonging to Datu Uto.

^^ naenjoy ko, fleet ba gyud na tonight? akong paminaw basta fleet, dagkong dapor. hehehe.

^^
daghan man vessel mao na fleet tawag sa ila, mao ra pud barko nila sa ilang kapanahonan hehehe

http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USMC/USMC-M-AvPhil/img/USMC-M-AvPhil-p124.jpg

MARINE DIVE BOMBERS STRIKE Mt. Daho, strongly held enemy position on Jolo Island, as members of a 41st Infantry Division gun crew watch.

http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USMC/USMC-M-AvPhil/img/USMC-M-AvPhil-p127.jpg

FILIPINO GUERILLAS captured Malabang airstrip and town prior to Allied landings. Marine PBJ's in the background have just landed after bombing enemy positions only 1,000 yards from the strip, which later became Titcomb Field, for MAG-24.

http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USMC/USMC-M-AvPhil/img/USMC-M-AvPhil-p134.jpg

41st INFANTRY DIVISION HONORS MAGSZAM in ceremony at Moret Field, with presentation of a plaque commemorating operations at Zamboanga, Jolo, Basilan, and Sanga Sanga, when Marines furnished air support for the infantry.


http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USMC/USMC-M-AvPhil/img/USMC-M-AvPhil-p122.jpg

TAIL OF ENEMY FIGHTER PLANE furnished an appropriate emblem for MAGSZAM's base at Zamboanga, Moret Field.

http://www.escholarship.org/editions/data/13030/4c/ft0199n64c/figures/ft0199n64c_00003.jpg

Muslim street vendor selling tobacco in Cotabato City.The great
majority of Muslim street vendors are women, many of them older
women, who support their families selling fruits and vegetables,
betel, tobacco,and other items on the street corners of the city.

http://www.escholarship.org/editions/data/13030/4c/ft0199n64c/figures/ft0199n64c_00005.jpg

Datu Utu (seated center) with his wife, Rajah Putri, and retinue, circa 1890.
This photograph was probably taken on the occasion of the elderly Utu's move
downriver to live under Spanish protection in Cotabato town in 1890. Datu Utu's
severely crossed eyes may be the source for some of the stories told about
his fierce appearance. Courtesy of the U.S. National Archives.

http://www.escholarship.org/editions/data/13030/4c/ft0199n64c/figures/ft0199n64c_00006.jpg

Datu Piang (front row, second from right, with cane) and his officials and attendants, circa 1914. Despite his quite considerable wealth and power, Datu Piang is reported always to have dressed quite simply, in contrast to the more elaborate attire worn by most Magindanaon datus of the period (see, for example, the dress of Datu Utu in Figure 1). The datu's attendants include two kris bearers, a kampilan (long sword) bearer (second from left, rear), and two men carrying brass containers for betel nut.


Courtesy of the U.S. National Archives.

http://www.escholarship.org/editions/data/13030/4c/ft0199n64c/figures/ft0199n64c_00007.jpg

Edward Kuder (seated) with the young Salipada Pendatun, 1927. Pendatun, shown here in the simple garb of a Muslim schoolboy, was the son of the Sultan of Barongis, as well as Kuder's foster son and star pupil. He went on to become the most prominent and influential Philippine Muslim politician in the post- independence period.


Courtesy of Phillipines Free Press .

http://www.escholarship.org/editions/data/13030/4c/ft0199n64c/figures/ft0199n64c_00009.jpg

Cotabato MNLF fighters in the field, circa 1975. Although the Philippine military closed all major rivers in Cotabato to civilian traffic in 1974 to impede guerrilla activities, MNLF fighters were able to move largely unhindered on the innumerable small waterways of the region. As pictured, MNLF fighters were typically quite young, and many wore their hair long in keeping with the fashion of the period.


Photograph by Larry Johnson

http://www.escholarship.org/editions/data/13030/4c/ft0199n64c/figures/ft0199n64c_00011.jpg

Photograph commemorating the 1951 visit of Maulana Mohammad Abdul Aleem Siddiqui (left) to Cotabato. The Maulana, the first Middle Eastern Muslim missionary to visit Cotabato in the modern era, is pictured here in the city plaza, accompanied by an unidentified Magindanaon datu.

http://www.escholarship.org/editions/data/13030/4c/ft0199n64c/figures/ft0199n64c_00012.jpg

A wedding procession near Campo Muslim. The bride, with head bowed as prescribed by custom, is accompanied by female attendants holding decorated umbrellas.

you did it again tonight, great finds.

you did it again tonight, great finds.

^^
thanks :)

Mindanao, muling yayanigin ng aftershocks sa susunod na 2 araw (http://www.rmn.ph/regional/mindanao-muling-yayanigin-ng-aftershocks-sa-susunod-na-2-araw)


Panibagong pagyanig ang naramdaman kaninang madaling araw sa ilang bahagi ng Mindanao.

Ayon sa ulat ng United States Geological Survey, naitala ang 5.0 magnitude na lindol at natukoy ang epicenter nito sa layong 285 kilometers Timog Silangan ng General Santos City.

Bukod sa malakas ang pagyanig mas malalim din ang naging sentro nito kung saan naitala sa 76.6 kilometers o 47.6 miles.

Kaugnay nito, marami pang aftershocks ang inaasahang maitatala sa susunod na 48 oras.


mag-ingat tayo

^^
geez... earthquakes.:ohno:

Mindanao, muling yayanigin ng aftershocks sa susunod na 2 araw (http://www.rmn.ph/regional/mindanao-muling-yayanigin-ng-aftershocks-sa-susunod-na-2-araw)


Panibagong pagyanig ang naramdaman kaninang madaling araw sa ilang bahagi ng Mindanao.

Ayon sa ulat ng United States Geological Survey, naitala ang 5.0 magnitude na lindol at natukoy ang epicenter nito sa layong 285 kilometers Timog Silangan ng General Santos City.

Bukod sa malakas ang pagyanig mas malalim din ang naging sentro nito kung saan naitala sa 76.6 kilometers o 47.6 miles.

Kaugnay nito, marami pang aftershocks ang inaasahang maitatala sa susunod na 48 oras.


mag-ingat tayo

what's the cause of the quake?

ebay find: Zamboanga Girl Guitar Mindanao Philippines stamp 1934
http://i18.ebayimg.com/01/i/001/05/9b/8d2f_1.JPG

ebay find:Mindanao Philippines 1910 RPPC View of Camp Vicars
http://www.uberstamps.com/1/new3/new2/nn/nj900.jpg

http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USMC/USMC-M-AvPhil/img/USMC-M-AvPhil-p134.jpg

41st INFANTRY DIVISION HONORS MAGSZAM in ceremony at Moret Field, with presentation of a plaque commemorating operations at Zamboanga, Jolo, Basilan, and Sanga Sanga, when Marines furnished air support for the infantry.


http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USMC/USMC-M-AvPhil/img/USMC-M-AvPhil-p122.jpg

TAIL OF ENEMY FIGHTER PLANE furnished an appropriate emblem for MAGSZAM's base at Zamboanga, Moret Field.


wow..Moret Field..the predecessor of what is now Zamboanga International Airport..

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/78/Zamboanga_Charter_Signing.JPG/763px-Zamboanga_Charter_Signing.JPG

Zamboanga City Charter Signing..

The Flag of the Short-lived Zamboanga Republic

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/83/ChavacanoFlag.JPG/800px-ChavacanoFlag.JPG

The Flag of the Short-lived Zamboanga Republic

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/83/ChavacanoFlag.JPG/800px-ChavacanoFlag.JPG

zoro unsay gina symbolize anang figures sa flag?

http://i414.photobucket.com/albums/pp222/rambuc/Image5.jpg

My paternal grandfather, weightlifter and member of the international Olympic committee in weightlifting , the late Fabian Alvarez Bucoy Sr., great grand son of local hero Gen. Vicente Alvarez.

Photo courtesy from my coffee table book : Zamboanga, memories of the old town by Antonio Orendain.

zoro unsay gina symbolize anang figures sa flag?

mao sad nay akong ginpangita hangtod karon..

what's the cause of the quake?

^^
i think it's tectonic uplift at Celebes Sea :)

http://photosforthefuture.historychannelasia.com/photo_images/as/7893_photo.jpg

A memory of old days back in 1926, Francisca Badilla Lugartos (between crowned Princess Pastora Badilla and Princess Rosario Oliveros) was chosen as queen in fiesta of Cabuan, Camiguin, Philippines.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/78/Zamboanga_Charter_Signing.JPG/763px-Zamboanga_Charter_Signing.JPG

Zamboanga City Charter Signing..

notice in the picture..the young lady there is the former Mayor Maria Clara Lobregat..nasa isip kaya nya dat time na magiging mayor xa ng Zamboanga 60 years after..

^^ grade 6 sya dat time ? i remember in Urios before, the number of buttons equals the year level.. :nuts:

^^really? i dont know that..Lobregat was educated in Maryknoll..so thats the uniform of MaryKnoll that time..

baka magkatsunami..wag naman sana

http://www.escholarship.org/editions/data/13030/4c/ft0199n64c/figures/ft0199n64c_00012.jpg

A wedding procession near Campo Muslim. The bride, with head bowed as prescribed by custom, is accompanied by female attendants holding decorated umbrellas.

^^ Those are really nice looking unique umbrellas.

thats the umbrella that symbolizes royalty..

i hope not

Power outage hits parts of Mindanao (http://www9.gmanews.tv/story/149103/Power-outage-hits-parts-of-Mindanao---report)


MANILA, Philippines - A power blackout caused by a National Transmission Corp. (TransCo) line problem hit parts of Mindanao including Davao City late Monday morning, but electricity was restored in the afternoon, an online news site reported Tuesday.

Mindanao Daily Mirror reported that after power went out at 11:10 a.m., water service in Davao City was cut as Davao City Water District (DCWD) pumps lost power.

Cities affected included Malaybalay, Valencia, Tacurong, Cotabato, General Santos, Digos, Davao, Tagum, Panabo, and Mati. Towns near the cities were also affected, the report said.

Davao Light and Power Company (DLPC) said it was experiencing "total power outage in the entire Davao Light franchise as power supply from TransCo snapped off suddenly."

It said it would immediately activate its Bajada Power Plant to serve key service providers like hospitals and government installations.

Transco region 11 spokesperson Bambi Capulong said the blackout stemmed from a trip in Lines 1 and 2 of the 138-kilovolt Tagoloan-Pulangi Lines.

Capulong said the trip caused a blackout in the Mindanao grid, cutting power to Southern and Central Mindanao.

Lines 1 and 2 were energized at 11:58 a.m. and 11:35 a.m., respectively. All customers were energized at around 12:40 p.m., she added.

Repost:

Mindanao investments grew 58% in Q3: MEDCo
BY JUDY QUIROS

Mindanao’s investments grew 58 percent during the third quarter of 2008 over the same rating period of the previous year.

A report from the Mindanao Economic Development Council (MED-Co) showed that investments registered with both the Board of Investments (BOI) and PHIVIDEC Industrial Authority posted a total of P12.897 billion during third quarter last year, indicating a 58 percent increase from the P8,173 billion in 2007.

The registered investments generated 9,298 jobs, MEDCo added.

Mindanao covers regions 9, 10, 11, 12, Caraga, and the Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

Region 10 contributed the largest share among the Mindanao regions in terms of investment equity, with a total value of P8.163 billion.

The region’s capital infusion came from nine investment projects, particularly in power generation, livestock, property development, and steel processing.

Local equity investments doubled in value from P5.053 billion in 2007 to P10.583 billion in 2008 of the same period.

In terms of investment growth, Region 10 skyrocketed to from P714 million in 2007 to P8.163 billion in 2008.

The gains were attributed to the numerous investments in power generation and livestock production sectors.

Region 11 achieved a 23 percent growth in investments, from P2.792 billion in 2007 to P3.449 billion in 2008.

Capital infusion was focused heavily in mineral extraction, and petroleum products.

MEDCo said power generation topped the investment areas in Mindanao.

The power generation sector got the largest investment share of 42 percent with a total investment value of P5.112 billion combined from South Bukidnon Bioenergy, Inc’s and the Philippine Sinter Corporation’s power generation projects.

South Bukidnon Bio-energy Inc. will build an integrated plant that will produce bioethanol and electricity from sugar cane in barangay Labuagon in the municipality of Kibawe, Bukidnon.

The project will include a sugar cane mill and distillery for producing ethanol, a co-generation power plant, a carbon dioxide recovery plant, and an effluent treatment plant.

The 10-megawatt co-generation plant will run on biogas and its excess electricity will be sold to the local power distributor.

The carbon dioxide that will come as a byproduct of ethanol fermentation will be sold to beverage and refrigeration companies.

The plant is targeted to operate by 2010.

Philippine Sinter Corporation invested in a 117 megawatt co-generation power plant at the PHIVIDEC Industrial Estate in Villanueva, Misamis Oriental.

MEDCo said hog raising is the sector with the next highest investment share at 15 percent or P1.819 billion.

Monterey Foods in Sumilao, Bukidnon is investing in the construction of 8,800 sow level farrow to finish its hog farm.

The facility forms part of San Miguel Group’s integrated Agro-Industrial Zone program in Northern Mindanao.

A total of 199,569 heads of hogs will be raised per year. These are live marketable hogs bred from Camborough gilts and PIC 337 lean boars from the Pig Improvement Co., an international leader in providing genetically superior stock.

Foreign direct investments registered with BOI during the third quarter last year reached P1.699 billion.

Sixty percent of the FDIs are from Japanese investors particularly on power generation projects, marine, and petroleum products.

Canadian investors followed, having poured huge investments in mineral exploration/extraction at 21 percent share.

British and South Korean investors took a 4 percent share each of the FDI equity and are into the export of Cavendish banana, petroleum products, and coco peat/coco fiber business.

http://www.dailymirror.ph/Feb/business02182009&01.html

Just a recall, I think there's need to discuss in SSC the BIMP-EAGA agenda:

Not wrong partner, MEDCO says of BIMP EAGA
Walter I. Balane / MindaNews
Saturday, 24 February 2007 21:44


DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / February 23) -- Engaging with the BIMP East Asean Growth Area (EAGA) is a right track for Mindanao, the Mindanao Economic Development Council (Medco) said amid a contrary pronouncement from the government chief socioeconomic planner.

"The BIMP EAGA engagement is on the track even if it is composed of the member countries' poor regions," Romeo Montenegro, Medco information and communication chief, said Friday.

Montenegro admitted that the regions included in the growth area are poor but he said it doesn't make it a wrong partner. As he debunked the statement of Sec. Romulo Neri of the National Economic Development Agency, who described the sub-region a wrong economic partner "for its lack of complementation among members", Montenegro said that "just because Mindanao and the rest of EAGA is poor, we cannot work to be at par with the rest of the capitals (cities) in the BIMP area?".

Neri cited the absence of an economic "big brother" to generate investments to the "little brothers". Instead, he said, the right direction points to China, Korea, Japan and Australia as the "natural economic partners".

Montenegro said Medco respected Neri's opinion. "But it doesn't change the national government's stand over engagements with the BIMP EAGA," he said. He said he has to assure the Asian Development Bank, a BIMP EAGA stakeholder, who he said also reacted to Neri's pronouncements.

Montenegro said BIMP EAGA also looked at those markets Neri had mentioned but he said the subregion was consolidating its products to be directed to a larger market, including the four countries.

Eventually these markets will view the BIMP EAGA as one market because of the consolidation, Montenegro said.

He told MindaNews that the intra-region economic cooperation in sectors like trading, agriculture, and tourism were already making headway, and that Mindanao has picked up from the sub-region's potentials though it was growing slowly. The process of growth would take time, he said.

"If only we were not hit by the 1997 Asian financial crisis we would be hitting big now," he said.

The BIMP-EAGA includes Brunei Darussalam (whole area), Indonesia (the provinces of North Sulawesi, East Kalimantan, West Kalimantan, Maluku, Irian Jaya, South and Central Kalimantan, Southeast and Central Sulawesi, Southeast and South Sulawesi), Malaysia (Sabah, Sarawak, and Labuan), and Philippines (Mindanao and Palawan).

Montenegro named BIMP EAGA champions, like Sarangani Gov. Miguel Dominguez, who could tell if the sub-region was really a wrong economic partner. He said these political and business leaders were thankful over the opportunities opened to them. He cited the extension of the fisheries agreement between the Philippines and Indonesia was one of the fruits of BIMP EAGA that local players were grateful.The Davao International Airport, which Neri said as undertapped, was another fruit of the BIMP EAGA thrust. He said the airport was "strongly approved because of the BIMP EAGA justification.

Without BIMP EAGA, Mindanao would have no direct air, sea, trade, and tourism links with neighboring cities in the East ASEAN area.

The sub-regional economic cooperation was launched in March 1994 during the time of President Fidel Ramos and was patterned after the success of the growth area concept in several sub-regions in Asia.

Based on its 2006-2010 Road Map, immediate goals included the need to encourage increased trade, investments and tourism in the subregion and the long term goal was to change the economy from one based on resource extraction to one based on higher order processing and non-resource based activities.

Three years ago, the NEDA chief also watered down the sub-regional grouping in a press conference doubting it could help fuel growth in the inclusive areas.

Makitid pala ang utak nitong si Neri

Suspek sa serye ng pambobomba sa Mindanao nahuli sa Pasay City (http://www.gmanews.tv/story/149365/Suspek-sa-serye-ng-pambobomba-sa-Mindanao-nahuli-sa-Pasay-City)


MANILA – Nadakip ng intelligence operatives ng Philippine National Police (PNP) sa Pasay City ang isang lalaki na sangkot umano sa serye ng pambobomba sa ibat-ibang lugar sa Mindanao mula 2002-2007.

Inihayag ni PNP chief Director General Jesus Verzosa nitong Miyerkules na inamin umano ni Muaweya Abubakar Masabpi (alias Aman, or Aiman, or Haiman), ang pagkakasangkot niya sa mga pambobomba sa ilang lugar sa Mindanao.

Sinabi ni Verzosa na nahuli si Masabpi noong Pebrero 10 sa Pasay City Rotonda sa bisa ng warrant na ipinalabas ng Kidapawan City Regional Trial Court Branch 23. Sangkot umano si Masabpi sa serye ng pambobomba sa Kidapawan City, Cotabato province.

Nahaharap din siya sa mga kasong murder, frustrated murder, at multiple attempted murder, ayon sa pahayag ng PNP.

Inamin umano ni Masabpi sa pulisya na dati siyang miyembro ng elite force ng Moro Islamic Liberation Front. Kabilang sa kanyang misyon ang magtanim na mga improvised explosive devices (IEDs) sa mga target na lugar na pasasabugin.

Kabilang umano sa mga insidente ng pambobomba na kasangkot siya ay naganap sa:

* Cotabato City Cathedral, 2002;

* Kennex Disco Pub sa Cotabato City, 2003;

* Electric steel towers sa Pigkawan, Cotabato, 2003 at sa Iligan City noong 2007; at

* Sheer Marketing sa Kidapawan City, 2007.

Manantili umano sa konstudiya ng intelligence unit ng PNP si Masabpi habang hinihintay ang desisyon ng korte kung saan siya dapat ilipat.

Plaza Pershing

http://photos-p.friendster.com/photos/80/56/49956508/1_463148748l.jpg

Plaza Hotel in Zamboanga

http://photos-p.friendster.com/photos/80/56/49956508/1_921358474l.jpg

Zamboanga City Medical Center

http://photos-p.friendster.com/photos/80/56/49956508/1_577484948l.jpg

http://photos-p.friendster.com/photos/80/56/49956508/1_658293656l.jpg

Pettit Baracks

http://photos-p.friendster.com/photos/80/56/49956508/1_854227733l.jpg

The road to Fort Pilar, now Nicacio Valderossa St.

http://photos-p.friendster.com/photos/80/56/49956508/1_384564792l.jpg

Quarters of the Commanding Officer of Zamboanga

http://photos-p.friendster.com/photos/80/56/49956508/1_363921630l.jpg

Zamboanga Port in 1910

http://photos-p.friendster.com/photos/80/56/49956508/1_112347936l.jpg

The other side of Zamboanga Port

http://photos-p.friendster.com/photos/80/56/49956508/1_690108712l.jpg

The Pillars of Pettit Baracks

http://photos-p.friendster.com/photos/80/56/49956508/1_165416958l.jpg

Zamboanga General Hospital (Now Zamboanga City Medical Center)

http://photos-p.friendster.com/photos/80/56/49956508/1_831054155l.jpg

http://photos-p.friendster.com/photos/80/56/49956508/1_677510522l.jpg

The Zamboanga Cathedral which was ravished during World War II

http://photos-p.friendster.com/photos/80/56/49956508/1_690614978l.jpg

Pablo Lorenzo Street before

http://photos-p.friendster.com/photos/80/56/49956508/1_334303513l.jpg

Mindanao School Dominance ^^

RANK NAME SCHOOL RATING (%)

1
JOVIE ANN ALAWAS DECOYNA
BAGUIO CENTRAL UNIVERSITY
89.00
2
3
4
5IRISA KRIYA TURAJA BIAG
SAN PEDRO COLLEGE-DAVAO CITY
87.40

ROSARIO LEI MOSQUEDA PASIMIO
XAVIER UNIVERSITY-CDO
87.40

6
CHRISTOPHER ALVAREZ IRORITA
SAN PEDRO COLLEGE-DAVAO CITY
87.20

PAUL DELFIN REYES JAMERO
FATHER SATURNINO URIOS UNIVERSITY - BUTUAN CITY
87.20

FRANCIS IAN SABANAL PASCUAL
UNIVERSIDAD DE ZAMBOANGA (ZAEC)
87.20

5. EDITA TE LIM - ARRIESGADO COLLEGE FOUNDATION INC. - TAGUM CITY

7
PRETZEL ESTREMOS VICENCIO
BUTUAN DOCTORS COLLEGE - BUTUAN CITY
87.00

8
JAMAICCA RABULAN BANTING
DAVAO DOCTORS COLLEGE, INC.
86.80

VANITO DIOCSON ILANGA JR.
SULTAN KUDARAT EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION
86.80

MARIA EDNA CHARISE GODOY JAVA
MISAMIS UNIVERSITY-OZAMIZ CITY
86.80

9
MICHAEL DOROTHY FRANCES GAER MONTOJO
ATENEO DE DAVAO UNIVERSITY
86.60

CINDY MAE ALVAREZ NAÑOZ
ATENEO DE ZAMBOANGA
86.60

CRYSTAL MAE ABEJUELA SABELA
XAVIER UNIVERSITY
86.60

10

MARJORY BOQUIA EMPERIO
MISAMIS UNIVERSITY-OZAMIZ CITY
86.40

FRANCIS GERWIN UY JALIPA
SAN PEDRO COLLEGE-DAVAO CITY
86.40

Mindanao School Dominance ^^

RANK NAME SCHOOL RATING (%)

1
JOVIE ANN ALAWAS DECOYNA
BAGUIO CENTRAL UNIVERSITY
89.00
2
3
4
5IRISA KRIYA TURAJA BIAG
SAN PEDRO COLLEGE-DAVAO CITY
87.40

ROSARIO LEI MOSQUEDA PASIMIO
XAVIER UNIVERSITY-CDO
87.40

6
CHRISTOPHER ALVAREZ IRORITA
SAN PEDRO COLLEGE-DAVAO CITY
87.20

PAUL DELFIN REYES JAMERO
FATHER SATURNINO URIOS UNIVERSITY - BUTUAN CITY
87.20

FRANCIS IAN SABANAL PASCUAL
UNIVERSIDAD DE ZAMBOANGA (ZAEC)
87.20

7
PRETZEL ESTREMOS VICENCIO
BUTUAN DOCTORS COLLEGE - BUTUAN CITY
87.00

8
JAMAICCA RABULAN BANTING
DAVAO DOCTORS COLLEGE, INC.
86.80

VANITO DIOCSON ILANGA JR.
SULTAN KUDARAT EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION
86.80

MARIA EDNA CHARISE GODOY JAVA
MISAMIS UNIVERSITY-OZAMIZ CITY
86.80

9
MICHAEL DOROTHY FRANCES GAER MONTOJO
ATENEO DE DAVAO UNIVERSITY
86.60

CINDY MAE ALVAREZ NAÑOZ
ATENEO DE ZAMBOANGA
86.60

CRYSTAL MAE ABEJUELA SABELA
XAVIER UNIVERSITY
86.60

10

MARJORY BOQUIA EMPERIO
MISAMIS UNIVERSITY-OZAMIZ CITY
86.40

FRANCIS GERWIN UY JALIPA
SAN PEDRO COLLEGE-DAVAO CITY
86.40

Apila ni Bob at least for exposure purposes :)

5. EDITA TE LIM - ARRIESGADO COLLEGE FOUNDATION INC. - TAGUM CITY

^^ magaling mag-alaga ng maysakit ang mga taga mindanao :lol:

do you have a "now" pics for comparison if these are still in existence? thanks.

Mindanao gets 30% of agri budget
Saturday, February 21, 2009

THE Department of Agriculture (DA) has earmarked 30 percent of its 2009 budget for Mindanao to boost its agricultural productivity, Agriculture Undersecretary Jesus Emmanuel Paras said.

Paras said around P16 billion is in the pipeline for rehabilitation and construction of agricultural infrastructures and livelihood to stir food production and job creation in Mindanao.

http://www.sunstar.com.ph/davao/mindanao-gets-30-agri-budget

Apila ni Bob at least for exposure purposes :)

5. EDITA TE LIM - ARRIESGADO COLLEGE FOUNDATION INC. - TAGUM CITY


done Ibex :okay:

Home » Davao » Feature
Hospital bed shortage
02/21/2009 - 10:22Saturday, February 21, 2009
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DAVAO City hosts Mindanao's most modern medical facilities, with four government and private hospitals classified as Level 4 hospitals. This means that these facilities are capable of administering specialized treatments. But the health sector's modernity does not necessarily translate into ready availability of hospital beds.

Victor, in his 50s, was complaining of difficulty in breathing, his face was already abnormally red from some unknown ailment. With his wife, they rushed to the emergency room of a Level 4 private hospital here and were immediately administered to. The diagnosis, the man was allergic to a hair color he had just used that caused the swelling of his air passage. Along with some medicines to address the serious medical situation he was in, he was recommended for hospital confinement to allow his doctor to monitor him until the swelling subsides. The problem, although the private hospital they were in is already one of the city's biggest, there was no room available. They waited for hours, hoping some patient will be discharged. They waited in vain as his doctor was furiously finding room for him in other hospitals as well. It was almost midnight when a room was finally located, in a smaller private Level 4 hospital nearby.

Victor's dilemma is not new. It has been a reality for so long now. With just over 2,000 hospital beds available, the city's hospital bed ratio falls short of the ideal 1:500 hospital bed/population ratio at 1:620. That is not even the whole picture.

Davao Medical Center, Mindanao's biggest Level 4 government hospital, with a 400-bed capacity, can hardly fit in their patients who come not only from Davao City.

There are five Level 4 hospitals in the city: DMC, Brokenshire Integrated Health Ministries, Davao Doctors' Hospital, Ricardo Limso Medical Center, and San Pedro Hospital of Davao City.

"Dapat 400 lang ang patients kay 400 lang man ang hospital beds na para sa DMC but we cannot tell them na dili na mudawat ug pasyente [to stop accepting patients]. The hospital is catering to more than 200 percent gyud sa capacity kay tibuok Davao region ang pasyente, naa pa man gani gikan sa Cotabato area ," Department of Health (DOH) licensing officer Alex Daba said.

"Because DMC is a government hospital, it gets more referral patients than paying patients, and so we cannot avoid being all filled up," he added.

[B]Add this to the fact that DMC is the only hospital that has a burn unit and a heart center in the whole Mindanao. This means, special burn and heart cases are brought over to DMC even if they come from the farthest reaches of Mindanao.

Eddie from Laak in Compostela Valley said during the confinement of his daughter at the DMC that they stayed in the emergency room for almost a week.

"Gusto gud unta ko mubalhin mi ug hospital pero wala man mi ikabayad pud sa mga gwapo na hospital. Daghan lang pud kaayo ang pasyente diri, murag matakdan na lang pud akong anak sa mga sakit pero maghulat na lang mi kung kanus-a siya maayo [We really wanted to bring our daughter to another hospital but we do not have money for that. But there are just too many patients here, it's like my daughter could contract other diseases from other patients. But we have no choice but to wait until she is finally healed]," he said.

Had he other choices, he would bring his daughter where the environment is conducive for healing.

"Mangita gyud ko ug hayahay na hospital [If I had the money I would find a hospital that's less congested]," he said, adding that the government should allocate budget for hospital beds.

A nurse affirmed what Eddie just said.

"Kulang gyud among mga katre diri, sa una pa man pud ni. Dugay na ko diri pero mao lang man gihapon. Daghan kaayo ug pasyente pud [We suffer from dire lack of hospital beds. This has been the situation for so long now. And there are just too many patients]," he said.

But it is not just at DMC that is being deluged by patients.

Private hospitals have been turning down patients for lack of hospital beds and rooms to accommodate them.

San Pedro Hospital (SPH) emergency room head nurse Leticia Nasser confirmed there is shortage of beds. Although, in their case, it just takes hours and not days for a waiting patient to be accommodated. SPH is also a Level 4 hospital.

"Mabilis din kasi ang turnover namin. It doesn't take more than six hours para ma-accomodate sila," Nasser said. "If walang movement by noon, we advise those on the waiting list," she added.

She added they even get patients from DMC a lot of times because DMCA can no longer accommodate these patients.

"Sa una, they balk at our rates kasi nga medyo mataas compared to DMC. Pero marami, din bumabalik by four or five in the afternoon kasi di pa daw talaga sila naasikaso," Nasser said.

SPH presently has 295 beds available but it is planning to expand this year to accommodate more.


Davao Doctors Hospital another Level 4 hospital with a 250-bed capacity has a normal occupancy rate of around 80 percent, although there are several instances in a month when it is filled to the brim.

In an interview with Sun.Star Davao, Davao Doctors' Hospital president, Andres Licaros, said they are continuously taking steps to ensure the efficiency of their service, given that they are nearly fully occupied daily.

"First, we have defined the roles of each of our staff in the whole chain or process of delivering quality patient care," Licaros said. In this way, patients are attended to even while they may have to wait to be accommodated.

To ensure that the flow of patients is kept moving, Licaros said they regularly measure their performance as against the standards they have set.

The situation demands well-oiled machineries and systems so as not to add more to the agony of patients suffering from some ailment.

Even the newest among the tertiary hospitals in the city is starting to feel the rush.

The Davao Medical School Foundation Hospital (DMSFH), though a new hospital built just four years ago, is fast becoming the choice hospital of many especially members of the Government Service and Insurance System (GSIS).

DMSF is a Level 3 hospital, along with three other private hospitals -- the Alterado General Hospital, the Medical Mission Group Inc., and the Davao Adventist Hospital.
Being a new hospital does not spare DMSFH from the problem on lack of hospital beds that affects almost all of the big hospitals here in the region.

Menahem Fernandez, DMSFH marketing officer, said their hospital has a "declared" 100-bed capacity but its actual bed capacity is 120.

He said that in 2007, they only have an average of 17 to 20 admissions per day. Now this has remarkably increased to 90-100 per day.

"Sa una malipay ma mi kung makaabot mi ug 40. Pero karon abot na mi ug 90-100 . Sometimes we can no longer accommodate patients dahil puno na talaga kami kaya we have to refer them over to other hospitals," Fernandez said.

"Meron din mga cases wherein we request patients in private rooms if pwede isingit yung ibang patients dun sa room nila. Ang iba pumapayag naman pero pag hindi pumayag ay wala na talaga kaming magawa," he added.

Fernandez attributed their growing number of patients to their tie-up with GSIS.

It was learned that DMSFH is giving as much as 50 percent discounts to GSIS regular members and old-age pensioners thru the GSIS Hospitalization Support Program. In the Philippines, there are only five GSIS-accredited hospitals with DMSFH the only one in Mindanao.

Fifty percent discount is given to GSIS members who use GSIS-sponsored medical equipments, while 40 percent on common medical procedures, 35 percent on special and all other procedures, 30 percent on room and board rates, 30 percent on medicines and supplies, and 10 percent on professional fees.

In turn, GSIS loaned out to DMSFH P55 million worth of hospital equipments for their five-year contract that started October 2007.

DOH licensing officer Daba said that in an ideal situation, hospitals are not supposed to take in more than their accredited bed capacity. Ideally, DMC should only allow 400 patients at any one time, Brokenshire Integrated Health Ministries should not exceed 200, Davao Doctors' should only take in 250, Ricardo Limso Medical Center just 85, San Pedro Hospital just 295 tops, and DMSF just 100.

But reality dictates that these hospitals should just do their best, even if that will mean making the patients wait for hours or days at the emergency room, as DMC is forced to.

[B]According to DOH records, there are 16 Level 1 hospitals in the city, including two government primary hospitals namely the Camp Panacan Station Hospital, the Paquibato District Hospital. Level 1 hospitals are those that can only administer primary care. There are five Level 2 hospitals where higher levels of operations can be done at a limited scale and capacity, all privately run.

All other ailments that require higher specialization and operations all go to the Level 4 hospitals.

There is one private and one government owned tertiary care hospital in Zamboanga city, one private and one government tertiary care hospital in Cagayan de Oro City, two private hospitals in Iligan City, one in Polomolok, South Cotabato, two private tertiary care hospitals in General Santos City, one in Tagum City, Davao del Norte, one government-run in Cotabato City, one government-run in Ozamis City, and another government-run in Koronadal City.

There are no Level 4 hospitals outside Davao, so far. Thus, those seeking special treatment from any place in Mindanao are usually brought here, adding more to the hospitals already brimming with patients.

In the meantime, Manong Eddie, will just have to wait it out at the emergency room. At least they have a space there. (Pooled reports of Rhodamae M. Hernandez, Ben O. Tesiorna, Carlo P. Mallo, and Stella A. Estremera)

Vol. XXII, No. 144
Monday, February 23, 2009 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES
Corporate News
Aboitiz Power to bid for plants in Agusan, Compostela Valley



Aboitiz Power Corp. will bid for a 100-megawatt power barge in Mindanao, a top ranking official of the company said last week.

In an interview, Aboitiz Power Senior Vice-President for Power Generation Group Luis Miguel O. Aboitiz said they were eyeing the power barge being auctioned off by the government in Agusan del Norte.

Power Barge 117 located in the village of Sta. Ana, Nasipit in Agusan del Norte was first auctioned off in October, but the bidding was declared a failure after only one bidder submitted the required documents. The second round of bidding for the power asset is on April 15.

Aboitiz Power has also expressed an interest in the 100-megawatt Power Barge 118 in the village of San Roque, Maco in Compostela Valley. The facility was supposed to be auctioned off on Feb. 25 but the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) declared the bidding a failure since only Aboitiz Power had shown up for the pre-bid conference, PSALM Spokesman Conrad S. Tolentino said.

Mr. Aboitiz noted that although Mindanao is not an attractive site for a power facility since it has the lowest power rate among the three islands, the facilities are in good condition.

"Our interest in [the power barges] are not connected [in getting a strong hold of the Mindanao power market]. Mindanao is not an attractive market because power prices there are the lowest in the country," Mr. Aboitiz said in a text message.

"The plants are in good condition. Burmeister & Wain Scandinavian Contractor A/S (BWSC) is a first class operator," he added.

The power barges are operated and maintained by BWSC, an international turnkey contractor and operator of medium and large diesel engine-based power systems.

BWSC is also involved in projects for selected renewable and waste-to-energy technologies. The company handles plant design and rehabilitation, operation, maintenance and financing.

Two investors, including Aboitiz Power, have expressed interest in the Agusan del Norte power barge. In an earlier statement, the PSALM said potential bidders were conducting due diligence on the power asset, which started on Feb. 3 and will end on March 27. The sale of the power barges in Mindanao will help pay for state-owned National Power Corp.’s debts, which at the end of 2008 stood at $6 billion, excluding $2 billion in interest. — Ava Kashima K. Austria

^^I don't think so that only Davao has level 4 hospitals. In Region 12 alone, there are 2 level 4 hospitals namely SOUTH COTABATO PROVINCIAL HOSPITAL and COTABATO REGIONAL AND MEDICAL CENTER. My source DOH (http://www.doh.gov.ph/chd12/images/downloads/facilities/hosp_gov_06.pdf) website of R12.

BIMP-Eaga eyes single rate to boost trade PDF Print E-mail
Regions
Written by VG Cabuag / Reporter
Monday, 23 February 2009 01:50

COUNTRIES in the East Asian Growth Area (Eaga) would like to adopt uniform rates in vessel and port charges for all ports in the subregional trade bloc as a way to boost trade.

Vicente Lao, BIMP (Brunei Indonesia Malaysia Philippines)-Eaga country director, said in an interview his group would also discuss ways on how to facilitate trade, including harmonization of customs procedures, intelligence, quarantine and security, or CIQS.

“It’s BIMP-Eaga against the world. BIMP-Eaga is adopting the CIQS in order to boost our competitiveness against the world,” Lao said, adding that they are talking with authorities in the region to support both programs.

“The intention is to distribute growth areas within the region tailor-fitted for the member-economies to complement trades from China, Europe, the Middle East and Europe,” he added.

An agreement on the CIQS with the four countries is in its final stages and may be signed within the year. The group is still coordinating with port authorities on the uniform port rates and charges, he said

BIMP-Eaga offers trade potentials with the vast natural resources owned by its member-countries. Since its inception, however, trade among member-nations remains low due to a lack of investor interest and complementary initiatives from the other areas close to the region.

This has prodded economists and other logistics experts to say that expanding the local system of roll-on, roll-off ports to Southeast Asia may be more viable for an archipelagic country like the Philippines than others in BIMP-Eaga.

According to Enrico Basilio, director of CRC Transport and Logistics Institute, expanding the country’s Strong Republic Nautical Highway to Association of Southeast Asian Nations countries can benefit the Philippines since the country is strategically located in the middle of almost every country in the region.

“This is just a concept. We haven’t done the real analysis yet but I think this should be more viable for us,” Basilio said.

Some camps have said the trade bloc has little success since the four nations are growing at almost the same pace in terms of agriculture output and mining the same minerals.

Lao admitted that after 14 years, trade in the region is for now insignificant, but said he believes that trade will rebound once the CIQS is adopted and put in place.

The products traded from the region are coal, seaweeds and agriculture products from Indonesia; tuna, bananas and pineapple from the Philippines; timber and palm oil from Malaysia; and petrochemicals from Brunei—the central financial district of the BIMP-Eaga.

BIMP-Eaga is also looking at putting up a power plant in Indonesia to supply other member-countries via submarine cable and address demand in the region.

The member-countries are also looking at luring more shipping services between Eaga strategic transshipment points and lowering the cost of air and sea passenger services.

BIMP-Eaga was launched in 1994 as a strategy of participating governments to hasten economic growth in less-developed and remote territories.

http://businessmirror.com.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=6447:bimp-eaga-eyes-single-rate-to-boost-trade&catid=45:regions&Itemid=71

Among any area in the BIMP EAGA region, IMO Mindanao needs to play a major role in facilitating it as it is geographicaly natural for the island to be strategicaly located in the middle between the dynamic regions of south asia (Japan, Korea, Taiwan, etc.) & Asia pacific including American west coast and latin american countries, and the vast resources of the other BIMP countries below it. There should be clear delineation as to the role of Mindanao cities and regions to spread development to the whole region like GenSan for fisheries and canning, northmin for heavy industries, Zamboanga for accesible trade, Agusan for regulated forest products, other Davao regions for heavy industries and mining, and Davao City as Mindanao's major international service center (replete with international grade infrastructures and facilities like airport and seaport) that will represent not just the island and country but other BIMP regions as well (having advantage to english language and having one of Asia's best in human resource) as a bustling, clean and green metropolitan center to the other major international cities in the world, with its varied tourism (some having world records) to complement it.

Home » Davao » Feature
Hospital bed shortage
02/21/2009 - 10:22Saturday, February 21, 2009
Print Email Comment Subscribe


DAVAO City hosts Mindanao's most modern medical facilities, with four government and private hospitals classified as Level 4 hospitals. This means that these facilities are capable of administering specialized treatments. But the health sector's modernity does not necessarily translate into ready availability of hospital beds.

Victor, in his 50s, was complaining of difficulty in breathing, his face was already abnormally red from some unknown ailment. With his wife, they rushed to the emergency room of a Level 4 private hospital here and were immediately administered to. The diagnosis, the man was allergic to a hair color he had just used that caused the swelling of his air passage. Along with some medicines to address the serious medical situation he was in, he was recommended for hospital confinement to allow his doctor to monitor him until the swelling subsides. The problem, although the private hospital they were in is already one of the city's biggest, there was no room available. They waited for hours, hoping some patient will be discharged. They waited in vain as his doctor was furiously finding room for him in other hospitals as well. It was almost midnight when a room was finally located, in a smaller private Level 4 hospital nearby.

Victor's dilemma is not new. It has been a reality for so long now. With just over 2,000 hospital beds available, the city's hospital bed ratio falls short of the ideal 1:500 hospital bed/population ratio at 1:620. That is not even the whole picture.

Davao Medical Center, Mindanao's biggest Level 4 government hospital, with a 400-bed capacity, can hardly fit in their patients who come not only from Davao City.

There are five Level 4 hospitals in the city: DMC, Brokenshire Integrated Health Ministries, Davao Doctors' Hospital, Ricardo Limso Medical Center, and San Pedro Hospital of Davao City.

"Dapat 400 lang ang patients kay 400 lang man ang hospital beds na para sa DMC but we cannot tell them na dili na mudawat ug pasyente [to stop accepting patients]. The hospital is catering to more than 200 percent gyud sa capacity kay tibuok Davao region ang pasyente, naa pa man gani gikan sa Cotabato area ," Department of Health (DOH) licensing officer Alex Daba said.

"Because DMC is a government hospital, it gets more referral patients than paying patients, and so we cannot avoid being all filled up," he added.

[B]Add this to the fact that DMC is the only hospital that has a burn unit and a heart center in the whole Mindanao. This means, special burn and heart cases are brought over to DMC even if they come from the farthest reaches of Mindanao.

Eddie from Laak in Compostela Valley said during the confinement of his daughter at the DMC that they stayed in the emergency room for almost a week.

"Gusto gud unta ko mubalhin mi ug hospital pero wala man mi ikabayad pud sa mga gwapo na hospital. Daghan lang pud kaayo ang pasyente diri, murag matakdan na lang pud akong anak sa mga sakit pero maghulat na lang mi kung kanus-a siya maayo [We really wanted to bring our daughter to another hospital but we do not have money for that. But there are just too many patients here, it's like my daughter could contract other diseases from other patients. But we have no choice but to wait until she is finally healed]," he said.

Had he other choices, he would bring his daughter where the environment is conducive for healing.

"Mangita gyud ko ug hayahay na hospital [If I had the money I would find a hospital that's less congested]," he said, adding that the government should allocate budget for hospital beds.

A nurse affirmed what Eddie just said.

"Kulang gyud among mga katre diri, sa una pa man pud ni. Dugay na ko diri pero mao lang man gihapon. Daghan kaayo ug pasyente pud [We suffer from dire lack of hospital beds. This has been the situation for so long now. And there are just too many patients]," he said.

But it is not just at DMC that is being deluged by patients.

Private hospitals have been turning down patients for lack of hospital beds and rooms to accommodate them.

San Pedro Hospital (SPH) emergency room head nurse Leticia Nasser confirmed there is shortage of beds. Although, in their case, it just takes hours and not days for a waiting patient to be accommodated. SPH is also a Level 4 hospital.

"Mabilis din kasi ang turnover namin. It doesn't take more than six hours para ma-accomodate sila," Nasser said. "If walang movement by noon, we advise those on the waiting list," she added.

She added they even get patients from DMC a lot of times because DMCA can no longer accommodate these patients.

"Sa una, they balk at our rates kasi nga medyo mataas compared to DMC. Pero marami, din bumabalik by four or five in the afternoon kasi di pa daw talaga sila naasikaso," Nasser said.

SPH presently has 295 beds available but it is planning to expand this year to accommodate more.


Davao Doctors Hospital another Level 4 hospital with a 250-bed capacity has a normal occupancy rate of around 80 percent, although there are several instances in a month when it is filled to the brim.

In an interview with Sun.Star Davao, Davao Doctors' Hospital president, Andres Licaros, said they are continuously taking steps to ensure the efficiency of their service, given that they are nearly fully occupied daily.

"First, we have defined the roles of each of our staff in the whole chain or process of delivering quality patient care," Licaros said. In this way, patients are attended to even while they may have to wait to be accommodated.

To ensure that the flow of patients is kept moving, Licaros said they regularly measure their performance as against the standards they have set.

The situation demands well-oiled machineries and systems so as not to add more to the agony of patients suffering from some ailment.

Even the newest among the tertiary hospitals in the city is starting to feel the rush.

The Davao Medical School Foundation Hospital (DMSFH), though a new hospital built just four years ago, is fast becoming the choice hospital of many especially members of the Government Service and Insurance System (GSIS).

DMSF is a Level 3 hospital, along with three other private hospitals -- the Alterado General Hospital, the Medical Mission Group Inc., and the Davao Adventist Hospital.
Being a new hospital does not spare DMSFH from the problem on lack of hospital beds that affects almost all of the big hospitals here in the region.

Menahem Fernandez, DMSFH marketing officer, said their hospital has a "declared" 100-bed capacity but its actual bed capacity is 120.

He said that in 2007, they only have an average of 17 to 20 admissions per day. Now this has remarkably increased to 90-100 per day.

"Sa una malipay ma mi kung makaabot mi ug 40. Pero karon abot na mi ug 90-100 . Sometimes we can no longer accommodate patients dahil puno na talaga kami kaya we have to refer them over to other hospitals," Fernandez said.

"Meron din mga cases wherein we request patients in private rooms if pwede isingit yung ibang patients dun sa room nila. Ang iba pumapayag naman pero pag hindi pumayag ay wala na talaga kaming magawa," he added.

Fernandez attributed their growing number of patients to their tie-up with GSIS.

It was learned that DMSFH is giving as much as 50 percent discounts to GSIS regular members and old-age pensioners thru the GSIS Hospitalization Support Program. In the Philippines, there are only five GSIS-accredited hospitals with DMSFH the only one in Mindanao.

Fifty percent discount is given to GSIS members who use GSIS-sponsored medical equipments, while 40 percent on common medical procedures, 35 percent on special and all other procedures, 30 percent on room and board rates, 30 percent on medicines and supplies, and 10 percent on professional fees.

In turn, GSIS loaned out to DMSFH P55 million worth of hospital equipments for their five-year contract that started October 2007.

DOH licensing officer Daba said that in an ideal situation, hospitals are not supposed to take in more than their accredited bed capacity. Ideally, DMC should only allow 400 patients at any one time, Brokenshire Integrated Health Ministries should not exceed 200, Davao Doctors' should only take in 250, Ricardo Limso Medical Center just 85, San Pedro Hospital just 295 tops, and DMSF just 100.

But reality dictates that these hospitals should just do their best, even if that will mean making the patients wait for hours or days at the emergency room, as DMC is forced to.

[B]According to DOH records, there are 16 Level 1 hospitals in the city, including two government primary hospitals namely the Camp Panacan Station Hospital, the Paquibato District Hospital. Level 1 hospitals are those that can only administer primary care. There are five Level 2 hospitals where higher levels of operations can be done at a limited scale and capacity, all privately run.

All other ailments that require higher specialization and operations all go to the Level 4 hospitals.

There is one private and one government owned tertiary care hospital in Zamboanga city, one private and one government tertiary care hospital in Cagayan de Oro City, two private hospitals in Iligan City, one in Polomolok, South Cotabato, two private tertiary care hospitals in General Santos City, one in Tagum City, Davao del Norte, one government-run in Cotabato City, one government-run in Ozamis City, and another government-run in Koronadal City.

There are no Level 4 hospitals outside Davao, so far. Thus, those seeking special treatment from any place in Mindanao are usually brought here, adding more to the hospitals already brimming with patients.

In the meantime, Manong Eddie, will just have to wait it out at the emergency room. At least they have a space there. (Pooled reports of Rhodamae M. Hernandez, Ben O. Tesiorna, Carlo P. Mallo, and Stella A. Estremera)

True. Only Davao has Level 4 hospitals in Mindanao.

:cheers:
:cheers:
:cheers:

^^ Layo lang pud gyud ang Davao oi, kasagara sa Cebu Doctors Hospital man paingon kay mas duol ra.
Daun mas updated pud sila sa facilities og new trends sa medicine.

^^

Bitaw, dapat mabutangan gyud ug level 4 hospital (and much better if it is a government hospital) diha sa normin or near to it para sab dili na mag lisod ang pasyente o hingtundan ba sa gastuhonon.

^^

Bitaw, dapat mabutangan gyud ug level 4 hospital (and much better if it is a government hospital) diha sa normin or near to it para sab dili na mag lisod ang pasyente o hingtundan ba sa gastuhonon.

Correct.

They won't have to go to Cebu where facilities and medical trends are more updated than Davao if they have their own updated facilities and medical trends right in their backyard.

Eh hindi pa naman lahat makaka-afford pumunta ng Cebu. Kawawa naman yung mga hindi masyadong ma pera.

Question: Is level 4 hospital tantamount to a Tertiary classified hospital?

Dili ra ba pud baya kaayo mahal ang Cebu Doctors, bisan gani ang out patient department ma-afford ra pud coz the doctors don't demand higher fees. And then patient friendly lang pud sila coz they really give you both sides of the scenario regarding a person's illness.

And For us nga wala kaayo know how sa Davao, dili kaayo mi ka adto didto kay gruelling kaayo ang almost 6 hours land travel paingon didto.

Here's something gathered from De La Salle University.

The Off Shore Patrol
During the Philippine Commonwealth under President Manuel L Quezon,
the Filipino Navy existed as adjunct to the United States
Armed Forces. Filipinos served the US military service.
With the creation of a separate Philippine armed force, a naval
organization was formed as a seagoing arm of the Philippine
Army. On 09 February 1939, the Off Shore Patrol (OSP) was
organized with headquarters located at Muelle Del Codo, Port
Area, and Manila. It was headed by 1LT JOSE V ANDRADA,
a graduate of the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.
Initially, the OSP was assigned with three US Navy
Motor Torpedo Boats and christened as follows:
1.
Luzon (Q-111)
83-footer
2.
Abra (Q-112) -
65-footer
3.
Agusan (Q-113) - 65-footer


http://www.netc-navy.edu.ph/images/history9.jpg

On 09 January 1941, the OSP Training School was organized with CAPT MARCELO S CASTELO OSP PA as its first Commandant. It offered courses in torpedoes, depth charges, communications, seamanship, engineering and operations of gasoline engines in consonance with the characteristics and capabilities of the Q-Boats. During World War II, however, Japanese planes bombed the OSP Headquarters on 23 December 1941. The Base Commander burned the base before Japanese troops entered Manila.

The Philippine Naval Patrol
The Off Shore Patrol was reactivated on 01 October
1945, just after World War II. The OSP Training School was
transferred to Cavite Naval Shipyard and renamed OSP
Training Center; The OSP was further expanded and became
a major unit of the Philippine Armed Forces. On 04 October
1947, the OSP was renamed Philippine Naval Patrol (PNP)
during the time of President Manuel Roxas. On 05 January
1951, the PNP was further designated as the Philippine Navy.
__________________

http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Cyprus/8446/bsp1949.jpg

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_MFbxwaETdHk/SFR8ct5JU0I/AAAAAAAAALk/XsI9n8VatcY/Pigafetta%27s%20Butuan.JPG

old pic of Butuan Central Elem School

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_MFbxwaETdHk/SFR8S_skZhI/AAAAAAAAAK8/VlKp0LGqbt8/s720/BCES-teacher-force.jpg

old Emmanuel Hospital, Butuan

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_MFbxwaETdHk/SFR8Uwwr4tI/AAAAAAAAALE/F3a0hrz-Als/s640/Emmanuel%20Hospital%20of%20the%20early%2050s.jpg

Butuan Central Elem School 1952

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_MFbxwaETdHk/SFR8XA93zLI/AAAAAAAAALM/RsS4-b9Q0oo/s720/Sixth%20Gr%201952%20Butuan%20Central%20Elementary.JPG

Filipino Nurses Association-Agusan Chapter

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_MFbxwaETdHk/SFR8Qle0kLI/AAAAAAAAAKs/rSbmFuqhJrI/image001.jpg

Agusan contingent to GSP Regional Encampment in Davao City

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XnCJtzgfmUA/SSgsyzp1kHI/AAAAAAAABZ4/f_8B1mHev5I/s640/img124.jpg

netfind;old NDMU

http://www.ndmu.edu.ph/profile/images/old_elem.jpg

http://www.freewebs.com/philippineamericanwar/American%20guard%20mount%20at%20Cagayan%20de%20Misamis%20in%202Lt.%20Robert%20B.%20Mitchell%20album%201898%20to%201902.jpg

Guard mount of the 40th Infantry Regiment, USV, at Cagayan de Misamis (now Cagayan de Oro City). Photo taken in 1900. The stone Church of San Agustin was built in 1845 but was destroyed in 1945 during World War II. It was rebuilt into a cathedral.

http://www.freewebs.com/philippineamericanwar/American%20soldiers%20in%20Cagayan%20de%20Misamis%20turned%20out%20by%20firecall%20circa%201900.jpg

American soldiers in Cagayan de Misamis, 1900

http://www.freewebs.com/philippineamericanwar/US%20troops%20with%202%20Maxim-Nordenfeldt%20guns%20Cagayan%20de%20Misamis%20maybe%2023rd%20Inf%20on%20July%2014%201900.jpg

On July 14, 1900, the Americans at Cagayan de Misamis were reinforced by 170 men of the 23rd Infantry Regiment USV and 2 Maxim-Nordenfeldt guns (ABOVE).

http://www.freewebs.com/philippineamericanwar/American%20guardhouse%20in%20Cagayan%20de%20Misamis%20circa%201900.jpg

Guardhouse of the 40th Infantry Regiment, U.S. Volunteers, in Cagayan de Misamis (now Cagayan de Oro City)

asa mani gi kuha mga pics netPal?......grabe.... murag gikan man sila sa kaban sa ako Lola wui :)

http://www.freewebs.com/philippineamericanwar/Concert%20of%2040th%20Infantry%20USV%20Band%20Americans%20at%20Cagayan%20de%20Misamis%201900%20in%202Lt.%20Robert%20B.jpg

The band of the 40th Infantry Regiment, U.S. Volunteers, at Cagayan de Misamis (now Cagayan de Oro City), circa 1900-1901.

http://www.freewebs.com/philippineamericanwar/Cagayan%20de%20Misamis%20ballgame%201900-1901.jpg

Americans playing baseball, circa 1900-1901

BATTLE OF AGUSAN HILL, MAY 14, 1900. Capt. Walter B. Elliott, CO of Company I, 40th Infantry Regiment USV, with 80 men proceeded to the village of Agusan, about 16 kilometers west of Cagayan de Misamis town proper, to dislodge about 500 guerillas who were entrenched on a hill with 200 rifles and shotguns. The attack was successful; 2 Americans were killed and 3 wounded; the Filipinos suffered 38 killed, including their commander, Capt. Vicente Roa. The Americans also captured 35 Remington rifles.

http://www.freewebs.com/philippineamericanwar/Filipino%20guerilla%20weapons%20captured%20at%20Agusan%20circa%201900-1901.jpg

RUFINO DELOSO'S GUERILLA FORCE, MAY 14, 1900 - 1902. Rufino Deloso led a force of 400 guerillas in Misamis Province (in areas that are now in Misamis Occidental) and engaged the Americans in no less than 20 encounters. On March 7, 1902, he surrendered to Senior Inspector John W. Green of the Philippine Constabulary in Oroquieta, Misamis Province. He gave up with 20 riflemen and 250 bolo men.

http://www.freewebs.com/philippineamericanwar/Dead%20Filipinos%20in%20Misamis%20Province%201900-1901%202Lt.%20Robert%20B.%20Mitchell%20album%201898%20to%201902.jpg

Filipino guerillas killed in battle, Misamis Province, circa 1900-1901

http://www.freewebs.com/philippineamericanwar/Dead%20Filipinos%20on%20cart%20in%20Oroquieta%20Mindanao%20in%202Lt.%20Robert%20B.jpg

Cartload of dead Filipino guerillas in Oroquieta, Misamis Province, circa 1900-1901

http://www.freewebs.com/philippineamericanwar/Company%20E%20at%20evening%20parade%20in%20Oroquieta%20circa%201900-1901.jpg


http://www.freewebs.com/philippineamericanwar/NCOs%20Company%20L%2040th%20Inf%20USV%20Nov%201900%20%20in%20Oroquieta,%20Misamis.jpg

"CAPITAN" EUSTAQUIO DALIGDIG: Daligdig was a settler from Siquijor Island. He organized a rebel force against Spain, with the town of Daisog (now Lopez Jaena, Misamis Occidental) as his base of operations. "Capitan" Daligdig became a household name throughout Misamis Province; the common folk believed he possessed an "anting-anting" (amulet) that enabled him to fly and made his body impervious to bullets.

The guerilla leader in the Oroquieta-Laungan area led numerous assaults against the Oroquieta Garrison of the Americans. On Jan. 6, 1901, he was wounded at Manella, when 40 men of Companies I and E, 40th Infantry Regiment USV, attacked his encampment. Two of his men were killed and 24 captured, but Daligdig managed to escape through the thicket. Later, he availed himself of the general amnesty proclaimed by the US colonial administration on July 4, 1902. He changed his last name to "Sumili" to escape retribution from relatives of civilians he had executed for treason.

http://www.freewebs.com/philippineamericanwar/Dead%20Filipino%20guerilla%20chief%20%20in%20Oroquieta%20Mindanao%20in%202Lt.%20Robert%20B.jpg

Filipino guerilla chief killed in action in Oroquieta, Misamis Province, circa 1900-1901

http://www.freewebs.com/philippineamericanwar/Caring%20for%20wounded%20American%20soldier%20in%20Misamis%20circa%201900-1901%20%20in%202Lt.%20Robert%20B.jpg

Medic attends to wounded American soldier in Misamis Province, circa 1900-1901

http://www.freewebs.com/philippineamericanwar/Misamis%20US%20troops%20fording%20river%20in%202Lt.%20Robert%20B.%20Mitchell%20album%201898%20to%201902.jpg

American troops fording a river in Misamis Province, circa 1900-1901

BATTLE OF MACAHAMBUS GORGE, JUNE 4, 1900. On Macahambus Gorge, located 14 kilometers south of Cagayan de Misamis (present-day Cagayan de Oro City), Mindanao Island, Filipino guerillas led by Col. Apolinar Velez routed an American force. It is the only known major victory of Filipinos over the Americans on Mindanao Island.

Capt. Thomas Millar, CO of Company H, Fortieth Infantry Regiment USV, led 100 men against the guerillas who were either well-entrenched, or in inaccessible positions, in the gorge. Practically surrounded by an enemy they could not reach, the Americans lost in a short time 9 men killed, and 2 officers and 7 men wounded, nearly all belonging to the advance guard. One Filipino guerilla was killed. An attempt to advance against a part of the Filipino position was frustrated by encountering innumerable arrow traps, spear pits and pitfalls to which an officer and several men owe their wounds. To avoid getting annihilated, the Americans quickly withdrew, leaving their dead and most of the rifles of those killed.

In his official report to the US War Department, Maj. Gen. Arthur C. MacArthur, Jr., censured Captain Millar: "The palpable mismanagement in this affair consists in not having reconnoitered the enemy's position, but there appears to be no means of reaching a force intrenched, as was this one, in a carefully selected position, which must be approached in single file through a pathless jungle, nor any reason why it should be attacked at all, because, under the circumstances, it does not threaten our troops nor any natives under their protection, and it is sufficient to keep it under observation."


http://www.freewebs.com/philippineamericanwar/Americans%20attacking%20Macahambus%20Gorge%20probably%20Dec%2018-21%201900.jpg

Americans assault Macahambus Gorge a second time. Photo taken during the period Dec. 19-20, 1900. Captains Thomas Millar and James Mayes jointly led 155 officers and men of the 40th Infantry into the gorge, shelled the guerillas' strongholds, but found them deserted.

http://www.freewebs.com/philippineamericanwar/Macahambus%20stronghold%20with%20some%20American%20soldiers%20probably%20Dec%2018-21%201900.jpg

Americans inside a deserted guerilla stronghold in Macahambus Gorge. Photo taken during the period Dec. 19-20, 1900.

http://www.freewebs.com/philippineamericanwar/Americans%20encamped%20at%20Macahambus%20Hills%20maybe%20Dec%2017%201900%20in%202Lt.%20Robert%20B.%20Mitchell%20album%201898%20to%201902.jpg


source;www.freewebs.com/philippineamericanwar

asa mani gi kuha mga pics netPal?......grabe.... murag gikan man sila sa kaban sa ako Lola wui :)

lagi.:lol:net find bob

young Butuanons in the year 1950s


http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2300/2367591651_80cc05332b.jpg?v=0

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1375/1434389625_96b96fb631_o.jpg

Yes, the Philippines has a lengthy history when it comes to philately and modern engraving in Asia. The commemorative editions are a great introduction to Philippine history and society. Go here to view the ABdA's Philippine Philatelic Web Site: http://www.geocities.com/abda/index.html.


Block commemorating 400 years of the Jesuits in the Philippines, featuring Philippine hero Dr. José P. Rizal (read this great essay); pioneering meteorologist and Director of the Manila Observatory Padre Federico Faura y Prat, S. J.; peacemaker on Mindanao and "Apostle of Agusan" Padre Saturnino Urios, S. J.; and Jesuit founder St. Ignacio (Íñigo/Iñaki) López de Loyola

http://doh.gov.ph/crhweb/ABOUT%20US1_files/Picture2.jpg

http://doh.gov.ph/crhweb/ABOUT%20US1_files/image004.gif

http://doh.gov.ph/crhweb/ABOUT%20US1_files/Picture1.jpg

http://doh.gov.ph/crhweb/ABOUT%20US1.htm

doh.gov.ph/crhweb/ABOUT%20US1_files

Butuan Puericulture Center, Maternity and Hospital, School of Midwifery, Butuan City, one of the firsts and oldest in the Philippines

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/hmd/manuscripts/nursing/1.jpg

nice find @netpal, good job :okay:

nice find @netpal, good job :okay:

thnks tonight:)

MINBIZTALK: Private sector initiatives needed for EAGA trade
Written by Joji Ilagan Bian
Wednesday, 25 February 2009 06:32

LAST week two of my old friends , Ms. Shelley Sondakh, Executive Director of the BIMP-EAGA (Brunei- Indonesia-Malaysia- Brunei , East Asean Growth Area) and Ms. Hannah Mandagi , Director of Manado-Bitung Integrated Development Zone visited Davao and met with me to renew old ties .

Over a cup of coffee with Davao based Indonesian Consul General Lalu Malik Partawana, we reminisced the “good old exciting days “ of the BIMP –EAGA during the time of Pres. Assistant Paul Dominguez where the private sector of the four (4) countries were at its best in promoting and initiating educational, cultural, tourism and business exchanges. Pres. Arroyo will be the speaker of a BIMP EAGA Meeting on February 26, 2008 in Thailand and she is expected to re-affirm the Phil government’s commitment to the EAGA initiatives. It would need much more than government support more so during these hard times to make the businessmen excited again about the prospects of these cooperation.

First, there is a need to bring back to the arena the real business players who can ensure that there is support on the ground . The Philippine Chambers of Commerce –Mindanao together with the thirty (36) Chambers of Commerce in all cities and provinces of the island had lost touched with the BIMP-EAGA since the Mindanao Economic Development Council (MEDCO) had never consulted or invited them to be part of the regional cooperation since 2004. I am glad that because of the intervention of the PCCI leaders through Pres. GMA; the Vice President-PCCI Mindanao, Elena Haw will be part of the official delegation of the President next week. I hope that this will be a start of the active participation of the chambers of commerce of Mindanao to the BIMP EAGA.

-oOo-

Just recently, Davao inaugurated its new P420-million port expansion of the Sasa Wharf. The Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) in Davao City is all set for the entry of more cargo vessels from the South East Asia, Middle East, United States (US) and the BIMP EAGA. In 2007 alone, the port facilitated a total of 3.2 million metric tons of cargo shipments for both domestic and foreign markets. Southern Mindanao Port District manager Abdussador Sawadjaan is very optimistic that this development will result to an additional of P30 Million in revenue. The expanded port now can serve eight (8) cargo vessels at one given time. Sasa Wharf, holds the distinction as the premier export and import hub in Mindanao. It ranks fourth nationwide in terms of container cargo traffic and container volume performance.

-oOo-

Tuna exports may had declined in Gen. Santos but the exports of livestock and frozen meat had not been badly hit. Some P3.3 billion worth of livestock and assorted frozen meat products have been shipped out from General Santos City . In his annual state of the city address, Mayor Pedro Acharon pointed out the city sent out P1.4 billion worth of livestock and P1.9 billion worth of assorted frozen meat products. For live animals, there were 199,659 heads of swine shipped out in 2008 with a value of P1.1 billion; 6,765 heads of cattle for P175.9 million and 4,907 heads of carabaos for P98.1 million. For frozen meat products, pork reached 13 million kilograms (kg) with a value of P1.4 billion; beef generated P385.7 million at a volume of 962,564 kilograms; and poultry (chicken) products was valued at P99.3 million at a volume of 1.1 million kilograms. General Santos City has several swine farms accredited to export cut pork meat products to Singapore. This city was the second largest swine producer last year in the country, next only to Bulacan.

-oOo-

The Mindanao Rural Development Program 2 (MRDP2) of the World Bank is now being implemented in Mindanao and I am glad that they had installed safety nets so as to avoid corruption in this P 8 billion project. The Department of Agriculture and the Local Government Units (LGU’s) who were part of the project formulated an anti-corruption plan which is “embedded” in every phase of the project.

The first phase which had a funding of P 400 million involved 5 provinces and 32 municipalities and the 2nd phase had 27 provinces and 225 municipalities. The LGU’s themselves were responsible for bidding out the projects to local contractors.

The special allocation for MRDP for 2009 is P1.3 Billion; with 50-50 sharing agreement / counter-part funding from the LGU’s. It is projected that there should be a 20% increase in income of the participating households in the first 5 years of implementation.

-oOo-

The Cocoa farmers of Malagos and Calinan in Davao City were jumping with joy when Askinosie Chocolate in the United States used the Davao 77% dark chocolate for its newest premium chocolate line. The chocolate from Davao was described as “ dark and deep with a touch of toastiness; its dry like a full bloodied, well-aged red wine.” One single Davao dark chocolate bar was sold at $ 7.50 while a pack of 5 at $ 35.00. For the first time in 25 years, the cocoa beans found its way to the USA and this will create new markets for the farmers. But the farmers’ happiness with this new found market was short lived.

According to the organizers of the Mindanao Farmers Community Development, it is the middlemen or the traders that is reaping all the benefits. Cocoa beans that were bought from the farmers at a measly sum of P 25.00-P91.00 per kilo are being passed on by the traders at P 141.00.
It would be good for the farmers and the traders , together with LGU and the agriculture department to sit down and develop a sustainable marketing plan ensuring that the farmers will also get an equitable share from this transactions.

These problem is nothing new – corn and crop farmers always complain about the presence of middlemen and traders who “exploit” them since most of the time, farmers do not have the capital to plant, process , store or even transport their produce to the market. And the middlemen/traders will always be around to fill in that gap – and of course the there will always be a price to pay for that intervention.

-oOo-

Congratulations to my lawyer Mary Ann Arnado , a Mindanawon peace advocate who is this year’s Ninoy Aquino Fellow for Public Service. Mary Ann is secretary-general of the Mindanao Peoples’ Caucus (MPC) and was awarded the fellowship last February 5 at the Peninsula Manila Hotel. She said that she owed this distinction to the selfless, tireless and passionate grassroots leaders who have always inspired her to take bolder steps and be more creative in finding ways to resolve the armed conflict in Mindanao.

Together with the hundreds of Bantay Ceasefire volunteers who are in the war zones risking their lives to protect women and children who are caught in the armed conflict , Mary Ann, is indeed one of the many “peace heroes” of Mindanao.

(Joji Ilagan Bian is a strong and respected advocate for the development of the region. She is Chair of Joji Ilagan Foundation ( www.jojiilagancareercenter.com) ; President , Phil. Call Centers Alliance and Mindanao Tech Voc Schools Association; Mindanao Rep, Export Development Council. Email comments jojibian2@yahoo.comThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it )

PIA Press Release
2009/02/26
Mindanao gets 30% of agri budget
Local leaders vow to be strong partners of implementation

Davao City (26 February) -- The Department of Agriculture (DA) earmarks 30 percent of its 2009 budget for Mindanao to boost its agricultural productivity, Usec. Jesus Emmanuel Paras said.

Paras, DA Undersecretary for Operations, said that around P16 billion is in the pipeline for rehabilitation and construction of agricultural infrastructures and livelihoods to stir food production and job creation in here in the South.

Paras, speaking before a number of Mindanao's Local Chief Executives here, said that agriculture is in the best position to cushion the impact of the global financial crunch.

"By the rule of thumb, 10 jobs are created per a million spent in farm-to-market roads, at least 15 jobs for irrigation, plus the jobs and income for livelihood projects of people's organization," Paras said.

This year, the DA is poised to strengthen agricultural infrastructures covering construction, rehabilitation and maintenance of irrigations, opening new and improvement of farm-to-market roads, post harvest facilities and rural extension works as "hard investments" to attain food security in lieu of the "soft projects" like fertilizer support as it did last year.

Part of this stimulus package is the P1.7 billion worth of rural infrastructure and livelihood projects of the Mindanao Rural Development Program (MRDP) now ready to hit the ground by the first semester.

MRDP is poverty alleviation project of DA jointly funded by the national government, the local government units and the World Bank amounting to a total of US$ 123.75 million to be implemented in five years.

To date, the program has seven on-going infrastructure projects worth 52.8 million, 64 livelihood projects close to P16 million have been completed. While another 25 infrastructure projects worth more than P160 million for 19 LGUs, and another 300 livelihood projects amounting to P67.5 million to 27 towns are on various levels of implementation.

These projects are seen to benefit farmers in food-producing areas and hunger-prone provinces across the region island.

The target areas of the program is 225 out of the 419 towns in Mindanao mostly in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, the Zamboanga Peninsula, Central Mindanao and the Caraga Region, which belongs to the country's poorest provinces.

Paras said MRDP is "the altruistic package of investments envisioned to pump-prime Mindanao rural economy."

Meanwhile, Program Director Roger C. Chio in statement encourages LGUs to support this initiative to stir the productivity of local economy.

Chio who is also the executive director of DA XI, programs of the DA in all aligned to creation of as many jobs possible to counter negative effects of the impending increase of job losses seen to bloat this year.

"We are certain that agricultural investments can stifle ill-effects of the global economic turndown which will eventually affect the local economy and hurt local farmers," he said.

Overwhelming local support

To complement this effort, a number of LCEs of Mindanao has affirmatively responded to the call to partner with DA as they gathered during the WB evaluation of the program held recently here.

LGUs will be the frontliners of implementation of MRPD as part of devolution of delivery of services mandated under RA 1760 known as the Local Government Code of 1991.

Among the strongest the partner of the Program is the RDR WHEELS of Davao del Norte Governor Rodolfo del Rosario which front-loads rehabilitation and construction of farm-to-market roads and creation of agri-fishery business opportunities.

Tagum City has also proposed under MRDP a strategic construction of farm-to-market roads amounting to almost P58 million. The said road network will connect its far-flung barangays to the main thoroughfare of the city.

For his part, Governor Douglas Ra. Cagas said "This will be a friendly competition among Local government units as to who can maximize the benefits of the program."

In Davao del Sur, roads and livelihoods has been established through the Program. The provincial government was also reported to have apportioned an amount to facilitate barangay development plans (BDP), a necessary document for project proposal and approval.

Meanwhile, Mayor Ramon Abalos of Lambayong, Province of Sultan said his administration will continue its partnership with DA as their town has already benefited from the first phase of MRDP. Abalos, who is also the President of the League of Municipalities - Mindanao Chapter, encourages other LCEs to invest into the program to complement local coffers for tangible projects.

The Provinces of Sultan Kudarat and North Cotababto were among the five provinces which benefited the first phase of the Program.

Further, the local leaders in the provinces of Zamboanga Peninsula in Region 9 were lauded for being the leaders of project implementation on the ground as the World Bank cited on its recent report. With the consistent support of mayors and governors, Carga Region comes next. While, the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) is expected to roll out investments on the first quarter this year. (MRDP-

Displaced OFWs from Mindanao to get P2.7 million for livelihood projects (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&r=ncr&y=&mo=&fi=p090226.htm&no=08)

Davao City) -- President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will distribute here Thursday 31 checks worth P2.7 million as livelihood assistance to overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) from Mindanao who lost their jobs in the aftermath of the global economic crisis.

Of the 31 checks to be distributed by the President at the SM City here, one check worth Pl.2 million will go to displaced OFWs from Lanao del Norte under the Tulong Panghanap Buhay sa Ating Disadvantaged Workers (TUPAD) project.

The 30 other checks worth P50,000 each will be divided among 30 retrenched OFWs -- 10 from the Davao Region, 10 from Northern Mindanao Region and 10 from the Caraga Region.

Aside from the livelihood assistance, the Chief Executive will also turn over Pangulong Gloria Scholarship vouchers to displaced OFWs for retraining and skills upgrading to prepare them for jobs overseas.

"We are putting up this skills and job event in Mindanao to assist Mindanaoans who have lost their jobs in the aftermath of the worldwide economic crunch," TESDA Director General Boboy Syjuco said.

Some 2,150 returning OFWs, jobseekers and technical vocational education and training (TVET) graduates from the three regions in Mindanao are expected to attend the whole-day event and take advantage of the government's employment training and livelihood program.

"The job of TESDA and its partner-companies may involve re-tooling our displaced workers and re-matching them to available jobs or retraining them for livelihood skills," Syjuco said.

He said that among the most in-demand workers today are welders, aircraft mechanics, animation artists, software developers and other business process outsourcing (BPO) workers.

Forty regional and Manila-based recruitment and manpower placement agencies are joining the event, dubbed as Jobs Bridging, Skill Retraining.
Nine TVET institution and enterprise partners will also participate in the skills retraining program which offers such short courses as welding, heavy equipment and machine operations, construction works and slaughtering.

The event is being organized by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) and the National Reintegration Center for OFWs (NRCO).

repost;old Butuan plaza

http://pbg2user01.doteasy.com/4/3/2/23/images/folder_33176/img2423047cb57fae035b.JPG

^^
what year? i think 60's to 80's yan :D

^^
what year? i think 60's to 80's yan :D

between late 70's and very early 80's perhaps

Home » Davao » Lifestyle
Paradise for tourists
02/24/2009 - 10:32Thursday, February 26, 2009
Sunstar Davao
By Henrylito D. Tacio


"LAND of the sun caressed, Pearl of the Orient seas, our Eden lost!" That's what Dr. Jose P. Rizal wrote in My Last Farewell ("Mi Ultimo Adios") about his beloved country, the Philippines.

The country has a total land area of 300,000 square kilometers and these are distributed in 7,107 islands (of which only 2,500 have names and 450 are inhabited). "The islands abound with white-sand beaches, exotic tropical vegetation and beautiful lakes and rivers," wrote the All-Asia Travel Guide.

What makes the Philippines truly distinct among other countries is the fact that it has unique places and things that can be found only in the country. Much less, it is paradise for tourists.

As the travel guide, published by the Far Eastern Economic Review, puts it: "Places in the Philippines worth visiting are so numerous that the tourist can only hope to see a few of them."

For a start, here are some of those you should not miss to visit:

If you visit the Philippines during summer, Baguio should be on top of your list. A highly urbanized city in northern Luzon, it was established by Americans in 1900. Its name comes from the Ibaloi word bagiw, which means "moss." Being at an altitude of approximately 1,500 meters, the place is conducive to the growth of mossy plants and orchids. And due to its cool mountain weather, Baguio is considered the summer capital of the Philippines. Because of its many pine trees it is also called the "City of Pines."

About 100 kilometers north of Baguio in Banaue are the breathtaking rice terraces, touted to be "the Eighth Wonder of the World." The rice terraces, described as "the stairway to heaven," are a living monument to the ingenuity of tribal Filipino farmers who have tilled the steep slopes for over 2,000 years.

Terraced agricultural fields are common in Asia but the Banaue rice terraces are the most extensive. If stretched end to end in a line, the terraces measure 48,280.4 kilometers -- about 10 times longer than the Great Wall of China or about half the earth's circumference.

Some 90 kilometers south of Manila is Taal, the homeplace of Taal Volcano, a 406-meter-high crater and said to be the world's smallest volcano. It is described as "a crater within an island within a lake" because it stands as an island at Taal Lake. The lake was formed after the volcano, which used to be much larger, collapsed. The ridges around Tagaytay City, which overlooks the lake, are believed to be part of the crater of the old volcano.

Five hundred fifty-three kilometers from Manila is the famous Mayon Volcano, the main landmark of Albay Province. It is the country's most active volcano and considered to be the world's most perfectly formed volcano for its symmetrical cone. Towering at a height of 2,462 meters above sea level, it overlooks Legaspi City. Its eruption in 1911 killed 1,300 people and buried the town of Cagsawa.

The island of Palawan, considered the country's last frontier, is a haven for environmentalists. For one, there's the world famous St. Paul Subterranean National Park, a massive white rock mountain which is 1,028 meters above sea level and stretches towards Cleopatra's Needle. Its main feature is the underground river, with its 8.2 kilometers of labyrinthine caves carved by rainwater and the waves of South China Sea.

In Visayas, the most visited place is Cebu, the oldest city in the country which has many points of historical interest, including Mactan Island where Portuguese Ferdinand Magellan met his death.

Across the strait from Cebu is the island of Bohol, celebrated for the unusual Chocolate Hills, consisting of thousands of cone-shaped mounds scattered over 50 square-kilometers. Each hill rises 30 to 120 meters above the surrounding plateau. The hills look like chocolate drops when the grass turns brown. "The hills are best observed at dawn or dusk," said a native in the area.

Don't miss these points of interest while in Bohol: Baclayon, the oldest stone church in the country; the market site of the Sikatuna-Legaspi blood compact in barrio Bohol, about three kilometers from Tagbilaran; and the Hinagdanan Cave.

But the most famous tourist attraction in the Visayas is Boracay Island. Its long white sand beaches rival the best beaches of more popular destinations such as the Caribbean and the South Pacific. The fun doesn't end when the sun sets. Its nightlife pulsates with many bars and restaurants serving food, drink and fun until the next morning.

Mindanao has its fair share of places to visit. The teardrop shaped Siargao Island faces the Pacific Ocean and the Philippine Deep, the second deepest water in the world. However, this hidden tropical jewel in Surigao hosts one of the most beautiful beaches in the world. In fact, it is the surfing capital of the Philippines because its surfing waves are comparable to that of Hawaii’s. American surf photographer John Callahan discovered the remarkable waves of Cloud Nine in 1993.

Davao, the most developed city in Mindanao, is known for Mount Apo (the country's highest peak at 2,954 meters above sea level), durian (the fruit which smells like hell and tastes like heaven), and waling-waling (the queen of Philippine orchids). It is also home to the endangered Philippine eagle, the country's national symbol. Tourists can also eat to their heart's content the sweetest fruit in the world -- the mango.

And these places are just for starting points?

First, there is a need to bring back to the arena the real business players who can ensure that there is support on the ground . The Philippine Chambers of Commerce –Mindanao together with the thirty (36) Chambers of Commerce in all cities and provinces of the island had lost touched with the BIMP-EAGA since the Mindanao Economic Development Council (MEDCO) had never consulted or invited them to be part of the regional cooperation since 2004. I am glad that because of the intervention of the PCCI leaders through Pres. GMA; the Vice President-PCCI Mindanao, Elena Haw will be part of the official delegation of the President next week. I hope that this will be a start of the active participation of the chambers of commerce of Mindanao to the BIMP EAGA.

IMO prior to the meeting with various Mindanao chambers there should be clear delineation of each region's role based on the innate strength of each to ensure smoother guide to all Mindanaoans, like:

Zamboanga area : more Trade support and linkages along Sabah area due to geographical advantage

NorthMin : heavy industries due to proximity to energy utilities especially cheap hydropower, and Mindanao's domestic gateway to other regions of the country

Eastern Mindanao: agri-industrial, regulated forest products, mining

ARMM: to serve as effective mediator between other BIMP EAGA having closer cultural ties with other muslim member countries, and ensure its sustainable development in tapping its vast resources and potentials.

SOCKSARGEN: tuna and agri-industrial industries

Davao Provinces: agri-industrial, mining, heavy industries, tourism to complement its proximity with Davao City.

Davao City: Mindanao's International Servicing Center that will host main offices for the vast resource potentials of the whole Mindanao region, the island's International gateway to links between Mindanao and BIMP-EAGA to the rest of the world and will showcase its economic potentials and diverse culture reviving its once ancient trading and cultural links; and with formidable eco-tourism attractions such as world's rarest eagle, world's largest bat colony, world heritage sites Mt. Apo and nearby Mt. Hamiguitan, proximity to 400kms white sand beaches in Davao oriental with other attractions from highlands to islands to complement both business and pleasure, Davao City will be Mindanao's clean and green metropolitan representative to the rest of the international cities of the world.

IMO, after the smoke clears from the global financial crisis, Asia will emerge as the next economic powerhouse and Mindanao should be prepared and ready when the time comes.

^^

Shall we say Davao Provinces instead of Davao Regions as there is only one Davao Region with the four provinces and the city of Davao within its agglomeration. :)

^^ ah, ok :D

great images netpal.

http://static.lulu.com/author/display_thumbnail.php?fCID=5203715&fSize=zoom_&fSide=front&1235875266

IMO prior to the meeting with various Mindanao chambers there should be clear delineation of each region's role based on the innate strength of each to ensure smoother guide to all Mindanaoans, like:

Zamboanga area : more Trade support and linkages along Sabah area due to geographical advantage

NorthMin : heavy industries due to proximity to energy utilities especially cheap hydropower, and Mindanao's domestic gateway to other regions of the country

Eastern Mindanao: agri-industrial, regulated forest products, mining

ARMM: to serve as effective mediator between other BIMP EAGA having closer cultural ties with other muslim member countries, and ensure its sustainable development in tapping its vast resources and potentials.

SOCKSARGEN: tuna and agri-industrial industries

Davao Provinces: agri-industrial, mining, heavy industries, tourism to complement its proximity with Davao City.

Davao City: Mindanao's International Servicing Center that will host main offices for the vast resource potentials of the whole Mindanao region, the island's International gateway to links between Mindanao and BIMP-EAGA to the rest of the world and will showcase its economic potentials and diverse culture reviving its once ancient trading and cultural links; and with formidable eco-tourism attractions such as world's rarest eagle, world's largest bat colony, world heritage sites Mt. Apo and nearby Mt. Hamiguitan, proximity to 400kms white sand beaches in Davao oriental with other attractions from highlands to islands, Mindanao's clean and green metropolitan representative to the rest of the international cities of the world.

IMO, after the smoke clears from the global financial crisis, Asia will emerge as the next economic powerhouse and Mindanao should be prepared and ready when the time comes.


add to CARAGA: Eco and Adventure Tourism...the whole pacific seaboard is potential for tourism....it can also host heavy industries...its major hydro resources (Agusan River and Lake Mainit) can be a source of energy...complementing natural gas from Agusan Valley and renewable energy sources from wind power and wave energy along the Surigao provinces

^^ That's good, we can add up our regions strength and potentials here as locals would know more about their places. This would serve as guide to fellow Mindanaoans, countrymen and also foreigners in knowing added infos about the various regions of the island.

BIMP-Eaga leaders to meet in Thailand


PRESIDENT Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and key Philippine-Eaga officials are heading for Hua Hin, Thailand this weekend to attend a top-level discussion on strengthening sub-regional cooperation at the 5th BIMP-Eaga Leaders Summit slated February 28.

Joining President Arroyo's entourage for the summit are Senator Miriam Santiago, Trade Secretary Peter Favila, the Philippine Signing Minister for Eaga; and DTI Undersecretary Merly Cruz, the Philippine Senior Official for BIMP-Eaga.

Also part of the Philippine-Eaga delegation is key private sector representatives, such as Antonio Santos, Philippine Country Director for BIMP-Eaga Business Council; and Elena Haw, PCCI director and area vice president for Mindanao.

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, this year's standing chair, will lead the discussion on recent developments in BIMP-Eaga, particularly on the progress of the implementation of flagship programs and projects under the BIMP-Eaga Development Roadmap for 2006-2010.

The leaders will also discuss updates on the directives of the 4th BIMP-Eaga Leaders Summit held in November 2007 in Singapore.

Key decisions and directives on various EAGA initiatives, such as enhancing cross-border trade and investment facilitation at the BIMP-Eaga priority ports through strengthened Customs-Immigration-Quarantine-Security (CIQS) coordination; expanding transport connectivity through increased air and sea linkages; enhancing LGU cooperation as well as halal and tourism industry development, among other matters, are expected to highlight the meeting.

Key officials from the Asean secretariat and Asian Development Bank are also expected to join the open discussion.

The BIMP-Eaga Leaders Summit is a meeting of heads of the four member countries that aims to address current issues and future direction in accelerating socio-economic growth within the sub-region.

Efforts to strengthen the BIMP-Eaga sub-regional initiative are strongly recognized by President Arroyo as one of the key development strategies to increase trade, investment and tourism in Southern Philippines.

Created in 1994, BIMP-Eaga is a mechanism primarily intended to spur development in the lagging sub-economies of the member countries by boosting intra-Eaga trade, tourism and investments.

The sub-regional cooperation is comprised of the entire country of Brunei Darussalam; 10 provinces in the Indonesian islands of Kalimantan, Sulawesi, Maluku and Irian Jaya; Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan in Malaysia; and Mindanao and Palawan in the Philippines. (PR)

RP faces corn shortage (http://www.mb.com.ph/node/197429)

CARMEN, Cotabato — Amid the strained supply of corn nationwide, Cotabato Rep. Emmylou Taliño-Mendoza is pushing for the creation of a new Corn Research Institute (CRI) under the Department of Agriculture (DA) to ensure that the country’s future requirements of the grain are adequately met.

"We should dedicate a whole new institute to draw up a comprehensive corn research program, build up production, improve the economic condition of farmers, and expand livelihood opportunities in the countryside," said Mendoza, whose home province is one of the country’s leading producers of corn.

"Growing demand for corn as food, feed and for industrial use is inevitable. With land becoming a limiting factor, we must now quickly raise farm productivity levels. Otherwise, we definitely risk more severe corn shortages in the years ahead," Mendoza warned.

"We already have several public and private research institutes for rice. We need at least one comparable, high-technology research institute for corn," she said.

She said local corn prices soared from R13.50 to as high as R25 per kilo earlier this year on account of tight supply.

She said the scarcity prompted the DA to allow up to 200,000 metric tons of corn imports for delivery this month, and for use by poultry and hog growers and feed millers.

Next to rice, Mendoza said that corn is the country’s second most important crop. It is the staple food of about 20 percent of the population, and the main component of livestock and poultry feed.

Over 2.5 million hectares of the country’s arable land are planted to corn, which support more than 600,000 farm households nationwide. More than 40 percent of the country’s annual corn output comes from Mindanao.

Due to the rising cost of inputs and the lifting of the tariff on feed wheat imports that compete with domestic corn, local farmers grouped under the Philippine Maize Federation Inc. expect this year’s production of the grain to be significantly lower than the DA’s target of 7.8 million metric tons.

Mendoza attributed the inadequate corn output on farm inefficiency. She pointed out that while experimental stations are able to yield up to eight tons per hectare, farmers in the field are able to produce only three to 4.5 tons.

Last year, the country produced 6.95 million metric tons of corn. This was 1.01 million metric tons short of the DA’s original 7.96 million metric tons target, and only slightly higher than the output in 2007.

Mendoza warned that corn farms are being degraded by rapid soil erosion. "Left unchecked, this will further contribute to declining productivity levels," she said.

She also said fierce global competition has increased pressure on farmers to promptly raise productivity, reduce cost per unit, and improve yield quality.

Under Mendoza’s proposal, the CRI would serve as hub of all corn research and development initiatives by the public and private sectors.

Ulama tag kidnapping as un-Islamic (http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/197394/ulama-tag-kidnapping-un-islamic)
By Edd K. Usman

Muslim scholars or ulama yesterday reiterated their condemnation of kidnapping incidents, saying it is un-Islamic and violative of the peaceful nature of Islam.

The Basilan Ulama Supreme Council (BUSC) through Darul Iftah, its highest policy making organ, issued its strong condemnation of the series of kidnappings committed by Moro armed groups in the island province of Sulu and other areas in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), stressing that kidnapping is an aggression against others.

The Basilan Islamic religious leaders have been reiterating their unequivocal stand against kidnapping amidst the series of seemingly unceasing abductions in the province and other areas of the impoverished autonomous region in Mindanao.

This message has been aired repeatedly in lectures, fora, and mosques, particularly during the Juma’ah or Friday noontime prayers, said Alim Abdulmuhmin A. Mujahid, a BUSC official.

"Alim" means "learned" or scholar and its plural is "ulama."

ARMM is composed of the provinces of Basilan, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi and the cities of Lamitan and Marawi.

Basilan is the birth place of the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG), which in its beginning under founding head Ustadhz Abdurajak Abubakar Janjalani in the 90s had waged a so-called struggle for a "pure Islamic state" but its remaining leaders now are engaged in kidnapping and extortion activities.

Allah, Arabic for God, said the BUSC’s Darul Iftah, prohibits and dislikes "transgressions" like kidnapping.

"Surely, Allah enjoins the doing of justice and the doing of good to others and giving to kindred, and He forbids indecency and evil and rebellion," said BUSC secretary Ustadhz Yusop Alano.

He said that doing good and justice is not only for fellow Muslims but also for people of other faiths.

The BUSC also addressed the spread of extortion letters, which threatened Christians if they do not convert to Islam.

Compelling others to become Muslim, said the ulama group, runs counter to Islam.

Every Muslim is a source of Islamic propagation, but the Prophet Muhammad Sallallahu Allaihi Wassalam in his lifetime never forced anyone to embrace Islam, it added.

Dr. Aboulkhair Tarason, who chairs BUSC, said the prophet was only faithful to the Qur’anic injunction that says: "Let there be no compulsion in religion."

Mindanao schools get IT packages (http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/infotech/view/20090302-191946/Mindanao-schools-get-IT-packages)
By Alexander Villafania

MANILA, Philippines—Sixty Mindanao public elementary schools became the first recipients of a three-year project aimed at improving the teaching and learning environment in Mindanao.

The project, called the Mindanao Opportunities for Vitalized Education and Upgrading of Science (MOVE UPS), is being implemented by the Department of Science and Technology-Science Education Institute (DOST-SEI).

Twenty-one public elementary schools are from Lanao del Sur, and 10 from Lanao del Norte, Shariff Kabunsuan, Maguindanao, and Marawi City.

These schools will get a laptop computer, multimedia projector, software packages and other learning equipment.

DOST-SEI Director Ester Ogena said the beneficiaries will be mostly Muslim schools, which will have different learning cultures. “We would want them to have better understanding and appreciation of science education.”

Ten public elementary schools each from Lanao del Norte, Shariff Kabunsuan and Maguindanao and nine from Marawi City will get the same package.

The teachers and principal package will be mostly principal management training, development of aptitude tests, development of parents and principal’s handbook, manuals of the project, library support and other reference materials.

Annual science camps for the participating teachers will also be conducted. They will undergo competency training on science, mathematics and English.

There will be science exhibits, quiz shows, math trails, poster-making contests and presentation of researches and mathematical investigations for students.

Ogena said they will also be developing aptitude tests for students who want to become candidates for entry in the Philippine Science High School Central Mindanao Campus.

Sarangani Islands or Group of Islands are consists of Sarangani and Balut islands which is in Davao del Sur and i know those islands are inhabited with ancient tribes from Indonesia my guess is from Majapahit Monarchy. Are we being kept in the dark by not recognizing this historic event?

November 1, 1542 - Ruy Lopez de Villalobos commanding six (6) ships from Navida, Mexico on orders from Don Antonio de Mendoza, viceroy of Nueva España (present day Mexico), who reached Sarangani islands in 1543 and named his "discovery" Las Islas Filipinas to honor the son of King Charles of Spain, Philip II.

http://www.royalsulu.com/history.html

Mild quake jolts southern Philippines (http://http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=445171&publicationSubCategoryId=200)
Updated March 03, 2009 12:34 PM


MANILA, Philippines (Xinhua) -- An offshore earthquake measuring 4. 8 on the Richter scale hit the southern Philippines this morning, but no casualty or damage was reported.

The quake was recorded at 05:15 a.m. local time ( 2115 GMT on Monday), and the epicenter was 160 km southeast of Davao, Mindanao, or 1,125 km southeast of Manila at a depth of 35. 0 km, said the United States Geological Service.

The Philippines is hit regularly by earthquakes, and most of them are low in magnitude and cause little damage.

The Southeast Asian country is part of the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, a string of islands on the Pacific Ocean rim that were formed by the eruptions of undersea volcanoes.

The worst earthquake in the country happened on Aug. 16, 1976 after a tsunami caused by a quake killed between 5,000 and 8,000 people in the Moro Gulf region in the southern Philippines.

madalas na ang lindol malapit sa mindanao

its the end of the world na..hehe

Will Mindanao produce three new senators this 2010? (http://www.mindanaoan.com/2009/02/07/will-mindanao-produce-three-new-senators-this-2010/)
February 7, 2009


The 2010 presidential elections are just around the corner and I’m interested to know - after former Bukidnon Third District Congressman Juan Miguel “Migs” Zubiri, will Mindanao again produce new senators? Will there be two (or more) Mindanaoan senators soon?

This early, I’ve heard a lot of buzz about three Mindanaoans who will allegedly gun for a senatorial seat this 2010 Philippine elections. These are former Bukidnon First District Congressman JR Nereus “Neric” Acosta, United Opposition spokesperson Adel Abass Tamano and current Bukidnon Second District Congressman Teofisto “TG” Guingona III.

On Neric Acosta - He served as a congressman for Bukidnon’s first district for three consecutive terms. The principal author of the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, the Solid Waste Management Act, and the Biodiversity Protection Act, Neric is a young and dynamic academician. Currently the Secretary General of the Liberal Party, Neric is considered as one of the “possible senatorial bets” who might run under Mar Roxas‘ ticket. He ran for governor in Bukidnon opposite Migs Zubiri’s father, incumbent Gov. Jose Zubiri, Jr., in 2007 but lost.

On Adel Tamano - Currently the President of the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila, Adel is the first Filipino Muslim to graduate from Harvard Law School.

On TG Guingona - TG, son of the former Vice President Teofisto Guingona, Jr., is a member of the Nacionalista Party (otherwise known as Manuel Villar’s party). He’s currently serving his second term as congressman of Bukidnon’s second district.

What do you think? Does any of these three Mindanao politicians (or perhaps all three of them for that matter) have a chance of landing a seat in the Philippine Senate?

of the three, I think only Adel Tamano has a chance....:cheers:

Pinoy Big Brother Season 3 audition schedules and venues (http://www.mindanaoan.com/2009/02/23/pinoy-big-brother-season-3-audition-schedules-and-venues/)

For all of you Mindanaoans who want to try their luck in the Pinoy Big Brother (PBB) house, then check out the schedule of auditions for BOTH the Pinoy Big Brother Season 3 housemates and Pinoy Big Brother Teen Edition. Mark your calendars!

April 24 - Butuan City, Mindanao - Father Saturnino Urios University Gym
April 26 - General Santos City - Barangay Lagao Gym, General Santos City

Now for those in Luzon and Visayas, here are the schedules and venues for the auditions in your areas:

February 27 - Manila - PDA concert hall (Mother Ignacia Street, Quezon city)
March 1 - Batangas - Lipa City Colleges (beside St. Sebastian Cathedral)
March 6 - Laoag (Ilocos) - Centennial Arena
March 8 - Pampanga - Holy Angel University, Angeles City
March 20 - Tarlac City - Tarlac State University
April 17 - Bohol - Island City Mall, Tagbilaran, Bohol
April 19 - Roxas City - Capiz Gym
May 8 - Camarines Sur - Camarines Sur Capitol Convention Center, Pili

Auditions per area will be held from 9 AM up to 3 PM.

Good luck, Mindanaoan!

i like Tamano to win... Kudos to you!

BIMP-Eaga natural resource cluster gab set in Kota Kinabalu
Tuesday, March 3, 2009


KOTA KINABALU, Sabah -- The Philippine cluster on natural resource development in the Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-the Philippines-East Asean Growth Area (BIMP-Eaga) hopes to consolidate specific recommendations on roadmap priority projects spearheaded by the country at the 7th BIMP-Eaga Natural Resources Development Cluster (NRD) meeting set here.

The meeting started Tuesday and will be concluded Wenesday.

Oscar Parawan, P-Eaga natural resources development cluster head and Enriqueto Natividad, P-Eaga deputy cluster head, leads this year's Philippine-Eaga delegation to the meeting.

Chaired this year by Indonesia, the NRD Cluster is among the four development clusters in the BIMP-Eaga that specifically address sub-regional concerns in the area of agro-industry, fisheries cooperation, forestry and environment and energy development.

The Philippines is the lead country and standing chair of the working groups on agro-industry and fisheries cooperation under the NRD cluster.

As the lead country, the Philippines spearheads specific projects, such as the Harmonization of Organic Product and Virgin Coconut Oil (VCO) Product Standards and Certification, Rubber industry technical cooperation and Eaga agro-marine industrial cooperation (EICO) scheme, among others.

The Philippines has already finished its proposal on harmonizing organic product and VCO product standards and certification and will seek concurrence from Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia on specific recommendations at the meeting.

The country is also expected to report on the status of the establishment of an integrated coconut processing facilities in the sub-region. Coconut remained as Mindanao's top export commodity as it comprised 26.98-percent of the island-regions total export last year.

According to the BIMP-Eaga Business Council (BEBC), the sub-region is already a leading producer of key agriculture products like coconut, palm oil, livestock and poultry, and high value tropical fruits and vegetables.

The country is also set to endorse a proposal on Genetic Improvement, Propagation and Distribution of Goat Breeder Stocks for the BIMP-Eaga.

This project primarily aims to alleviate the gaps of goat farming within the BIMP-Eaga region such as low quality of breeding stocks and insufficient access to improved goat breeders and technologies.

As a directive from the BIMP-Eaga senior officials, relevant agencies under the NRD cluster are also urged to support the Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fisheries and Food Security.

The NRD cluster meeting this year is seen crucial as it will generate further directions on the EAGA Agro-Marine Industrial Cooperation (Eico) Scheme, Sulu-Sulawesi Marine Eco-region, Sulu-Sulawesi Sea Sustainable Fisheries Management Project as well as in exploring the possibility of establishing a seaweed certifying body and association in BIMP-Eaga. (Medco)

http://www.sunstar.com.ph/davao/bimp-eaga-natural-resource-cluster-gab-set-kota-kinabalu

PHILIPPINES: Dwindling tuna catch in Mindanao hits local livelihoods (http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/IRIN/476560024f451d908bb6ef3a6c3faff3.htm)
Source: IRIN

GENERAL SANTOS - Captain Eric Inong is very worried - after nearly a month at sea, his men have returned with only enough catch to break even. He is not even sure if they will earn enough to cover the cost of fuel.

In General Santos city on Mindanao Island, southern Philippines, tuna fishing has evolved as a significant industry supporting half a million people, the local government says.

Local fishermen told IRIN the tuna have migrated beyond the reach of Inong's boat - one of thousands of wooden-hulled vessels known as 'pamariles'.

"We've travelled as far as 300km from our shores, and the great fish is still difficult to find," Inong told IRIN. "We caught fewer than 40 tuna, and we have to share the profits after deducting our expenses."

His 15-man crew looks exhausted as they take turns hauling the fish from the cargo hold. Fish brokers will later dispatch them to traders and buyers who will then clean and ship them to markets around the world.

"I do not know what global warming is, but what I know is that it suddenly rains and the weather changes quickly. When that happens, the tuna swim deep and migrate to other parts, making it difficult for us to chase after them," said Inong, a 36-year-old father of three and third-generation tuna fisherman. His boat, the Lenneth-Jane, is the family lifeline. Anxious to earn more income, he says: "Maybe we will only stay on land for two days before we ship out again while the weather is still on our side."

Just moments later unseasonably heavy rains delayed their plans to put to sea.

Falling exports

Tucked in the mouth of the Sarangani Bay on the southern edge of Mindanao, General Santos used to be a backward fishing port before foreign buyers discovered the high quality and quantity of the tuna catch in the 1970s. A 20-year boom followed, with major canneries and export markets to Europe and the US established.

The tuna industry contributes about 60 percent to the economy of General Santos city, generating employment for nearly 100,000 people. Average daily storage capacity of tuna has topped 750T, and the government, with official development assistance from Japan, in 1999 built a 32ha fish port that is now the Philippines' second largest.

While ships laden with tuna continue to arrive at the port, the catch has been dwindling and the city is beginning to feel the pinch. Tuna canning factories say a drop in orders from the US last year due to the financial crisis had added to the concerns. Industry groups have started looking at other markets.

"I would like to believe this is seasonal, and they will come back to our rich fishing grounds," city mayor Pedro Acharon said. "These are very mobile fish. They are also affected by the weather; if it becomes too hot on the surface they dive to depths that are difficult to reach, and if it is cool they normally surface, but that also means it is difficult to catch them because of storms and heavy rain."

A major factor in the decline in the catch may be depleted stocks.

According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization's annual report for 2008, the State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture report [see: http://www.fao.org/docrep/011/i0250e/i0250e00.htm] released on 2 March, "Analysis of survey information for some countries in the region [Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam] have shown considerable degradation and overfishing of coastal [tuna] stocks, most dramatically in the Gulf of Thailand and along the east coast of Malaysia."

Acharon said many tuna fishermen have had to chase the fish to boundaries near Indonesia and some had been detained there for illegal fishing. He said the Philippines' tuna production used to rank fourth in the world, averaging 500,000T, or 8 percent of the total annual catch in 2006. As of last year, the Philippines ranked seventh, a marked slowdown.

Bayani Fredeluces, executive director of the Socksargen Federation of Fishing and Allied Industries, and an expert in tuna migration patterns, said the fish were increasingly seeking cooler seas away from the Philippine territorial waters. He said global warning affected ocean currents, and the tuna would naturally follow temperatures that best suited them.

^^ it's preferable that you highlight the relevant portions from any negative news posted, especially those that discuss its causes and the ways to find solutions to ensure that matters are also being addressed to resolve such problems.

Bribery alleged as British nickel mine threatens community (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/philippines/3243603/Bribery-alleged-as-British-nickel-mine-threatens-community.html)
By Thomas Bell, South East Asia Correspondent

Research by the British charity CAFOD claims that some community leaders in Macambol, on the southern island of Mindanao, were bribed up to £12,000 – thirty-two times a typical annual salary - to approve the scheme. Yet many locals oppose it, fearing an ecological, cultural and economic disaster.

According to CAFOD, "The process... to secure approval for the project from Macambol's indigenous peoples, as required under Philippine law, was so seriously flawed that it cannot be considered valid."

The planned mine will cover an area 100 times bigger than Hyde Park, sandwiched between a marine nature reserve on one side and a mountain nature reserve on the other.

It is a joint venture AMCOR – a Filipino company said to have powerful government connections – and BHP Billiton, an Anglo-Australian giant which is the biggest mining company in the world.

The mine will use a new method of extracting the nickel using hot sulphuric acid. Campaigners fear the project could threaten endangered species in the forests which will be felled, and fish in nearby Pajuda Bay which help feed 65,000 local people.

According to Anna Ford, a CAFOD spokeswoman, the area is also home to an unusual Catholic sect called the Church of the Holy Stone, who tattoo their bodies with prayers and are summoned by dreams to pray in the forest.

The sect's "mother church" is at the centre of the proposed mine site.

"Mining operations will effect our sacred land. If we lose our natural resources we lose the memories and heritage of our ancestors," Narciso Salang, a tribal elder, told the researchers.

CAFOD was careful to accuse Filipino officials of paying bribes – not BHP Billition staff.

In a statement the multi-national, whose annual general meeting begins in London on Thursday, said, "BHP Billiton has a strict code of conduct governing all aspects of our business conduct, including relationship with joint venture partners. We take the allegations of bribery extremely seriously."

Nickel is used in stainless steel among many other applications. The price of the metal hit record highs in recent years but dropped 80 per cent in the last 18 months. Analysts say the price is certain to rebound when global manufacturing regains momentum.

2009 Mindanao Inventors Expo slated in March (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090304.htm&no=01&r=&y=&mo=)

Davao City -- Technology Application and Promotion Institute (TAPI) of the Department of Science and Technology XI (DOST XI) will host the 2009 Mindanao Inventors Contest and Exposition (MICE 2009) on March 9-11, 2009, at the SM City Davao Event Center, Davao City. The event is conducted in coordination with the Davao Inventors Association (DIA).

MICE aims to create awareness, establish linkages for Mindanao-based inventors. Specifically, it aims to generate awareness on the existence of inventors' organizations. Furthermore, it aims to strengthen linkages between inventors, inventors' organizations, government and non-government organizations, the private sector, and civic groups.

MICE will provide a venue for potential inventors, researchers, technologists, and students to showcase their inventions, innovations, researches. TAPI-DOST supports MICE to further develop their capacity towards inventing, through trainings, seminars and workshops, on both new and current technologies. MICE is open to both the public and private sector inventors, researchers, and students.

MICE will have six (6) categories namely; a) Outstanding Invention (Tuklas Award); b) Outstanding Utility Model; c) Outstanding Industrial Design; d) Outstanding Creative Research (Likha Award); and e) Outstanding Student Creative Research (Sibol Award) for high school and college students.

Invention category entries are those covered by an invention patent which is still in force and granted by the Intellectual Property Office. Utility Model entries are those covered by utility model patent/registration which is still in force and granted by the Intellectual Property Office. Creative Research entries are those with patent pending or without patent application, inventions, utility models, industrial designs, devices, products, chemical/mechanical processes or researches with demonstrable qualities already commercialized or with potential for commercialization. Sibol Award entries are new and innovative projects/models including machines, gadgets, products and processes developed by high school and college students.

Judging shall be based on the entries' ingenuity, viability, usefulness, presentation and demonstration, ornamentally and aesthetics, uniqueness, market potential, and extent of utility. Final judging will be held at the contest site. Winners will represent Mindanao in the National Invention Contest during the 2009 National Inventors Week in November.

Int'l Peace Leadership Conference on Mindanao Peace Initiative set in Oro March 5 (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090303.htm&no=44&r=R10&y=09&mo=03)

Cagayan de Oro City -- The Universal Peace Foundation (UPF), Mindanao Chapter, will hold an International Leadership Conference on Mindanao Peace Initiative (MinPi) on March 5 at the Pryce Plaza Hotel in Cagayan de Oro City.

The theme of this year's conference is "One Family Under God. A New Vision for Peace in Mindanao in the 21st Century".

Relative to its theme, one of the objectives of MinPi is to build an active partnership between the government and civil society, as well as faith-based organizations, tribal communities, the private sector, youth, women, the academe, media and sports groups.

Dr. Hyun Jin Moon, UPF co-Chairman and Global Peace Festival founder, will be the guest speaker of this year's conference.

Dr. Moon is active in a number of charitable and non-profit activities, including Ambassador of Peace, a group committed to resolving conflict through building bridges on understanding and cooperation between nations, cultures and faith traditions.

The conference will also be attended by UPF International Secretary General Dr. Thomas Walsh and UPF Philippines Secretary General Prof. Jose Navalta.

Department of Education (DepEd) Region 10 Estrella Abid-Babano, who is also the MinPi Chair, will report on the various activities that the organization has lined-up for further information and awareness and its impact to the attainment of peace and unity in Mindanao.

A strong advocate of peace education, Director Babano has spearheaded various activities in schools and communities for the youth and adults to feel the essence of peace and unity among themselves.

A Declaration of Commitment will end the day's conference in the presence of the strong force of peace advocates from the Philippines and other countries.

CENTER OF EVANGELIZATION OF MINDANAO

The beginning of Christianity i n Dipolog can be traced farther back in time with arrival of the Jesuits missionaries, shortly, after St. Francis Xavier's visit in MINDANAO.

In 1609, Fr. Pascual Acuna, S.J., Chaplain of the Spanish Squadron, started mission work in Mindanao with the natives in the area. Twenty years after, 1629, Fr. Pedro Gutierrez, S.J. founded the mission center in Dapitan. This made Dapitan as the center of evangelization in Mindanao.

To execute fully their Christian mission, priests from Dapitan were assigned to make periodic visits in neighboring barrios and sitios, Dipolog included.

In 1769, on account of their expulsion from the Philippines, Augustinian Recollects who assumed the ecclesiastical administration replaced the Jesuit missionary priests. Fray Bernardo Teresa became the first superior in Dapitan. Sometime between 1796 and 1797 the Lubungan Parish, now Katipunan Parish, was established with Dipolog under its jurisdiction. By
that time MINDANAO was under the ecclesiastical province of Jaro, this being the seat of the Augustinian Recollect.

Dipolog was then a Barrio in Dapitan. A pueblo was organized by a group of natives and Boholano pioneers led by a Spanish missionary priest, in Sianib, (now Mutia) a barrio about twenty kilometers from the shoreline. The choice of location was based about twenty kilometers from the shoreline. The choice of location was based upon the prevailing circumstances of the time. Moro pirates and marauders endangered the coastal towns and settlements, so for security reason they chose the site far inland.
A "capilla" was erected through free labor and self-help. Here the people congregated and heard mass.


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Dipolog Diocese


When Moro piracy was no longer rampant, the people moved nearer the seacoast, in sitio Isab, Nipa-an. Here they built another "capilla" on the hilltop overlooking the mouth of Isab Creek adjacent to a vast plain. Later the people felt the inconvenience in going up and down the hill to attend religious activities. So they moved to Tulwanan in Nipa-an. Finally, they
transferred to the opposite side (Dipag) of the river and constructed a Simbahan.

In 1868, the Jesuit returned to the Philippines and resumed their work at the old Mindanao mission replacing the Augustinian Recollect priests. MINDANAO was returned to the ecclesiastical province of Cebu and in 1870 the Jesuit came to Dipolog.

Rev. Fr. Francisco Martin Luego, S.J. sent Rev. Fr. Antonio Obach, S.J. to Dipolog. Rev. Fr. Antonio Obach was the first Jesuit to live here though assigned in the parish of Lubungan, now Katipunan. He occupied the old convent vacated by his predecessors, the Recollect priests.

Fr. Antonio Obach moved to Dapitan to take place of Fr. Juan Gelaberth, S.J., Cura Parroco of Dapitan, who died. His place in Dipolog was occupied by Fr. Jose Ramon, S.J. Upon the death of Fr. Jose Ramon, another priest, Fr. Jose Villaclara, S.J., succeeded him. On July 13, 1892, Fr. Eusebio Barredo, S.J., succeeded Fr. Jose Villaclara as parish priest of Lubungan.


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The Cathedral of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary


Since Dipolog was in the Jurisdiction of Lubungan, Fr. Eusebio Barredo led the faithful of the place in the construction of the convent on December 21, 1892 and was completed on April 17, 1893. His next project was the cemetery construction, which was started on June 1, 1893 and completed on September 29, 1893. Finally, Fr. Eusebio Barredos project in Dipolog was the church that was erected on April 1, 1894. The first mass in the new church was on June 29, 1894.


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The old facade of the church when it was finished in 1896 it was since then redesigned.


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A closer view of the church main entrance - An intricate design with keystone.


With this projects completed, Fr. Eusebio Barredo prepared Dipolog to become a parish. So on June 30, 1896, Dipolog was made a parish with the barrios of Polanco and Sianib under its jurisdiction by virtue of the order from the mother parish of Lubungan. The Governor General of the Obispado of the Philippines confirmed the order from the Obispada of Cebu on October 30, 1896 and the Royal Approval from Spain was on
February 8, 1897.


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The cathedral ceiling made out of Philippine hardwood "narra" in perfect preserved condition.


On November 6, 1896, Fr. Esteban Yepes was appointed the first parish priest of the parish of Dipolog.

About hundred years after Fr. Esteban Yepes was appointed the first priest of the parish of Dipolog, we have another Esteban who presided during the Centennial Celebration in the person of Msgr. Esteban C. Gaudicos, V.G. Accidental this might be, but the Providence made this possible to have him preserve the Church and restore the Altar to the original structure.


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The Central Altar of the Cathedral


HISTORICAL TID BIT

The year was 1893 Rev.Fr.Eusebio Barredo, S.J. planned, conceived and did was necessary to materialize an idea to put up a new and more commodious "Simbahan" in DIPOLOG because the capilla was to inade- quate. He organized the 24 cabezas de ba- rangay through the support of Governadorcillo Don Basilio Tabiliran in gathering first class timber through the "takay" system. Each barangay was supposed to finish 8 big trozos (logs). In a few months time 192 big and long logs of molave, guisok, kubi, ipil and other hard wood were filed in the plaza

On March 4, 1894 the first molave post of the projected "Simbahan" was erected. With the exception of those that needed technical knowledge,


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In 1932-1939, Rev. Jaime Mir, S.J. became the Parish Priest. He provided the church with the bigger Harmonium and an automobile. He had purchased books and devices for the boys' and girls' schools.

In May, 1940, Rev. Fr. Nicasio Y. Patangan, the first Filipino diocesan priest of Mindanao and a native of Dipolog, became the Parish priest after Rev.Fr. Jaime Mir,S.J. With the help of his assistant, Rev.Fr. Pio Saavedra, the high school department known as St. Vincent's High School started to operate. Father Patangan organized the first group of cathechists to teach in elementary and secondary public schools.

In 1946, Rev.Fr. Engracio S. Rivera became the assistant parish priest of Fr. Patangan in lieu of Rev. Saavedra. And by 1947 the college level was offered with Rev.Fr. Rivera as its first director for both secondary and college levels.


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St. Vincent's High School, now St. Vincent's College undergoing extensive construction


Today, as we move on towards the Third Millennium, The Holy Rosary Cathedral of Dipolog is presided by most Rev. Jose R. Manguiran, D.D. Bishop of Dipolog. Old but not worn-out. Traditional but not antiquated. Young and progressive. That's the church in Dipolog as she continues to mature in the vineyard of the Lord.


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MOST REV. JOSE R. MANGUIRAN
BISHOP OF DIPOLOG

Thanks to God who made for us a world to build a parish and a church in which to serve and praise HIM.

On the road to Camp Keithley, Lanao

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Zamboanga, Isla de Basilan, Gupo Jolo, Grupo Tawi Tawi (1899)

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MISAMIS


LONG before reaching Misamis the old gray fort at the entrance of the town was picked out by some one looking through the telescope, and many were the theories concerning it. At so great a distance, and with the hot sunlight shining full upon it, the fort might have been a strip of white sand; later it was decided to be a tribunal of unusual proportions, and at last when it loomed full upon us in all the picturesqueness of its gray, moss-grown walls, with weeds trailing in luxurious profusion from every crevice, we decided that there lived the American inhabitants of Misamis. Soldiers gathered under the roof of the nearest watch-tower to observe our entrance into the harbour, while still others, unmindful of the blazing sun, perched on the top of the wall and swung their feet over the side, doubtless making numerous wagers as to the transport’s name and its business in so out of the way a place as Misamis.

Owing to the unreliability of the Spanish charts, the Burnside anchored some distance out of the harbour, and just before tiffin a boat-load of officers from the garrison came out to the ship, accompanied by the titular captain of the port, a young chap who also acted in several other official capacities, a sort of military “crew, and the captain, too, and the mate of the Nancy Bell.” After tiffin the ship sailed into anchorage in the harbour of Misamis, half-way around the old fort, which seemed to grow more picturesque with every turn, till finally we could see the village of Misamis, almost hidden in a bewildering mass of tropical vegetation. Our numerous theories to the contrary, the old fort was uninhabited, save by the ghosts of other days, remaining but a grim relic of the time when Moro pirates swept terror to the hearts of all coast villages south of Luzon. It was within those historic walls that the Signal Corps decided to set up the cable-hut, and early the next morning two parties were sent ashore, one to establish an office in the town, the other to superintend the digging of a trench by native prisoners, just outside the walls of the old fort.

Among these distinguished gentlemen was a so-called colonel of the insurrecto army who had been captured a short time before. The colonel posed as an aristocrat, whose hands had never been soiled by labour, and when his companions in confinement were turned out to assist in making way for liberty by means of the cable trench, he protested vigorously at the indignity, and averred that he was not seeking the opportunity of reimbursing the American government with pick and shovel for his enforced subsistence. He reiterated so often he was an officer and a gentleman, that finally the American major in command at Misamis mildly replied that self-appointed colonels in self-appointed armies were not recognized by any government, and as for his gentility, if it were the genuine article and not a veneer like his title, it would certainly stand the strain of a little honest labour. The arguments were cogent, and the hand of the law more irresistible still, so the high ranking officer took his turn in the trench with the other prisoners.


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THE OLD FORT AT MISAMIS


In the late afternoon we women went ashore and created even more of a sensation than we had on the island of Negros. We were literally mobbed by natives anxious for a glimpse of the first American women ever seen in that part of Mindanao, and we walked up to the Headquarters Building with a chattering, crowding, admiring horde at our heels. There the officers held an informal reception in our honour, to which all the socially possible of Misamis were invited, and the native band serenaded us with such choice selections as “A Hot Time,” and “After the Ball,” decidedly off the key, to be sure, but with the best intentions in the world.

The Misamis women were charmed with their white sisters, and could no more conceal their artless delight than so many children. They laughed and giggled nervously. They gesticulated as they talked, and shrugged their pretty shoulders with a grace taught them by our Spanish predecessors. They patted imaginary stray hairs into place in their sleek black coiffures, and settled camisa or panuela with indescribably quick and bird-like movements. Those of them who could speak Spanish talked clothes and babies and servants, or smiled politely at our mistakes in the language, laughing outright at their own futile efforts to speak English. They were astonished that the quartermaster’s wife should have attained the remarkable height of five feet eight inches so young! Was it possible there were other women in America as tall? Taller even? ‘Susmariajoseph! But surely that was a joke? One never could tell when these Americans were joking.

One of the officers presented the Burnside women with some native hats typical of the island, and the Filipinos were overcome with surprise at our interest in such ordinary headgear. What were we going to do with the hats? Wear them ourselves? Oh, no, we hastened to explain, they were to decorate our walls in America, that all our friends might see what pretty hats the Filipino people wear. Decorate the wall with hats? What a very curious idea! They chatted volubly over this idiosyncrasy, and even laughed at it, but quite decorously so that our feelings might be spared. Suddenly one of them, a most vivacious girl, and evidently the belle of the village, leaned over and in persuasive tones suggested that we women leave our hats, each real creations of millinery art, for their walls, at which witticism they all giggled explosively and shrugged their shoulders in rapturous appreciation of our confusion; all but the presidente’s wife, who looked shocked at such presumption and spoke to the younger women warningly in Visayan.


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“THE NATIVE BAND SERENADED US”


She was a shy and rather fat old lady — the presidente’s wife — and seemed greatly impressed by any statistics translated into Visayan for her information. Speaking Spanish but indifferently, she made up for her linguistic deficiencies by a pair of eyes which let nothing escape them; and she stared at us continually throughout the afternoon, seeming to be studying this new species of woman as intently as a naturalist might some strange butterfly under a microscope. Whenever we caught her eye she looked away hastily as if detected in an impropriety, and then furtively resumed her inspection, taking in every detail of our wearing-apparel, from the real hats upon our heads to the stout soled walking boots on our feet, the shine of our patent leathers seeming to inspire her with more respect than any other part of our costume.

The only other shoes in the room, excepting those worn by the Americans and some few of the native men, were the proud possession of a tiny girl eight years old. This fashionable young person boasted also a European hat of coarse white straw stiffly trimmed with blue ribbon and blue ostrich tips. That the feathers had a wofully limp, depressed, and bedraggled appearance; that the ribbon was obviously cotton; and the straw of the coarsest weave, in no wise detracted from the glorious knowledge that it was a hat, a real hat such as the Americanas themselves were wearing. Sustained by this fact the young lady, who, in addition to the shoes and millinery, wore only a single other garment, comported herself with great dignity. Even in the trying circumstance of passing between one and the light, she was quite unconscious of anything amiss, the proud assurance of being dressed in the height of style as to her head and feet, precluding all worry as to minor details.

Among others met that afternoon at the Headquarters Building was a Spanish gentleman of charming manners. He invited our party from the ship, and the officers stationed in town, to stop at his house on our return to the launch and have some refreshments, an invitation we gladly accepted. So the courtly Castilian, beaming with hospitable intent, hurried ahead to prepare for our coming, we following shortly after in his footsteps. But to the young Spaniard’s ill concealed chagrin and our own embarrassment, the whole Filipino contingent accompanied us to the house. Fully as many more natives gathered at every available door and window, while outside the band, which had brought up a tuneful and triumphant rear, played the “Star Spangled Banner.” After all had partaken of Senor Montenegro’s enforced liberality, we repaired to the launch, accompanied by almost the entire population of Misamis, and amidst a shrill chorus of “Hasta la vista,” and “Adios,” we steamed back to the Burnside, whose twinkling lights shone out dimly against the evening sky.

The next morning a party of Signal Corps men, accompanied by a guard of fifteen soldiers from the fort, sailed at peep o’ day in the ship’s launches, the two in tandem towing a native banca loaded with cable, which was to be laid in the Lintogup River and upper Panguil Bay, a stretch of water too shallow for the Burnside herself to attempt its navigation. This cable was in turn to be connected at Lintogup with Tukuran, on the southern coast of Mindanao, by a land line across a mountainous country.

When the party started there were guns and ammunition enough on the two launches to have quelled a good sized insurrection, but as little was really known of the upper bay and river, and as many rumours were rife among the natives of Misamis as to warlike Moros and Monteses living on these shores, and more disquieting rumours still among the officers that it was a camping place for insurrectos, it was thought best to amply provide against any emergency.


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THE LINTOGUP RIVER


Unfortunately, no information could be obtained as to the rise and fall of the tides or the strength of the current, a fact that delayed the expedition many days and necessitated the return of one or other of the launches for a renewal of rations, fresh water, and coal, not once but thrice. The first, second, and third relief expeditions, we called them, and teased the officer in charge unmercifully over his hard luck.

But at last, despite adverse winds and tides; despite the fact that one of the Filipino guides ran the launch aground, with malice aforethought, no doubt, as on his return to Misamis he was arrested on indubitable evidence as a spy; despite the fact that the sailing banca ran on the bar, and while trying to pull her off she and her five miles of cable were swamped; despite the fact that the ship’s launch Grace, or the Disgrace, as she was afterward called, distinguished herself by blowing up twice and almost scalding everyone on board; despite the fact that all the odds were against the expedition’s success, and that it took six days and nights to accomplish what might have been done in a third of the time — despite all this, I say, the cable was at last laid and the luckless workers returned.

But, oh, the bitterness of life in general and that of a cable man in particular! For after all those heroic struggles the first test showed a fault, and, cruel fate, at the far end of Panguil Bay at that! The silence which greeted the reception of this terrible news was as profane as words, and the Powers-that-Be decided on the spot that enough work had been spent on that calamitous cable for the time being, and decided to proceed with the laying of the main lines, leaving the Lintogup stretch until a subsequent visit to Misamis.

Meanwhile there was much work accomplished in the town, a fine telegraph office being established on the principal street; and a trench completed by the shore end party; while much overhauling of the cable in the tanks, and daily drills given to the Signal Corps soldiers in cable telegraphy and the care of the instruments kept those aboard ship busy. Tic — tack, clic — clack, went the little telegraph instrument at one end of the quarter-deck, and clic — clack, tic — tack answered an instrument at the other end, hour after hour through the long, warm mornings, and the longer, warmer afternoons.

On New Year’s eve, several officers from the fort saw the century in with those of us remaining on the Burnside, but the time passed so pleasantly that no one remembered the auspicious occasion until the sound of sharp firing from the shore broke in upon our conversation. The jangling of church bells followed, and one of the shore officers, usually a very cool and self-contained young fellow, sprang to his feet, exclaiming as he buckled on his revolver, “Great heavens! An attack on the town and I not there. May I have a ship’s boat at once?” But even as he spoke the Burnside’s whistle blew a great blast, and several shots from the ship answered those on shore, every man with a revolver, shotgun, or rifle adding his quota of noise to the general hubbub.

And so it was the new century came to Mindanao, some thirteen hours ahead of its advent in New York or Washington. Before eight bells had ceased striking a search-light greeting was sent to our friends at Lintogup, but they, being tired after a hard day’s work, slept supinely on, unaware of our good wishes or the fact that a fine young century had been born to the old, old world.

I am sorry to relate that the next day a court-martial was held in Misamis to try the irrepressible guard who, in a burst of enthusiasm due to their first taste of twentieth century air, had fired off their rifles. The soldiers were sentenced rather heavily, rifle-shots in a Philippine town at that time being productive of dire results. Indeed, the shrill warning of the church bells and scattered shots in a Mindanao village meant one thing only, an uprising in the town or an attack from the outside, the incoming of a new century being of far less importance than the preservation of order and quiet in the garrison, and no cognizance could be taken of a new year which must be ushered in with a clang of firearms or the jangle of church bells — shrill heralds of disaster.

On New Year’s morning the presidente and secretario of Misamis, accompanied by their respective families and a young Moro slave, the property of the secretario, came aboard the Burnside to return our call. It was the first time any of them had ever seen a modern steamship, and loud and voluble were their exclamations of wonder at what we have come to regard as the every-day conveniences of civilization. After seeing the electric light, electric fans, and the shower baths turned on and off several times, the presidente craved permission to essay these miracles himself, and, to his own great surprise, accomplished supernatural results. The old wife watched him tremblingly. Surely, these were works of the Evil One, and, as such, to be left to heretics. But still the man persisted in his madness, and with a turn of his wrist brought light out of darkness or water and wind from the very walls.

Finally he turned around, and with a humourous twinkle in his eye, that belied the gravity of the rest of his face, he said: “The Americanos are a great people — a wonderful people — and how unlike the Filipinos! When a Filipino wants sunshine or rain or wind, he must wait until the good Lord gives it to him. When an Americano wants sunshine or rain or wind, he turns it on!”

The whole party was intensely interested in the big telescope which drew Misamis within a stone’s throw of the ship, and they could not in the least understand how we cooked in the steam galley without any fuel, while the ice-machine and cold storage rooms were quite beyond their comprehension, none of them ever having seen ice before. Of course, on seeing the strange substance, it must be tasted as well, so iced drinks were served on the quarter-deck, these being received with much preliminary trepidation and ultimate gustatory gratification. As for the small Moro slave, I only hope he did not die from his excessive libations, for he drank unnumbered glasses of lemonade, making most violent faces the while, and rubbing his small round stomach continually, as if the unaccustomed cold had penetrated to his very vitals.

On going ashore, each of the three children carried back a box of American candy, the order of our guests’ departure being somewhat delayed by Senora Presidente’s intense fear of going down the gangway. As I have said before, she was a fat old lady, and the way was steep; but finally, after much persuasion, she slipped her bare feet out of their velvet chinelas, gathered her voluminous skirts close about her, and, seating herself upon the top step of the ladder, slid down! Surely a simple solution of the difficulty.

That evening a ball was given in our honour at the Headquarters Building, which for the time being was transformed into a most attractive place with palms and flags and coloured lanterns, while just outside the broad windows a wonderful tropic sky, hung with silver stars, added its enchantment to the scene. No carriage being available in the town, we walked from the dingy little wharf to the Headquarters Building, arrayed in our very best, and followed by a guard of armed soldiers, our escorts themselves wearing revolvers.

At every corner a dark form would shoot out suddenly from the shadows and there would be the swift click of a rifle as it came to position, while a voice cried, “Halt! Who’s there?” “A friend,” some one would reply, or “Officer of the garrison,” as the case might be. Then again would come the sentinel’s voice telling the person challenged to advance and be recognized, at which one of the number would march forward, and, on being identified, the rest of us were allowed to pass the sentinel, who, meanwhile, kept his rifle at a port, his keen eye watching closely that no enemy slip by under our protection.

It was a rarely beautiful night even for the tropics, that first of January, and as we women wore no wraps of any description, the contrast between our satins and chiffons and the rough khaki clothes of the soldiers was a strange one; and still stranger was the fact of our going under guard to a ball, a ball that at any moment might be interrupted by the bugles blowing a call to arms, whereupon our partners would have to desert us, perhaps to quell an uprising in the town, perhaps to defend it against an attack from the outside.

But fortunately the occasion was not marred by any such sinister happening, and doubtless still lives in the annals of Misamis as a very grand affair, for everyone of consequence in town was invited to the baille, and everyone invited came, not to mention those not invited who came also. When we arrived the rooms were quite crowded and the dancing had begun. Far down the street we heard the music and the sound of the women’s heelless slippers shuffling over the polished floor to a breathlessly fast waltz. If possible the people of Misamis dance faster and hop higher than the people of Dumaguete, and how the women manage to keep on their chinelas during these wild gyrations is quite beyond me.

As the secretario of the town played a harp in the orchestra — surely an evidence of versatility — we ventured to ask if he would play a two-step very, very slowly, and hummed it in ordinary time. At its beginning the Filipinos who had started to dance, stopped aghast. “Faster, faster!” they cried in Spanish. “No one could dance to such slow music. This is a ball, men, not a funeral!” But the secretario held the orchestra back, and in a few moments the Americans had the floor to themselves, the Filipinos stopping partly because they found it impossible to dance to such slow music and partly because they wanted to watch us.

They were all astonished at the apparent lack of motion in American dancing and the fact that we got over the ground without hopping. Many of them asked officers stationed in the town if the women wore a special kind of shoe to balls, as they appeared to be standing still and yet moving at the same time, while one old man was heard explaining to his cronies that we wore little wheels attached to the soles of our slippers — he had seen them — so that we did not have to move at all, the men doing all the dancing and merely pushing us back and forth on the floor. So much for the glide step as contrasted with the hop, though it must be confessed that the natives were quite frank in liking their own dancing better than ours, one of the reasons being that it gave them so much more exercise.

During the evening the natives gave a Visayan dance, called in the native tongue “A Courtship.” As the name implies, a young man and woman dance it vis-à-vis, the man courting the woman rhythmically and to music, she at first resisting, flashing her dark eyes scornfully as she trips by him, holding her fan to her face until he looks the other way, then peeping over its top at him, only to turn her back in disdain when, emboldened by her interest, he approaches. Finally his attentions become more pronounced, at which the girl grows coy, dropping her eyes shyly as they dance past one another, and covering her face again and again from his too ardent gaze; now bending her supple waist from side to side in time with the passionate music; now closing her eyes languorously; now opening them wide and smiling at him tenderly over the top of her fan, a graceful accomplice to her pretty coquetry. At last she surrenders to the wooing, the happy pair dancing away together while the music plays faster and faster until at last it stops with a great crash, that, we trust, not being symbolical of infelicity in wedlock. The dance was very well done, and the native audience enjoyed it thoroughly, calling out chaffingly in Visayan to the couple on the floor, and occasionally beating time to the music with hand or foot.


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A MISAMIS BELLE


It was at this ball we met for the first time a family of American mestizas — three sisters there were, if I remember rightly, — all pretty girls, with regular features and soft brown hair, this hair distinguishing them at once from the other women of the place with their more conventional blue-black tresses. It seems that the grandfather of these girls had been an American sailor, who for some reason or other was marooned at Cagayan, Mindanao. Making the most, or as a pessimist might think, the worst of a disadvantageous situation, he married a native girl and raised a large and presumably interesting family, his descendants being scattered all over the island. The Misamis branch were extremely aristocratic, and so proud of their blue blood that since the arrival of the American troops they have associated with no one else in the village. It is said that the girls even refer to the United States as “home,” and occasionally wear European clothes in preference to the far more becoming and picturesque costume of saya, camisa, and panuela.

While in Misamis I verily believe that family was pointed out to us twenty times at least, and whenever a man lowered his voice and started in with, “You see those girls over there? Well, their grandfather was an American —” I steeled myself for what was to follow, and expressed surprise and interest as politely as possible, for it is hard to attain conventional incredulity over a twice-told tale. After the genealogy of the family had been gone over, root and branch, we would invariably be told the story of how the grandfather, grown rich and prosperous in his island home, once went to Manila on a business trip. He had then lived in Mindanao over thirty years, during which time he had spoken nothing but Visayan, varied occasionally with bad Spanish.

His negotiations at the capital taking him to an English firm, he started to address them in his long unused mother tongue, when to his extreme mortification he found he could not speak a word of English. Again and again he tried, the harsh gutturals choking in his throat, until at last, flushed and angry, he was forced to transact his business in Spanish, all of which amused the Britishers to the chaffing point. Leaving the office, the American flung himself into the street, muttering savagely under his breath, a torrent of old memories surging through his brain, those harsh English words in his throat clamouring for utterance. On and on he went, until at a far corner he suddenly pulled himself up sharply, turned on his heal and with all speed walked back to the English firm, a shrewd smile playing about his hard old mouth. Throwing open the door of the office, he walked abruptly in, saying as he did so, in an unmistakable Yankee drawl, “Blankety blank blank it! I knew I could speak English. All I needed was a few good cuss words to start me off!”

On the afternoon of January 3d, a party of Monteses visited the Burnside. Gaily turbaned and skirted were these Moro men, their jackets fitting so tightly that some one suggested they must have grown on them, that they were “quite natural and spontaneous, like the leaves of trees or the plumage of birds.” One’s olfactory nerves also bore evidence that frequent ablutions or change of garments were not customary among our guests, and the fact that when shown over the ship they evinced but little interest in the bath spoke volumes.

Strange to say, what the Moros most admired were the brass railings around the walls of the saloon, and the brass rods down the different stairways, in fact all the brass fittings on the ship, a thing that puzzled us not a little until the interpreter explained that the Moros thought the brass was solid gold, and were naturally much impressed thereat. Firearms they also enthused over, and looked with envious eyes at the shotguns, rifles, and revolvers exhibited, evincing great delight at the six and the one pounder guns on the quarter-deck. With the greatest equanimity they accepted several little presents made them, nor deigned thanks of any sort for benefits received, stuffing the different articles into their wide girdles with a stolid indifference which was enlivened by a smile once only. This was at a case of needles given to the leading Datto or chief, which, through the interpreter, we told him were for the wives of his bosom; whereupon they all smiled broadly, the interpreter explaining it was because we had sent the needles to women, as among Mindanao Moros men do all the sewing.

Being Mohammedans, they were very careful not to eat anything while on board ship for fear of unconsciously transgressing the Holy Law, even refusing chocolate candy because it might contain pork. They were shown ice, but took little interest in it, nor did they seem surprised at the cold storage rooms or the electric lighting. It is possible they thought Americans had attained the one really great thing in having white skins, after which all else followed as a matter of course.

The next day we went to call on the presidente and his wife. They lived in a bare, forlorn old house, with nothing attractive about it save the floor of the sala, which was of beautiful hard wood polished with banana leaves until it would have served for a mirror. Everything was scrupulously clean, but bespoke poverty, from the inadequate furniture of the sala to the patches and darns on the old wife’s stiffly starched skirt of abaca. This poverty was all the result of the war, we were told, as much of their out of town property had been confiscated or ruthlessly destroyed by the insurgents because of the presidente’s unswerving loyalty to the American government.

Both the presidente and his señora were delighted to see us, and while he discoursed on politics and what the coming of the cable meant to the people of Mindanao, the good housewife bustled about and brought forth the greatest delicacies her larder afforded, laying them out with proud humility on the marble topped table of the sala. There were peaches and pears, canned in Japan, and served right from the tin; there were little pink frosted cakes made in times prehistoric, to judge from their mustiness, and carefully packed away in glass jars for just such great occasions; there was good guava jelly and a Muscatelle that breathed of sunny vineyards in Spain — indubitable evidence of better days.

The house was so bare and shabby that this gastronomic outlay seemed an unwarrantable expense, yet what could one do but accept their hospitality in the same generous spirit in which it was offered? So at ten o’clock of a steaming hot morning we cheerfully stuffed ourselves on badly preserved fruits, elderly small cakes with enamelled complexions, and tiny sips of liquid fragrance, our reward of merit being the little señora’s beaming face.

Indeed, she even stopped apologizing after a bit, and while the presidente was toasting everybody from the “Chief Magistrate of America” down to our very humble selves, she sent a muchacho out to borrow the hand-organ belonging to a neighbour, this musical instrument being highly venerated in Misamis. On its arrival the presidente himself turned the crank, and with such vigour that I feared a stroke of apoplexy on his part.

A little later, as we were leaving, the señora took us into what would have been the stable had they possessed horses, a large open space under the house, to the right of which a room had been partitioned off with bamboo. Inside this partition a Filipina servant worked the señora’s loom. Back and forth went the shuttle under the little maid’s deft fingers, and up and down went her slender bare foot on the treadle, so that even as we watched the striped red and cream abaca grew under our very eyes.

Unfortunately I became enthusiastic, and nothing would do but that the old lady must present me with several yards of the pretty stuff. I felt as if I should be tried for larceny, what with those indigestible fruits, the pink cheeked cakes, the Muscatelle, and finally the abaca. I protested vigorously, I even pleaded, but in vain.

“You are my daughter,” laughed the señora, happily, “my white daughter. The abaca is yours — coarse stuff that it is,” and she reached up timidly and kissed me, first on one cheek and then on the other, the joy of giving in her dear old eyes.

The next day dawned so clear and beautiful that three of us decided, there being little work on hand until the Lintogup party’s return, to take a long drive around Misamis, and if we had time to even go so far as its four outposts. On the previous day the presidente had unearthed a queer little carriage out of a junk heap, and put this conveyance and a wise looking piebald pony at our disposal. The carriage was an odd affair between a calesa and carromata in shape, or like a high surrey with a small seat for the driver in front. It was beautifully clean, with a new bit of carpet at our feet, and cushioned in sky-blue tapestry. As there was but a single seat at the back, in addition to the driver’s seat in front, one of the two men of our party offered to relieve the Filipino in charge of the trap, and do the driving himself, but the native shook his head, declaring we would find the pony unmanageable. We thought not, but the driver was firm, and although the back seat was not very wide, we piled in upon the sky-blue cushions, trying to look as pleasant as possible in the circumstances.

After some persuasion on the part of the Filipino, the piebald pony started and proved to be a fine little animal with an unusually clean and even gait. The air was fresh and invigorating, and as we passed other Burnside friends trudging through the sand of the beach or toiling laboriously along the dusty road of the town, we congratulated ourselves on securing the only available trap in the place, and marvelled at the way our pony covered ground.

“Why, any one could drive him,” remarked one of the trio. “He’s a fine little beast.” “To be sure,” assented the others. But just then a treacherous feminine hat blew off, and we had to stop and pick it up. That was but the work of an instant — the stopping — but when it came to starting again — well, you just ought to have seen how that piebald acted! He simply laughed at the idea, his laugh extending in ecstatic chuckles all the way down his spinal column till the very carriage shook with his mirth. Then he planted his two fore feet down hard as much as to say, “I challenge you to budge me one inch from this spot,” and though the Filipino threatened, entreated, implored, and finally beat him unmercifully with the handle of the whip, the piebald stood his ground.

At last the two men clambered out of the high vehicle, and after tugging for some minutes at the rope bridle, succeeded in starting the stubborn animal along, but at so furious a gait that they had all they could do to get up over the wheels and into their seat again. All went well for about a quarter of a mile, when to our surprise the driver started to turn around. “Here, hombre,” called one of the men, in what he was pleased to consider Spanish, “we don’t want to go home yet. We want to go to the outposts — way out, sabe?” Yes, he “sabed,” grinning broadly the while, but this, señor, was the outpost.

We were dumbfounded, and stared stupidly at the white tent among the trees. “Why don’t they call ‘em inposts?” growled one of the men, and then to the driver, “Very well, hombre, take us to the other three. We want to see ‘em all.” But this was easier said than done. Again our wise-looking piebald balked, and balked most awfully. Again the two men, at imminent danger to life and limb, jerked at the rope bridle, and again barely escaped with their lives as they performed the perilous acrobatic feat of falling headlong into the carriage while it was going at full speed.

After the sixth performance of this kind, one being at a street crossing where some raw cocoa beans were drying on a petate in the sun, and the three others at the different outposts, we decided among ourselves that we had best dismiss our cochero and return to the ship, since it had taken us more than two hours to drive where we might have walked in thirty minutes.

It was here a most embarrassing situation arose, for just as we were debating what to pay our Jehu, something in my boot heels suggested that perhaps the native was not a coachman at all, but a Filipino gentleman taking us to drive at the request of the presidente. There was the sign manual of Misamis’s four hundred about him. He wore shoes. Moreover, he sported a very large and very yellow twenty dollar gold piece on his watch-chain. But stronger even than these evidences of native gentility was the freedom from restraint in the very frequent remarks he had tentatively thrown over his shoulder during the drive, and the fact that he had not weakened when, on first coming ashore, we had tried to browbeat him out of driving the horse.

“But if he is a cochero, and we don’t pay him, he’ll think we’re cheating him,” wailed one of us.

“And if he isn’t a cochero, and we do pay him, he’ll be indignant,” affirmed another.

My boot heels gave me another suggestion. Being a woman, I suppose I have intuitions, but I trust my boot heels every time. They are more reliable. “How would it do,” I suggested, with a consciousness of superiority which I trust did not sound in my voice, “How would it do to stop a sentinel and ask whether our friend is a coachman or the mayor of the town?” and even as I spoke a sentinel hove in sight and was promptly interrogated by the men.

“Him?” returned the soldier in answer to our questions, “Him? Why, he’s the richest man in these parts, I reckon, and holds some big job under the government. I forget what just now, but provost marshal, chief of police, or somethin’ like that.” We gasped at our narrow escape, and after getting that villainous automobile horse in motion again, pressed some cigars upon our distinguished host, and on reaching the dock thanked him heartily for our charming morning, impressing upon him that the Burnside was at his disposition at any and all times, an invitation of which he later availed himself.

On the afternoon of January 9th the fault which we had been seeking so long in the cable tank was located, and two and a half miles of cable were taken out before the fault could be removed. We then weighed anchor and buoyed six miles out, talked with Misamis over the wire, and then attached the end to a buoy and dropped it overboard, preferring to wait until morning to make our splice and proceed on our return trip to Dumaguete. At daylight we picked up the buoy, drew the end of the cable on board, spliced it, and at eight o’clock were proceeding toward the island of Negros, laying cable as we went.

Then for the first time did we hoist the cable-ship insignia on the foremast head, three balls, which at a little distance looked not unlike the sign of a pawnshop, though our three balls were hung vertically from the masthead, two red ones with a white octahedron shape between them. After dark two red lights with a white centre light were substituted for these signals, each serving as a warning to other vessels that we were either laying or picking up cable and could not be expected to observe the etiquette of the high seas. In other words, we were to have the right of way. As I understand it, disabled steamers also carry three balls by day, all of them being red in that case, and by night three red lights, our centre white ball by day and centre white light after dark protecting us from well-meant efforts at rescue by other vessels, which would of course foul our cable and cause no end of mischief.

We sailed very slowly to Dumaguete, not over five knots an hour, with the cable paying out perhaps six knots, this speed limitation being necessary in order to stop the ship quickly in case of accident. It seemed a sentient thing, that cable creeping slowly along the paying out machinery, winding itself over the drum, and then stretching out to full length and disappearing down the covered wooden cable troughs on the main and quarter decks, and so into the sea at the stern of the ship; the hose meanwhile playing a stream of water over the drum, brakes, and jockey pulley, where the friction is always greatest. This water ran off in a dirty yellow stream, flooding the forward deck, while the tar from the cable decorated the ship from stem to stern, thus transforming our Burnside from a pretty, trig looking yacht into a veritable work-a-day old scow.

Everyone on board was in the best possible spirits all morning because we were really under way and accomplishing work that showed. Even the natives in the tank, swiftly passing the cable from hand to hand, were singing in barbaric monotone to themselves, while we idle ones on the quarterdeck read a marvellous tale of love and bloodshed to the monotonous accompaniment of the cable shuffling through the wooden troughs beside us.

At about four in the afternoon, however, just as we were lazily deciding to ring for tea, there came a rush of feet from the forward part of the ship and a jangle of the engine-room’s bell meaning “Full speed astern!” But quick as the ship was in coming to a standstill, and quick as were the Signal Corps men in stopping the machinery, the cable itself was quicker, and in less time than it takes to tell it, a tangle of cable in the tanks blocked the drum, causing so tremendous a strain that the cable broke, the end going overboard.

‘We were all sick at heart, none more so than the poor Filipino who had been knocked flat by the cable on its erratic departure from the tank. Fortunately, the native was more frightened than hurt, and not many moments later joined in a game of monte with his friends not on duty at the time. The cable laying machinery was then transformed into a grappling machine, and by half past seven that evening the strain on the dynamometer showed we had in all probability hooked something. An hour later the end was on board, and by midnight a satisfactory splice had been made by a sergeant of the Signal Corps, in charge of such work, and his band of native cable splicers. Then sufficient tests were made to ascertain if the joint were perfect, that is, if the insulation of the new piece of cable, when added to that already laid, gave the right answer.

Meanwhile some one ascertained our position with a sextant, these observations being marked on the cable map and entered in the log to facilitate the work of locating and repairing the splice in case of accident at that particular point, though it must be confessed that these splices often proved more sound than the original cable. After this data had been duly registered, the bight was lowered over the side of the ship and we were again under way, “dragging our tail behind us” like the poetical sheep of the nursery rhyme.

Everything worked perfectly after this, and we arrived off the Dumaguete buoy the following afternoon. On sighting it, a boat was lowered, in which our “able cable seaman,” as we called him, with his crew of native “ buoy jumpers,” set forth to fasten the cable attached there to a stout rope from the ship. Then the buoy was cut away and taken into the little boat, the cable being heaved aboard by means of the drum, where, after detaching the mushroom anchor, tests were made and final telegraphic instructions sent to Misamis about connecting the office there. Then the final splice was made, and the two women of the Burnside were given the privilege of cutting the slip-ropes that held the cable on the ship. It had already been lowered over the bows, and only these ropes held it in place.

“If anything goes wrong now, you are to blame,” said the Powers-that-Be severely, and I, personally, felt the responsibility of so momentous an event, and awaited with no little nervousness the signal which would tell us to sever the ropes, for it was important that the two fastenings should be cut at exactly the same moment to avoid a strain on the cable. “Now!” called the cable expert. It was a thrilling moment. My little kris dagger seemed scarcely to make an impression on the stout Manila rope. “Faster! Harder!” called some one, and we sawed with all our strength. A moment more and the green waters of the bay had opened and closed over the cable — the first stretch of it laid on the trip — and we women had helped do it.

Everyone on board was excited over the great event, the very natives, tired as they were, sending up a faint viva, and at dinner that evening it was easy to see a strain had been lifted from all the officers. Not a man but was freshly shaved and attired in immaculate white linen in contradistinction to the inevitable khaki. Later, however, the young officer who had been sent ashore to make the final adjustments in the Dumaguete office, came aboard with the disheartening information that Misamis could not be raised, and the ensuing depression on the Burnside was appalling.

The next morning a wire was run ashore connecting the cable hut with the ship, and by what is called a capacity test, the trouble was located at Misamis. So late that night, instead of going to Iligan, as we had expected, we sailed for Misamis again, arriving there a little after one on the following day. The fault was found in a lightning arrester which one of the operators had neglected in the cable hut. This was remedied, and the cable connection between Misamis and Dumaguete completed.

Immediately the natives poured into the cable office with numberless messages for friends or business acquaintances, and knots of men gathered about the building and congratulated each other on the great event. At last the much talked-of communication with the outer world was at hand, a marvel no less astounding to the minds of these people than would be the realization of those stories of Harun-al-Rashid’s days to our more complex civilization, those dear, delightful days of genie and fairy, when two and two didn’t always make four, and when nothing was too impossible to happen.


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LAYING CABLE FROM A NATIVE SCHOONER


That afternoon a schooner was hired, and five miles of cable for the Misamis shore end of Iligan’s line of communication was put aboard her. At daybreak on Monday, January 14th, the schooner started out to lay the cable, while a second party dug the trench and prepared for the landing of the shore end. This was all completed by ten o’clock, and we were under way for Iligan, towing the schooner at our stern. We sailed very slowly, as bearings and soundings were being taken all day, anchoring off our destination late that afternoon.

$1-B food security program launched in Davao Norte soon



A BILLION-dollar nationwide food security program between the Arroyo administration and the corporate giants San Miguel Corp. (SMC) and Kuok Group will be launched in Davao del Norte in six months time.

The launching in Davao del Norte of the first phase of the project, dubbed as "Feeding the Future," will cover four of its municipalities, where 18,494 hectares of logged-over areas have been identified for upland agro-forestry development.

This is part of the SMC and Kuok Group's commitment to invest up to $1 billion in one million hectares of land for agricultural production in support of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's food security agenda.

SMC and Kuok Group consultant Emilio Tobias said they are now complying with all the necessary requirements with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and other government agencies to be able to start the project within six months.

"Actually, we are already talking with some contractors for the ground preparation of the area as we are ready to launch the project in six months, preferably in New Corella town," Tobias said during a briefing with Governor Rodolfo Del Rosario on Monday at the Bulwagan ng Lalawigan.

Tobias revealed the province of Davao del Norte was chosen as the launching pad of the $1 billion nationwide farm venture owing to all the desired conditions present in the province, which are favorable to crops for food security and forest activities.

These include auspicious typhoon-free climate with high annual rainfall, moderate to rolling topography and fertile soil texture and depth, among others.

Del Rosario welcomed the project, saying this will revolutionize the province, as it will create livelihood, employment and economic activities in the project areas.

However, he raised his concern on the interest of the indigenous people living in the community-based forest management areas and ancestral lands identified as part of the project areas, since they might be dislocated.

"If the Lumads will be dislocated, forget it," he warned.

Tobias said no displacement of the natives will ever happen, since the SMC and the Kuok Group, as the "cooperators" of the project, will see to the development and protection of the natives in the identified project sites.

He added the "cooperators" intend to put up mill plants within or near the production areas to better facilitate their purchase of the farm produce within the covered areas.

According to the memorandum of agreement between the government and the cooperators, this will be done at "guaranteed production off-take" terms, through separate procurement agreements with the various agricultural producers that will be involved in the project.

Body pushes Armm as leading Halal brand of RP



AN OFFICER of the Muslim Mindanao Halal Certification Board (MMHCB), the only Halal certifying body in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (Armm), said the body pushes for the region as the leading Halal brand of the Philippines.

In his presentation during the recently concluded Armm Regional Halal Business Conference held in Davao City, Uztadz Esmael Ebrahim, MMHCB managing director, said Armm has a comparative advantage when it comes to the Halal industry "because it has four million Muslim consumers of Halal, and it is the only region in the country which has a majority population of Muslims."

Panagbenga 2009 blog

"If you look at places in the world, only Armm incorporates the term Muslim in its name," Ebrahim said. "We can market products by indicating made in Armm or product of Armm to mean high quality of Halal goods."

Ebrahim also revealed that one of the largest numbers of halal consumers is in Asean.

"When business conglomerates and foreign investors look at Asean, they treat it as one market. The Philippines has a Halal market of eight million Muslims or ten percent of the country's population and this has not been sufficiently tapped by the Halal players in the country," he said.

He added that the Philippines has the second largest Muslim population, next to Indonesia, among ten countries in the world identified with a Muslim population.

Meanwhile, Ebrahim said Halal is not just about foods and beverage. It is also about Islamic banking and finance, fashion, clothing, publishing, branding, and more.

"All of these and more could be categorized within the Halal concept. Halal now is a universal concept," Ebrahim said.

He said Halal products and services can be consumed by anyone, adding that non-Muslims buy Halal because of its standard quality.

"Halal slaughter is also the best practice of animal welfare. Halal food means low fat, healthy and wholesome. Halal finance is the most social equitable and just way of wealth management," he said.

He said there is an increasing global competition for Halal. Countries like Thailand, Brunei, Singapore, China, Australia, and the Philippines are capitalizing on the growing Halal market, which value is estimated at US$2.1 trillion annually for food and non-food.

Halal non-food would include pharmaceutical, health products, medical devices, cosmetics and toiletries. Halal services, on the other hand, will include logistics, packaging, branding, electronic, media, travel, and tourism.

It is no longer a concept confined or restricted to the slaughtering of animals for Muslim consumption, but encompasses products and services of the highest quality to meet the ever-increasing awareness and need of consumers in a demanding global market. (JGRS)

Sumilao farmers back in Manila, stage march for CARP (http://http://www.gmanews.tv/story/151599/Sumilao-farmers-back-in-Manila-stage-march-for-CARP)
03/06/2009 | 07:42 AM

MANILA, Philippines - One year after marching to Manila to fight for their land, some 200 farmers from Sumilao, Bukidnon, staged another march rally in Manila Friday, this time for genuine agrarian reform.

The farmers started their march as early as 5 a.m. along United Nations Avenue, heading for Quiapo Church for a mass before marching to Luneta Park for a signature campaign for Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) with Reforms (Carper).

"Kakalap kami ng signature campaign para sa panawagan namin [We will gather signatures to support our drive for genuine agrarian reform],"
Napoleon "Yoyong" Merida, one of the farmers, said in an interview on dzBB radio.

Radio dzBB's Louie Garcia reported the farmers' march along UN Avenue was peaceful, as traffic in the area was light at the time.

Merida said they are pushing for Congress to pass the bill on Carper.

He said they started their march from Bukidnon and passed Cagayan de Oro, Butuan, and Surigao in Mindanao; Matnog in Sorsogon; and through parts of Southern Luzon.

The Sumilao farmers gained public attention last year when they marched all the way from Bukidnon in Mindanao to Manila. - GMANews.TV

March 18 is Mindanao Peace Power Day (http://www.mindanews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6031&Itemid=75)
By Froilan Gallardo

DAVAO CITY -- The Mindanao Peoples Caucus (MPC) announced Wednesday an ambitious plan for residents in war-affected communities to go out on the streets on March 18 and demand the resumption of the stalled peace talks between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).
Lawyer Mary Ann Arnado, MPC director, said they are urging residents in the cities of Cotabato, Davao, Tacurong, Koronadal, General Santos and Digos to take to the highways for a few hours that day for the “Mindanao Peace Power Day” which the MPC describes in its invitation as “an island-wide peaceful mobilization of sectors and peoples affected by the ongoing war in (Southwestern) Mindanao.”

"This is a little sacrifice we are making in exchange for peace in Mindanao," Arnado told reporters during a press conference last Wednesday. “The evacuees who are still in the evacuation centers are craving for peace so their lives will be normal again. Let's help them," she added.

The United Nations estimated that there are still some 300,000 evacuees in Maguindanao and North Cotbato and the two Lanao provinces who are still living in makeshift roadside tents unable to return to their homes because of the ongoing military operations against Ameril Umbra Kato and Abdullah Macapaar alias “Kumander Bravo,” two of three “rogue commanders” of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) wanted by authorities for the series of deadly attacks last year.

The planned mass action coincides with the 41st anniversary of the Jabidah Massacre where 26 young Moros being trained by government to invade Sabah, Malaysia were allegedly ordered murdered by their Army training officers in Corregidor.

Jibin Arula, the lone survivor of the Corregidor massacre, is in Davao City to help drum up support for the “Mindanao Peace Power Day."

MPC is also initiating the 1st International Solidarity Conference on Mindanao on March 16-18 at the Davao Convention Center with the theme, “Building Bridges of Solidarity for the Bangsamoro Peoples' Right to Self-Determination.”

The international conference aims to “increase international presence and solidarity for the peaceful political settlement of the armed conflict in Mindanao; strengthen international cooperation in monitoring compliance of International Humanitarian Laws and Human Rights; and identify critical roles and involvement that the international community could play in the areas of humanitarian protection, human rights, peacekeeping, mediation and facilitation etc.”

Romy Elusfa, MPC spokesperson, said NGOs in the two Lanao provinces are also working to urge residents to go out on March 18.

"While the campaign has the resumption of the peace talks between the government and the MILF as main focus, it shall allow all other sectors and groups in Mindanao to also ventilate other peace related issues and demands," Elusfa said in a statement.

PSALM prepares to sell Agus, Pulangi hydropower plants (http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=446819&publicationSubCategoryId=66)
By Donnabelle L. Gatdula Updated March 09, 2009 12:00 AM


MANILA, Philippines - The Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) will prepare for the sale of Agus and Pulangi hydropower plants by the second half of 2009, a top PSALM official said.

PSALM president and CEO Jose Ibazeta, in an interview by Oxford Business Group, said they would make necessary preparations for the privatization of these two big hydro assets this year.

“Preparations for the sale of the Agus and Pulangi hydropower complexes will commence by the second half of 2009, with the actual asset sale to be conducted in 2011,” Ibazeta said.

Under the EPIRA of 2001, the government can sell these two huge hydro assets 10 years after the passage of the power law.

Napocor’s Mindanao Generation currently operates Agus Hydroelectric Power Complex.

The Agus has seven facilities with total capacity of over 700 megawatts.

The first Agus plant, Agus 6, was created in 1953. The newest of the Agus power plant is Agus 1 which went online in 1992.

Pulangi which is located in Bukidnon and has 255 MW capacity, commenced operations in 1985.

Ibazeta said they are also planing to bid out all the National Power Corp. -independent power producers (Napocor-IPPs) contracts, which are expected to expire within the next two years.

Under the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA), PSALM is required to appoint IPPAs to manage and control Napocor-IPP plants until such time that the contracts have expired.

Based on earlier proposals, the IPPAs will handle the contracts of Napocor with total 4,221 MW capacity.

The IPPAs will be tapped through a competitive bidding; and those targeted are international power industry players and traders to be engaged as IPP administrators.

But the PSALM chief said the scheduled sale of assets will still depend on the market situation.

“These plans, as which PSALM’s overall schedule for the privatization of generation assets, depend on a confluence of factors such as investors’ interests and plant-specific concerns,” Ibazeta said.

PSALM is optimistic it could meet the 70 percent privatization level target this year as this will allow the start of open access.

Open access will give bulk electricity users with more than one MW requirement to choose where to source their power needs.

PSALM was trying to accelerate the privatization of the energy contracts of Napocor with IPPs through the selection of IPP administrators because this is one of the preconditions to open access and retail competition.

It was believed that the implementation of open access and retail competition will eventually translate to more reasonable electricity prices for Filipino consumers.

Mindanao shows way for RP (http://themindanaocurrent.blogspot.com/)


The entire island of Mindanao lead the entire country in economic growth in 2008. This was reported by Usec Virgilo Leyretana in an encounter with members of media. Leyretana is the Chairman of MEDCO. The Mindanao economic council. The report was confirmed by NEDA at the meeting of the Regional development Council.

In a presentation by Leon M Dacanay, Jr., Regional Director of NEDA-X, the national GNP has slowed down from 8.7 in 2007 to 6.1 in 2008. Mindanao had the same figures as the entire country, having the highest among all the other areas.

Region 10 lead the way in Mindanao and was followed by Region 11.

Leyretana claimed that the economic performance of the entire Mindanao was 17.7 percent, “in spite of the fact that 6 of the poorest provinces are in Mindanao.”

The lead of region 10 is because of its infrastructure projects and its having an Industrial hub.

He pointed out that 60% of the agricultural produce of the country comes from Mindanao, 30% of the food requirement is produced in the island together with 43% of the fish production. From 2003 to 2008 56.33% of the National Output came from Mindanao.

In 2008 the island received 12.9 Billion pesos of investments in which a big bulk were in power generation that included the STEAG power plant in Villanueva, Misamis Oriental.

Back at the RDC Meeting, RDC Chairman Gov, JJ Romualdo of Camiguin said Region 10 has remained to be the biggest contributor to Mindanao’s growth, registering 28% of the island’s total production. This was valued at P67.6 Billion in 2007 at constant 1885 prices. This robust performance was sustained, growing by 7.9%, higher than the 6.8% growth in 2006 and exceeding the MTRDP target of 6.2%.

This growth was propelled by the 8.9% growth in the industry and supported by the 8% and the 6.7% growths in services and Agriculture sectors respectively.

With these figures, NEDA expects the region to grow sideways for 2009, projecting a GNP at 4.3 to 6.2 and GDP at 3.7 to 4.7. These are based on the assumptions that the currency will remain stable; that fuel prices will also be stable; that inflation will be easing; that there will be an increase in OFW remittances and the weather will be favorable.

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_p6TqhBe7UlU/SbHvQmTP2hI/AAAAAAAAIeI/a2e455zNyEw/s320/Leyretana.jpg
USEC Virgilio Leyretana of MEDCO as he meets the press on the growth of Mindanao.

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_p6TqhBe7UlU/SbHvhkG44ZI/AAAAAAAAIeQ/da0irej2uTQ/s1600/RDC%2BMeeting.jpg
Camiguin Governor JJ Romualdo as he confirms the figures of Leyretana at the Regional Development Council-X Meeting of which he is the Chairman. Photo by Ed Montalvan/PPA-=CdeO.

Mindanao peace gathering to push for resumption of GRP-MILF talks (http://http://www.gmanews.tv/story/151840/Mindanao-peace-gathering-to-push-for-resumption-of-GRP-MILF-talks)
03/08/2009 | 08:50 AM

MANILA, Philippines - Peace advocates in southern Philippines will gather on March 18 to push anew the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) into resuming their stalled peace talks.

The Mindanao People Caucus (MPC), which organized the event, said the Mindanao Peace Power Day is set for March 18 and would include civilians affected by the conflict.

“While the campaign has the resumption of the peace talks between the government and the MILF as the main focus, it shall allow all other sectors and groups in Mindanao to also ventilate other peace-related issues and demands," the MPC said in an article posted on the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) website.

Other issues expected to be tackled in the event are the Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD), mining, human rights, agrarian reform, housing, labor, migration and environment.

MPC said the Mindanao Peace Power Day would follow the International Conference on Mindanao that will be held in Davao City March 16-17. Conference delegates would be invited to join, accompany or observe the March 18 protest as a show of support and solidarity to the lingering issues of peace, freedom and justice.

“During the protest all Mindanaoans will be urged to go out of their communities with their streamers and placards, and converge along national highways from Cotabato City to Davao City, Tacurong City to Koronadal City, Koronadal City to Digos City, Tagum City to Davao
City, Marawi City to Iligan City, and others,” the MPC said.

The group said main demand should be for the resumption of the peace talks but protest participants can also express their own sentiments, calls and demands, which are peace-related as well.

“The plight and demands of the internally displaced persons, especially the human rights violations committed against them, shall also be highlighted,” the MPC said, adding that the campaign will culminate on March 18, the 41st anniversary of the Jabidah massacre. - GMANews.TV

Manila Ocean Park eyes Visayas Mindanao market
Updated March 10, 2009 12:00 AM

CEBU, Philippines – After a year of operations, the country’s first world-class marine themed park, Manila Ocean Park, is now starting to make its presence felt in the huge Visayas and Mindanao market to further boost its growing clientele base.

Manila Ocean Park was among the many Manila-based tourism stakeholders that participated in the recently concluded 5th Vis-Min Travel and Lifestyle Show held at the SM City Cebu that ran for three days.

In an interview with Jerlyn M. Mapile, an account executive from the corporate marketing of Manila Ocean Park, she said that their recent move to penetrate VisMin is in line with their company’s vision to further promote the themed park to the rest of the Filipino populace.

Manila Ocean Park adopts a fusion concept as it brings together an oceanarium, a mall, a restaurant row, hotel, swimming lagoons and multi-purpose function facilities under one complex.

Currently, it houses the first and largest aquarium facility in the country with an oceanarium and a reef simulation lagoon of seawater that features an assortment of colorful fishes and invertebrates that are indigenous to the Philippines and in Southeast Asia.

Mapile said that the Manila Ocean Park is doing extremely well for the first year of its operation and on a daily average, they get around 20, 000 visitors.

She said that the Manila Ocean Park is positioning itself as an educational and corporate tourism destination so it aims to tap into the huge MICE (meetings, incentives, conference and exhibition) market as well as the thriving educational tours segment.

She added that this year, they are also looking at increasing their market base from Visayas and Mindanao so they have partnered with a Korean travel company Island Resort Club Tour Services, Inc. which will assist them in marketing the park in the Vis-Min regions.

“We are now open for corporations, travel agencies and students but these are usually from the vicinity of Luzon so we partnered with IRC to help us wholesale to the huge Vis-Min market,” said Mapile.

Currently, Manila Ocean Park’s hotel property called as H2O Hotel is being constructed within the park and this is targeted to be opened on August of this year.

The facility will have 147 rooms and it is expected to be a five star accommodation because the company is eyeing it to become another prime hotel destination in the country, said Mapile.

“Marketing Manila Ocean Park will not be difficult because it is something new and people will likely want to come and experience what it has to offer. So far we have already established ourselves in the global market because we have linkages in Spain, Taiwan, Japan, Turkey, Singapore, Hong Kong and Korea. Volume-wise we already have a huge international client-base but we are still continuously developing the market in Vis-Min,” said Robert Choi the CEO and president of Island Resort Club Tour Services, Incorporated.

He said that right now they are still in the introductory phase of their promotion efforts in the Vis-Min market.

“We are eyeing to establish partnerships in the Vis-Min market from travel agents, domestic airlines to shipping and so far we have started gathering a lot of inquiries from different agencies. We are aggressive despite the current crisis because we know the situation will be temporary so we continue to focus on maintaining the volume,” said Choi.

The Manila Ocean Park is a joint undertaking of Singaporean and Malaysian investors and it is a subsidiary of the Singapore registered company China Oceanis Pte Ltd., one of the China Oceanis Group of Companies with a core business in designing, developing and operation and installation of public aquaria.— Rhia de Pablo

http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=447065&publicationSubCategoryId=108

Norwegian govt honors Pinoy farmer (http://http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2009/march/10/yehey/top_stories/20090310top8.htmlhttp://www.manilatimes.net/national/2009/march/10/yehey/top_stories/20090310top8.html)

A Filipino farmer from North Cotabato was again honored on the first anniversary of the Svalbard Global Seed Vault in Norway for showing the world that simple farmers like him upheld biodiversity through their indigenous knowledge.

Norway Minister of Agriculture and Food Lars Peder Brekk cited Eulogio Sasi Jr., who, despite only four years of formal education, was blessed with thousands of years of local agricultural know-how that was passed down to him from village elders.

“One year ago, when the Svalbard Global Seed Vault was officially opened, this room was filled with more than 150 invited guests representing 33 countries and five continents. Among them were the president of the European Community, Mr. Jose Manuel Barrosso; the Director General of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, Mr. Jacques Diouf; and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Dr. Wangari Maathai. All contributed to our program, sharing their insights into the importance and impact of crop genetic diversity. But at this moment, I would like to mention another person who was present that day. One of the most memorable voices of that seminar, Mr. Tay Gipo—a subsistence farmer from the Philippines,” Brekk said, using the name that Sasi was more known for.

Sasi spoke during the opening conference of the Global Seed Vault on the Arctic island of Svalbard on February 25, 2008. He passed away on February 16, 2009, a few days before the first anniversary of the opening of the seed vault, at the age of 64 in President Roxas, North Cotabato, in southern Mindanao.

In a speech, Brekk said Sasi’s legacy remains in the fields of the Philippines, where his “Bordagol” is grown by his neighbors and their neighbors.

“Like other rice growers in the Philippines, Mr. Gipo switched to high-yielding, improved varieties in the late 1960s. But, he and his neighbors still struggled with pests and diseases, like the tungro virus. During a particularly tough year, he noticed one plant in his field that did not succumb to the virus. He literally had to pull the plant from the mouth of a farm animal who was planning to have it for a snack—he saved the seeds, replanted them and the next season he harvested 25 kilograms just from the seeds of that one plant. With his incredible success, the rice he himself named “Bordagol” was born,” he added.

Preserving a legacy

Brekk said that Sasi’s legacy remains as well in Svalbard, where seeds of his “Bordagol” are safely stored for the future.

“I mention his name for two reasons. One to illustrate how the field-level knowledge of our farmers continues to be the most important element of crop conservation. But also to keep his memory alive. Because just days ago we received word that our fellow agriculturalist, Tay Gipo, passed away this month at the age of 64,” he added.

In 1985, Sasi developed the rice variety that was resistant to pest and diseases. He named it “Bordagol,” a comic character from a children’s funny comics.

“I chose this name because the character, ‘Bordagol’ in the cartoon strip has a good trait and was able to save their planet. I thought that like the cartoon character, this plant could help us farmers because according to our elders, if a rice plant possesses purple tillers, it is resistant to disease,” he said during the launching of the global seed vault last year.

Simple story

Franco Esdrelon Jr., SEARICE Mindanao Program coordinator based in President Roxas, North Cotabato, said that “the simple story of Tay Gipo brought home the message to all governments about the role of farmers in seed conservation. He reminded all of us that the seeds being deposited in the Global Seed Vault and all the genebanks are products of generations of farmers’ knowledge and innovations across the world that are entrusted to this generation and for the future generation.”

Esdrelon worked with “Tay Gipo” and other farmers on conservation and development of agricultural biodiversity through promotion of farmer-breeding, use of local seeds and sustainable agriculture in President Roxas and in other farming communities in the provinces of Sultan Kudarat, Bukidnon and Misamis Oriental, also all in Mindanao.

“Tay Gipo has left a daunting challenge to the heads of governments in his speech during the opening of the seed vault last year. He posed the challenge that farmers’ contribution to agricultural biodiversity be recognized and supported,” he said.

SEARICE is a nongovernment organization based in Southeast Asia calling on the government to adopt strategies that will strengthen farmers’ access to production resources and technologies that reduce their dependence on external inputs particularly seeds.
--Ira Karen Apanay

SEN PIMENTEL SAYS Federalism ‘last viable option’ for Mindanao (http://http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view/20090310-193365/Federalism-last-viable-option-for-Mindanao)

By Maila Ager
INQUIRER.net
First Posted 14:55:00 03/10/2009

MANILA, Philippines -- The creation of a Bangsamoro state that will be part of a federal Philippine republic is the “last viable option” left to government after the Supreme Court struck down as unconstitutional the memorandum of agreement on ancestral domain (MOA-AD) with Moro rebels, Senator Aquilino Pimentel Jr.

Pimentel, who has been asked by Malacañang to become an adviser of the government peace panel in talks with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), said he doubts plans to amend the Organic Act, which created the existing Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), would address the issue of ancestral domain.

The MOA-AD was supposed to pave the way for the creation of a Bangsamoro Juridical Entity that would expand on the existing ARMM.

When the Supreme Court stopped its signing in August last year, a number of MILF commanders led their men in attacks on several communities in central Mindanao, triggering renewed hostilities.

Pimentel, the Senate minority leader, said he has not accepted the Palace offer yet
“pending clarification of a number of things connected with the post.”

The senator reiterated his call for government to consider federalism to address the Moro insurgency.

“I am espousing the establishment of a federal system of government that will include a federal state of the BangsaMoro in lieu of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao,” he said.

60 Mindanao public schools get ICT packages (http://www.mb.com.ph/node/198256)
By Madel Sabater

To ensure students in Muslim areas are well-equipped and competitive in science and mathematics, the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) has developed a program that would increase Muslim students’ capabilities in the key subject areas, starting with the provision of information and communications technology (ICT) packages in 60 public elementary schools in Northern Mindanao and the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

DOST’s Science Education Institute (SEI) has provided ICT packages to 60 public elementary schools in Mindanao as part of the three-year MOVEUPS project or the “Mindanao Opportunities for Vitalized Education and Upgrading of Science.”

SEI director Dr. Ester Ogena said the ICT packages, which include a laptop, multimedia projector, and software packages, among others, were distributed to 21 public elementary schools in Lanao del Sur, 10 public elementary students each in Lanao del Norte, Shariff Kabunsuan, and Maguindanao; and nine public elementary schools in Marawi City, Lanao del Sur.

MOVEUPS project seeks to strengthen the capabilities of the 60 identified elementary feeder schools of the Philippine Science High School-Central Mindanao Campus (PSHS-CMC) in Balo-i, Lanao del Norte.

“We want more of our students in Mindanao to qualify in the PSHS and we can do it by giving them the appropriate basic education that would prepare them in entering a science high school,” Ogena said.
The project includes teacher and principals management training; annual science camps; laboratory equipment support; development of aptitude tests; development of parents and principals handbook and manual of the project; and support for library and reference materials.

Ogena said the project also intends to develop more relevant approaches and strategies for more effective teaching and learning, particularly in Science, Mathematics, and English subjects in the Muslim dominated feeder schools.

“We want our students to improve their performance in Science and Mathematics education in Muslim dominated elementary schools,” she said.

“We want to equip our elementary pupils with adequate educational experiences that will ensure greater chances and opportunities of being admitted to the PSHS-CMC,” she added.

About 90 students are admitted in a PSHS campus in Mindanao every year, with campuses in Lanao del Norte and Davao.

Ogena earlier disclosed that the project is worth R50-million for a period of three years and will be headed by Dr. Dolores Pattuinan of the Mindanao State University (MSU) – Marawi City. SEI initially pegged in R16-million for the project last year.

OIC chief not coming for review of GRP-MNLF deal (http://http://www.gmanews.tv/story/152142/OIC-chief-not-coming-for-review-of-GRP-MNLF-deal)
03/10/2009 | 07:53 PM

MANILA, Philippines — Diplomats of the member states of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) in Manila will resume on Wednesday the tripartite review of the implementation of a peace agreement between government and the Moro National Liberation Front in 1996.

But the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) said OIC Secretary-General Ekmeleddin Ihsanuglo will not be coming to join the review.

"Instead, he will be represented by his special envoy, Ambassador Sayyed Kaseem El-Masry, OIC Director Talal Daus, Director Taher Saif and Ali Demirci, El-Masry's special assistant," the MILF said in an article on its website (www.luwaran.net).

The MILF said Indonesian Deputy Foreign Minister Reslan Jeni is also expected to come to preside over the tripartite meeting, being PCSP chairman.

The MILF said Ihsanuglo, who was present in the Jeddah and Istanbul three-way meetings, agreed to convene the tripartite talks after the conflicting reports of GRP and MNLF on the implementation of the final peace agreement.

He is not available for the third session of the tripartite meeting, it said.

Undersecretary Nabil Tan of the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) will head the GRP Peace Panel, while lawyer Randolph Parcasio will lead the MNLF Peace Panel.

The MILF said the main objective of the third tripartite talks is to carry out its mandate from the second three-way talks in Istanbul, Turkey, in 2008.

Expected to be discussed in the three-way talks are the five joint working groups (JWGs) as bases for the possible amendment of Republic Act No. 9054, the organic law of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), he said.

Joint working groups involve Shari'ah and Judiciary; Special Regional Security Force and the Unified Command for the Autonomous Region in Mindanao; Natural Resources and Economic Development issues; Political system and representation; and Education.

OIC officials will be in the March 11 to 13 peace talks as their respective countries are members of the Peace Committee for Southern Philippines (PCSP), which is brokering the GRP-MNLF talks.

Indonesia is the chairman of the PCSP, with Saudi Arabia, Libya, Senegal, Somalia, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Brunei, Egypt, Turkey, and Pakistan as members.

The OIC delegation will participate in the third session of the third main tripartite meeting — OIC, GRP and MNLF — to review the GRP-MNLF peace treaty.

MNLF chairman Nur Misuari is expected to attend the meeting but not to personally lead the MNLF delegation.

The first session of the tripartite meeting for the review of the historic GRP-MNLF peace agreement was in 2007 in Jeddah and the second session in Istanbul. - GMANews.TV

World Bank meets Mindanao contractors

Davao City (11 March) -- A team from World Bank (WB) and some Mindanao contractors meet recently here to clarify the procurement process under the Mindanao Rural Development Program 2 (MRDP2).

Carolina F. Geron, the WB Senior Operations officer along with her pool of consultants, said the activity is part of the transparency and accountability mechanisms embedded in the design of MRDP.

"The transparency mechanism is embedded to eradicate the score of corruption on government projects," Geron said.

MRDP designed to alleviate poverty in rural Mindanao is expected to pour in multimillion worth of rural infrastructures like farm-to-market roads, irrigation systems, pre/post harvest facilities, potable water systems and single lane bridges in key food production areas along with livelihood projects and environmental conservation.

To date, a frontload of infrastructure projects amounting to P1.6 billion for 125 towns which will cover over 302 km of farm-to-market roads, 37 meters of single land bridges, 150 hectares serviceable area of irrigation and 8 units of potable water systems is expected to hit the ground this year.

Geron said that MRDP follows the harmonized bidding document which stipulates procurement policy borne out of the RA 9184 or the National Procurement Law and the World Bank Procurement process.

"In MRDP, we follow the combined important aspects of the national policy as well as the procurement of the (World) Bank," she said.

Program Director Roger C. Chio said that the Department of Agriculture (DA) lauds the active involvement of the Bank particularly in institutionalizing upright policies in the procurement and implementation of government projects.

"This partnership will help the Department build its credibility to the private sectors and the public on its efforts of an honest delivery of services juxtaposed the image of corruption," Chio said.

"Aside from discussions on fund releases and accountability, we also stress on the quality of output, as infrastructures are the costliest of investments," Chio added.

He stressed that "infrastructure acts as backbone of rural productivity thus, DA puts it foremost among its various project in 2009."

Further, Chio said that meeting with contractors is a way of establishing a harmonious relationship between the private sector and the government for effective delivery of services to the community.

"The meeting will also provide a venue to hear issues, comments and recommendations of the contractors regarding the implementations of projects in MRDP 2," he said.

Meanwhile, Geron added that meeting with contractors will be a regular part of MRDP activities until its projects are all implemented. (SBManual-MRDP/PIAXI) [top]

http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&sec=reader&rp=1&fi=p090311.htm&no=7&date=

2009/03/11

Traders still bullish on BIMP-EAGA

Manila (11 March) -- Upbeat with the prospects of the Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines- East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA), business chambers in Mindanao are pushing for more representation in the ongoing policy discussions and in various trade and investment initiatives within the sub-region.

Miguel Varela, Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) chair, said business chambers under the umbrella of PCCI-Mindanao have started to revive their linkages with BIMP-EAGA stakeholders and help promote more cross-border exchanges and capital flow in the area.

"They (Mindanao business chambers) want to become active players again (in the BIMP-EAGA)," he said.

Most business chambers in Mindanao were relegated to the sidelines of the BIMP-EAGA affairs since 2004 following a conflict among leading business groups in the island.

But PCCI's affiliates, which lists at least 36 active groupings, have since regrouped under a reconfigured PCCI-Mindanao.

Varela said the PCCI leadership is fully behind the move and is currently considering designating Elena Haw, the group's vice president for Mindanao, as point person for the BIMP-EAGA.

Haw was part of the Philippine delegation that joined President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in the 5th BIMP-EAGA Leaders Summit late last month at the Dusit Thani Resort Hotel in Hua Hin, Thailand.

"(BIMP-EAGA activities) have slowed down during the past years and I think we need to bring in some help," he said.

The BIMP-EAGA was launched in 1994 as a sub-regional grouping that focuses on the development of trade, investment and tourism potentials of the four countries through an integrated regional cooperation.

BIMP-EAGA comprises the entire sultanate of Brunei Darrussalam; the provinces of Kalimantan, Sulawesi, Maluku, and West Papua in Indonesia; the states of Sabah and Sarawak and the federal territory of Labuan in Malaysia; and, Mindanao and Palawan in the Philippines.

The sub-region is eyed as a major base in ASEAN for "high value-added agro-industries, natural resource-based manufacturing, high-grade tourism as well as non resource-based industries."

The BIMP-EAGA summit, which was also attended by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi of Malaysia, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah of Brunei and President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, were held on the side of the 14th ASEAN Summit hosted by Thailand. (PIA-MMIO) [top]

http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&sec=reader&rp=1&fi=p090311.htm&no=10&date=

Moderate quake jolts S. Mindanao (http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/regions/view/20090312-193737/Moderate-quake-jolts-S-Mindanao)
By Jeffrey Maitem

COTABATO CITY – A magnitude-4.7 earthquake hit the southern Philippines Thursday morning, the United States Geological Survey reported on its website.

The quake was recorded at 10:43 a.m., and located 155 miles southwest of General Santos City and 185 miles of southeast of Zamboanga city in the southern Mindanao region.

No casualties or damages were reported and no tsunami alert was raised, the USGS said.

The Philippines sits in the Pacific "Ring of Fire" where continental plates collide, causing frequent seismic and volcanic activity.

The worst earthquake in Mindanao occurred on Aug. 16, 1976.

The quake in the Cotabato Basin triggered a tsunami that killed between 5,000 and 8,000 people.

i haven't felt the quake..

Smart to focus plans in Mindanao this year
Mindanao Daily Mirror
March 13, 2009

Smart Communications Inc. chief wireless advisor Orlando Vea revealed that this year their plans will focus more in Mindanao.

“We feel that there are still markets to be tapped,” Vea said in an interview after their MOA (Memo-randum of Agreement) signing with the Depart-ment of Tourism Region 11 for Smart Infoboard project at the Intercontinental Club of Marco Polo Davao on March 11.

Vea said that they will be bringing the mobile broadband, which accor-ding to him is the fastest growing segment of the business, here in Mindanao.

“Actually, it’s already starting,” Vea said.

In 2008, Smart has acquired a subscribers’ base growth of 35.2 million in which six million are Mindanao.

“This is a very healthy growth. Davao has always been a Smart country. That is why we want to give it back to the subscribers. But there are things we offer here that are not offered in other areas,” said PLDT-Smart Public Affairs Mon Isberto.

The recent MOA signing with the DOT for the Infoboard project builds up Smart’s presence here in the region.

“It can benefit us by establishing our presence. We don’t expect a lot of money from this project,” Isberto said. Maya M. Padillo

Smart to focus plans in Mindanao this year
Mindanao Daily Mirror
March 13, 2009

Smart Communications Inc. chief wireless advisor Orlando Vea revealed that this year their plans will focus more in Mindanao.

“We feel that there are still markets to be tapped,” Vea said in an interview after their MOA (Memo-randum of Agreement) signing with the Depart-ment of Tourism Region 11 for Smart Infoboard project at the Intercontinental Club of Marco Polo Davao on March 11.

Vea said that they will be bringing the mobile broadband, which accor-ding to him is the fastest growing segment of the business, here in Mindanao.

“Actually, it’s already starting,” Vea said.

In 2008, Smart has acquired a subscribers’ base growth of 35.2 million in which six million are Mindanao.

“This is a very healthy growth. Davao has always been a Smart country. That is why we want to give it back to the subscribers. But there are things we offer here that are not offered in other areas,” said PLDT-Smart Public Affairs Mon Isberto.

The recent MOA signing with the DOT for the Infoboard project builds up Smart’s presence here in the region.

“It can benefit us by establishing our presence. We don’t expect a lot of money from this project,” Isberto said. Maya M. Padillo

in contrary, here in our place- Zamboanga..Globe rules..napakakonti lang talaga ng share ng Smart sa market..

Mindanao getting P8.8 billion in fresh public funding for roads, bridges this year (http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2009/march/16/yehey/prov/20090316pro2.html)


CARMEN, Cotabato: The whole of Mindanao is getting some P8.8 billion in fresh public funding this year for roads and bridges, Rep. Emmylou Taliño-Mendoza of Cotabato disclosed Sunday.

Taliño-Mendoza said the amount is contained in this year’s P1.414-trillion national budget, which President Arroyo signed into law Friday.

“There is no question that Mindanao desperately needs a massive and quick injection of public infrastructure spending now and in the years ahead to drive economic end employment growth,” Taliño-Mendoza said.

“For instance, according to the National Economic Development Authority, we have 6,009 kilometers of national roads throughout Mindanao, yet 44 percent of them, or 2,650 kilometers are still unpaved,” she said.

Taliño-Mendoza said infrastructure projects not only instantly create new jobs that directly benefit poor households, but also enable greater efficiencies that generate more income for farmers and lower food prices.

“Mindanao moves large quantities of farm produce every year. Thus, we definitely welcome new infrastructures that not only allow our farmers to produce more, but also make it possible for them to convey products faster,” she said.

Every year, Taliño-Mendoza said Mindanao moves some four million metric tons (MT) of corn, 3.9 million MT of palay, 9.5 million MT of coconut, 6.5 million MT of bananas, 3.8 million MT of sugar, two million MT of pineapple and 1.5 million MT of cassava.

Citing data from the National Statistics Office, she also said that every year, Mindanao moves some 500,000 live weight MT of swine, 250,000 MT of chicken and 82,000 MT of cattle.

“Additional infrastructures will clearly make us more productive, more efficient and more competitive,” Taliño-Mendoza said.

The Cotabato lawmaker stressed the need for government to consciously increase infrastructure spending for Mindanao to compensate for the private sector’s apparent disinclination to invest in such projects, mainly due to perceived peace and order issues.

“Metro Manila and Luzon can easily lure private capital to build skyways and similar projects. But in Mindanao’s case, our access to private infrastructure spending is limited,” Taliño-Mendoza said.

“This is why government has to come in, and accord Mindanao preferential treatment with respect to such investments that build the foundation for stable long-term economic growth,” she added.

PGMA presides over 27th full Cabinet meeting at Phivedec (http://pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090317.htm&no=07)

Cagayan de Oro City (17 March) -- President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is scheduled to preside over the 27th full Cabinet meeting today at the Phivedec Industrial Estate in Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental.

To be attended by some 70 cabinet secretaries, the theme of the meeting is the Mindanao Agri-business Accomplishments and Initiatives of the Mindanao Super Region.

Sec. Jesus Dureza, the Mindanao Agri-Business Champion, will render a report on the status of the infrastructure and other projects undertaken in the island.

Agribusiness Mindanao is one of the country's four (4) super regions which the President has envisioned to enhance the competitive advantage of its natural resources.

The others are the North Luzon Agribusiness Quadrangle, the Luzon Urban Beltway, Central Philippines and the Cyber Corridor.

"When harnessed together, these major economic regions of the nation are larger than the sum of its parts," the President said.

Meanwhile, Sec. Arthur Yap will report on the rice situation and Sec. Avelino I. Razon, Jr., Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process, on the Mindanao peace situation.

Also to be discussed during the meeting are the different activities during this year"s Independence Day in June and the assignments of the cabinet secretaries relative to the celebration. (PIA 10) [top]

President orders accelerated completion of Mindanao infra projects
By GENALYN KABILING
March 18, 2009, 12:00am

Cagayan de Oro City -- President Arroyo on Tuesday ordered authorities to accelerate the completion of dozens of new roads, airports, irrigation systems, and other infrastructure projects in Agribusiness Mindanao Superregion.

At the cabinet meeting held at the Phividec Industrial Park in Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental, the President welcomed the completion of 14 major infrastructure projects worth P 15 billion in Mindanao but asked for the swift implementation of 27 ongoing projects at the end of the year.

Mrs. Arroyo said the infrastructure projects would help improve agricultural production and spur economic development in the south, often saddled with insurgency and other security problems.

During the cabinet meeting, Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Jesus Dureza made a presentation on the status of and achievements in infrastructure and other projects in the Mindanao Super region, the country’s agribusiness center.

Among the ongoing projects targeted for completion in 2009 are the P 3.96 billion Sibuco-Sirawai-Siocon-Baliguan road; P 504 million-Dinagat Island road; P 367 million Dapitan-Dakak road; P 3.65 billion Kapalong-Talaingod road; P 363 million Iligan City circumferential road; P 90 million Hawilian-Salug-Sinakungan barangay road; P 2.73 billion Central Mindanao road; P 891 million Surigao-Davao Coastal Road; P 1.175 billion Surigao-Davao coastal road; P 7.83 billion Laguindingan airport development project; P 478 million Dipolog Airport development project; P 215 million Ozamiz Airport development project; P 428 million Zamboanga airport development project; P 379 million Pagadian airport development project; P 600 million Cotabato Airport project; and the P 700 million Butuan airport.

Other projects targeted for completion in 2010 are the P 563 million Malaig national river irrigation project and the P 1.3 billion farm-to-market roads in Mindanao.

Dureza, the cabinet member assigned to the the Mindanao Super Region, said seven of the 34 major infrastructure projects under the Mindanao Super Region have already been completed in the past year.

These projects include the 210-mw Mindanao Coal-fired Power Plant in Tagoloan, the 950-kv Photovoltaic Power Plant in Cagayan de Oro City, the Diosdado Macapagal Bridge in Butuan City, the Manay-Mati Road section of the Surigao-Davao Coastal Road, port development projects in Davao City and Cagayan de Oro City and the upgrading of provincial and district hospitals.

Completed under the hospitals upgrading program were the Dr. Jose P. Rizal Memorial Hospital in Dapitan City, the Zamboanga del Norte Provincial Hospital, the Zamboanga del Sur General Hospital, the Mindanao Central Sanitarium and Camp Navarro General Hospital in Zamboanga City, the Basilan General Hospital and the Compostela Valley District Hospital.

“By the end of the year, more roads, airports, irrigation projects, and farm-to-market roads are expected to be completed,” Dureza said.

Dureza said these infrastructure projects would boost business activities, reduce transport costs and travel time, and generate employment. So far, he said investments have increased in the third quarter of 2008, registered at P12.90 million which generated 9,298 jobs.

Dureza said these developments will enable Mindanao to further increase its capacity to contribute to the country’s agricultural and fishery production, as well as hike or at least maintain Mindanao’s GDP share of 17.7 percent.

Among the challenges to the economic development in Mindanao are poorest provinces, low literacy rate and peace and order problem, according to Dureza.

Six of the 10 poorest provinces in the country are located in Mindanao, namely Tawi-Tawi, Zamboanga del Norte, Maguindanao, Surigao del Norte, Lanao del Sur, and Misamis Occidental. Also, 19.2 percent of families in Mindanao are considered food-poor.

Other super regions being developed by the Arroyo government are the North Luzon Agribusiness Quadrangle (NLAQ), the Luzon Urban Beltway, Central Philippines, Mindanao as the Agribusiness center of the south and the Cyber Services Corridor.

http://www.mb.com.ph/node/199391

USAid-funded program boosts Mindanao dev't
Saturday, March 21, 2009

By Joy Romares-Sevilla

THE Mindanao Economic Development Council (Medco) has cited key achievements of the USAid-funded Growth with Equity in Mindanao (GEM) program in terms of developing business in the island last year.

GEM is one of the components under the five-year $190 million Mindanao Peace and Development (MPAD) Program of Medco.

A Medco report said that GEM was able to identify some priority export commodities produced in Mindanao to pump prime the region's exports. These commodities include fresh fruits, dried/dehydrated fruits, fruit juices and puree, frozen fruits, high value horticulture products, aquaculture, and sardines both canned and bottled.

Medco said that as of the end of the second semester of 2008, these sectors registered a 13.64 increase in volume and 10.4 percent growth in value.

It said that as of last year, volume of exports in Mindanao was placed at 18,221 metric tons, valued at P1.03 billion or US$25.84 million.

Other key achievements of GEM for business development for the last six months of 2008 include the conduct of activities for export market development; domestic-out shipment; fruits, vegetable, and other horticulture; aquatic resources; warehousing, cold storage, and vapor heat treatment (VHT); business process outsourcing; tourism; mining; and combatant reintegration.

For export market development, Medco reported that GEM has facilitated direct referrals, worked with Mindanao companies/processors, consolidators, and exporters as market conduits of small growers. It has also undertaken preliminary market promotion and advocacy with the Department of Agriculture (DA) and Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).

GEM also facilitated market matching encounters, provided marketing and assistance for local growers, and conducted complementary activities such as competitiveness enhancement to support Mindanao's domestic-out shipment.

As to the development of fruits, vegetables, and other horticulture, GEM facilitated linkage with major buyers, tapped Asian vegetables for access to Cebu market, developed commodity clustering of Northern Mindanao vegetables, and conducted technology trainings on good agricultural practices.

Through GEM program, the aquatic resources in Mindanao were further developed.

The program provided assistance to the sardine industry in marketing, seaweed industry in value chain enhancement, and tuna industry in locating alternative fishing areas.

For the business process outsourcing (BPO), tourism, and mining, GEM has obtained locator requirement for local partners for subcontracting arrangements with Manila and Davao BPOs; worked with the tourism officers in the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (Armm) for the development of the Armm Regional Tourism Industry Development program; and conducted preliminary discussions with two of the mining companies regarding collaboration to strengthen mining firm's community development efforts, respectively.

Meanwhile, one of the activities that the program has conducted for combatant reintegration is the completion of post-harvest facilities for live fish transport in Tawi-Tawi, solar dryer in Sultan Kudarat, multi-packaging facility in Lanao del Sur, and pre-shipment facility for milkfish fingerlings in Sarangani Province.

GEM operates all over Mindanao, but it has special focus in Armm and other conflict-affected areas on the island.

http://www.sunstar.com.ph/davao/usaid-funded-program-boosts-mindanao-devt

Blast hits bus terminal in Cotabato City (http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/regions/view/20090322-195519/Blast-hits-bus-terminal-in-Cotabato-City)
By Abigail Kwok

MANILA, Philippines -- An explosion rocked Cotabato City past midnight Sunday, when unidentified men left an improvised explosive device (IED) inside a bus terminal there, a police official said.

The incident occurred shortly before 3 a.m. inside the Husky bus terminal at Barangay (village) Tamontaka, Senior Superintendent Willie Dangane, city police chief, said.

Prior to the explosion, a security guard reportedly saw two suspicious looking men pass by the terminal, followed by a loud explosion.

The blast damaged the rear windshield of one regular bus (LWE 710) and the side of an air-conditioned bus (MVT 975).

The explosion also damaged the terminal's concrete wall, Dangane said.

No civilians were hurt during the incident.

Police are still trying to determine what kind of explosive was used, but Dangane said they were looking at either extortion or business rivalry as possible motives behind the attack.

Police have invited the security guard, terminal tenants, and the Husky management to shed light on the incident, he added.



another acts of terror :ohno:

Arroyo reaffirms support for Mindanao, Eaga growth
Monday, March 23, 2009

PRESIDENT Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and Cabinet officials joined the 17th Medco-15th BIMP-Eaga Anniversary celebration, which kicked off Tuesday in Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental.

The activity coincided with the 27th full Cabinet meeting on the Mindanao Super Region at Phividec Industrial Estate.

President Arroyo, along with key Cabinet officials, graced the Mindanao-Eaga information exhibit and signed the anniversary signature wall to signify her commitment and continued support for Mindanao and BIMP-Eaga.

The information exhibit showcased the historic milestones in Mindanao from 1992 to present as documented by Medco.

From 1975 to 1992, Mindanao's average economic growth in terms of gross regional domestic product (GRDP) was a mere 1.9 percent, way below the Philippine average of 2.8 percent.

With government's catch-up program for Mindanao since 1992, Mindanao's growth indicators showed dramatic leaps; the island-region has since enjoyed an annual average growth of 4 percent. The last five years was marked with steady increase, with a notable 7.2 percent GRDP growth in 2007.

The exhibit also highlights Mindanao's role from being a backwater, resource base, and raw material supplier to becoming a major agro-industry and manufacturing center, from having a fragmented to an integrated economy, and from being a backdoor to the country's front door to the East Asean Growth Area (Eaga).

Among the top officials who also visited the exhibit are Vice President Noli de Castro, Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita, Neda Director General Ralph Recto, SSS Chief Romulo Neri, DPWH Secretary Hermogenes Ebdane, Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap, Tourism Secretary Ace Durano, and Environment Secretary Angelo Reyes.

In line with the effort to sustain the gains and milestones in Mindanao and boost Philippine participation in the BIMP-Eaga, the Mindanao Economic
Development Council or Medco spearheads the 17th Medco-15th BIMP-Eaga anniversary celebration this month.

Anchored on the theme "Strengthening Ties, Celebrating Gains, Accelerating Growth," this year's anniversary celebration pays tribute to the gains of BIMP-Eaga over the past 15 years while underscoring Medco's role in enhancing inter-agency coordination and strengthening partnerships as a strategic means to achieve lasting peace and sustainable progress in Mindanao.

This year's anniversary celebration highlights various activities aimed at stirring public awareness on the positive and encouraging developments across the island-region, including the revitalization of BIMP-Eaga.

In line with its mandate to ensure the active participation of various sectors on Mindanao's development, Medco will spearhead a multi-stakeholder forum highlighting the results of the Mindanao 2000 Development Framework Plan assessment and Mindanao's performance amidst the global economic crisis as well its prospects for 2009 and beyond. The forum will be held on March 30 at the Grand Regal Hotel, Davao City.

Created in 1992 through Executive Order 512, Medco has evolved through the years as the lead agency in coordinating and integrating the island's socioeconomic development.

As the Philippine Coordinating Office for BIMP-Eaga, Medco also takes a major role in accelerating the growth of Mindanao and Palawan through its active participation in cross-border trade and tourism and investment cooperation.

BIMP-Eaga was created on March 24, 1994 with the goal of accelerating trade, tourism, and investments in this sub-region. The sub-regional cooperation covers the entire sultanate of Brunei Darussalam, the Federal States of Sabah and Sarawak, the Federal Territory of Labuan in Malaysia, the entire province of Kalimantan, Sulawesi, Irian Jaya, Maluku, Gorontalo, and North Maluki in Indonesia and with Mindanao and Palawan as focus areas of the Philippines.

Dubbed as the largest sub-regional cooperation, the BIMP-Eaga growth triangle has an estimated population of more than 50 million spread out across 1.54 million square kilometers of land area.

http://www.sunstar.com.ph/davao/arroyo-reaffirms-support-mindanao-eaga-growth

Medco-Mabs project assists Mindanao banks
Monday, March 23, 2009

By Joy Romares-Sevilla

THE Microenterprise Access to Banking Services (Mabs) project has provided assistance to 90 commercial banks and 361 rural banking units in Mindanao as of 2008.

Mabs is under the Mindanao Peace and Development (MPAD) program of the Mindanao Economic Development Authority (Medco).

The project aims to develop the capability of participating banks to profitably provide financial services such as loans, deposits, and money transfers to microenterprise clients.

The Medco report said aside from providing direct support to 90 banks and 361 rural banking units in Mindanao last year, the project's accomplishments also include the launching of the pilot rollout of Mabs-designed mobile phone banking services as well as mobile commerce services for clients or rural banks.

Medco added the project also registered over 43,000 new mobile phone banking clients and customers, including more than 2,600 micro enterprise merchants who now accept GCash as payment from their customers.

The project also developed a new micro-agricultural loan product that is helping serve the financing needs of a microfinance market previously untapped by Mabs participating banks. This market includes small farmers and operators of crop-based enterprises.

Mabs project was also able to increase microfinance portfolios in 2008 among participating banks to about P1.47 billion. This comprised about 36,050 new borrowers.

Outstanding micro-deposit accounts were placed at P1,411,217, surpassing by 102 percent the target for the second quarter of 2008.

Through the Mabs implementation in Mindanao, six banks were able to offer mobile phone banking last year. The phone banking has a monthly mobile phone transaction valued at P145.1 million.

Mabs partner banks have began to also expand to other services such as micro-housing loans and micro agri-loan products.

http://www.sunstar.com.ph/davao/medco-mabs-project-assists-mindanao-banks

Mindanao backbone transmission project to ensure energy stability (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090324.htm&no=53&r=r10&y=&mo=)
by Apipa P. Bagumbaran

Manila -- Marawi City The Abaga-Kirahon-Maramag-Bunawan 230 kV transmission line project otherwise known as the Mindanao Backbone Transmission Project (MBTP) will certainly strengthen the existing transmission system in Mindanao thereby ensuring power supply stability and reliability.

Once completed, the project will enhance the power transmission capability of the system to withstand disturbances that could cause widespread power interruptions.

It will also establish a backbone transmission system for Northern Mindanao where majority of the cheap and environment-friendly hydro plants are located towards Southern Mindanao where bulk of the industrial and commercial customers are located.

The transmission project consists two phases:

Phase 1 comprises the Abaga-Kirahon 230 kV project which will strengthen the existing transmission system in Northern Mindanao and sustain the Mindanao Grid during contingencies. Its components include the expansion of Abaga substation and construction of new switching station in Kirahon.

Phase 2 comprises the Maramag-Bunawan 230 kV project which will serve as the extension of Abaga-Kirahon project and the Kirahon-Maramag 230kV project which will become the ultimate link of northern and southern Mindanao.

The components of Maramag-Bunawan 230 kV project include construction of new switching station in Maramag and expansion of Bunawan and Tagoloan substations through the installation of new transformers – one 75-MVA at Maramag substation, one 50-MVA at Bunawan substation, and one 100-MVA at Tagoloan substation.

Right-of-way acquisitions are ongoing, 88.13% completed for the Abaga-Kirahon portion, 86.38% completed for the Maramag-Bunawan portion, and 11.84% completed for the Kirahon-Maramag portion.

For the Maramag-Bunawan project, construction activities are also ongoing and 86.40% completed.

Target dates for commissioning is scheduled on November 30, 2010 for the Abaga-Kirahon portion; May 29, 2009 for the Maramag-Bunawan portion; and August 31, 2011 for the Kirahon-Maramag portion.

National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NCGP) MBTP Cluster Head Dante G. Gorospe said the project is one of the measures of the corporation in complying with the stringent requirements of the National Grid Code being enforced by the Energy Regulatory Commission.

In addition, the new transmission line will also reduce the over-all Mindanao Grid system losses.

The establishment of a backbone transmission system is one of the Mindanao Super Region projects unveiled by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in her 2006 SONA recognizing the crucial role of reliable electricity in spurring investments in Mindanao.

EU-Eaga biztech partnership set
By Joy Romares-Sevilla


A BUSINESS match-making event, business partnering seminar, international conference, and capacity building program is set to happen this November 16 to 19 at the Imperial Hotel in Miri, Sarawak in Malaysia, the chair of the BIMP-Eaga Business Council (BEBC) reported.

The event, dubbed as the European Union-East Asean Growth Area Business and Technology (EU-Eaga BizTech) Partnership, aims to improve the competitiveness of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in both the EU and Eaga regions via trade and investment linkages, technology transfer and cooperation, capacity building within the four key priority sectors of environment and energy, natural resources (forestry), agriculture and aquaculture, and ecotourism.

"BEBC is one of the official partners of the European Union in this event," Santos said, adding that the partnership with the EU came about after a meeting with some European Ambassadors who came to Cotabato last June.

Santos said the BEBC presented to EU Ambassadors the potentials of BIMP as far as trade and investments are concerned.

"Europeans are fond of taking vacations, and they saw that Eaga has a lot of facilities and exotic places," he said.

On the other hand, the target groups to attend the event are SMEs within the four priority sectors, chambers of commerce, government agencies involved in trade, investment and technology promotion, universities, and research and development institutions and companies.

Santos said the event is a great opportunity and will enable buyers to meet sellers, consultants/service providers to meet clients, entrepreneurs to meet venture capitalists, and for local government to meet entrepreneurs for public-private partnership projects.

Other expected participants for business matchmaking are the meetings of exporters and importers, foreign investors and government officers, researchers and marketers, financiers and entrepreneurs, SMEs and multi-national corporations, suppliers and distributors, technology licensors and licensees, technology providers and clients, traders and manufacturers, and vendors and procurement officers.

link (http://www.sunstar.com.ph/davao/eu-eaga-biztech-partnership-set)

Smart to focus plans in Mindanao this year
Mindanao Daily Mirror
March 13, 2009

Smart Communications Inc. chief wireless advisor Orlando Vea revealed that this year their plans will focus more in Mindanao.

“We feel that there are still markets to be tapped,” Vea said in an interview after their MOA (Memo-randum of Agreement) signing with the Depart-ment of Tourism Region 11 for Smart Infoboard project at the Intercontinental Club of Marco Polo Davao on March 11.

Vea said that they will be bringing the mobile broadband, which accor-ding to him is the fastest growing segment of the business, here in Mindanao.

“Actually, it’s already starting,” Vea said.

In 2008, Smart has acquired a subscribers’ base growth of 35.2 million in which six million are Mindanao.

“This is a very healthy growth. Davao has always been a Smart country. That is why we want to give it back to the subscribers. But there are things we offer here that are not offered in other areas,” said PLDT-Smart Public Affairs Mon Isberto.

The recent MOA signing with the DOT for the Infoboard project builds up Smart’s presence here in the region.

“It can benefit us by establishing our presence. We don’t expect a lot of money from this project,” Isberto said. Maya M. Padillo

no iPhone :bash:

A repost, as these are Mindanao cities..

http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h73/davao_world/ppacarg.jpg
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h73/davao_world/ppacarg2.jpg
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h73/davao_world/ppacarg1.jpg
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h73/davao_world/ppacarg3.jpg
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h73/davao_world/ppacarg4.jpg
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h73/davao_world/ppacarg5.jpg

http://www.ppa.com.ph/Port%20Statistics/2008Files/08-Stat_2008_4thQtr_cargo.htm

EU-Eaga biztech partnership set
By Joy Romares-Sevilla

A BUSINESS match-making event, business partnering seminar, international conference, and capacity building program is set to happen this November 16 to 19 at the Imperial Hotel in Miri, Sarawak in Malaysia, the chair of the BIMP-Eaga Business Council (BEBC) reported.

The event, dubbed as the European Union-East Asean Growth Area Business and Technology (EU-Eaga BizTech) Partnership, aims to improve the competitiveness of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in both the EU and Eaga regions via trade and investment linkages, technology transfer and cooperation, capacity building within the four key priority sectors of environment and energy, natural resources (forestry), agriculture and aquaculture, and ecotourism.

Panagbenga 2009 blog

"BEBC is one of the official partners of the European Union in this event," Santos said, adding that the partnership with the EU came about after a meeting with some European Ambassadors who came to Cotabato last June.

Santos said the BEBC presented to EU Ambassadors the potentials of BIMP as far as trade and investments are concerned.

"Europeans are fond of taking vacations, and they saw that Eaga has a lot of facilities and exotic places," he said.

On the other hand, the target groups to attend the event are SMEs within the four priority sectors, chambers of commerce, government agencies involved in trade, investment and technology promotion, universities, and research and development institutions and companies.

Santos said the event is a great opportunity and will enable buyers to meet sellers, consultants/service providers to meet clients, entrepreneurs to meet venture capitalists, and for local government to meet entrepreneurs for public-private partnership projects.

Other expected participants for business matchmaking are the meetings of exporters and importers, foreign investors and government officers, researchers and marketers, financiers and entrepreneurs, SMEs and multi-national corporations, suppliers and distributors, technology licensors and licensees, technology providers and clients, traders and manufacturers, and vendors and procurement officers.

http://www.sunstar.com.ph/davao/eu-eaga-biztech-partnership-set

RP is recognized as one of the best performing economies in Asia (http://www.gov.ph/news/?i=24007)
FRIDAY, MARCH 27, 2009 | ECONOMY


Press Secretary Cerge Remonde this morning said that the Philippines is now recognized as one of the best performing economies of Asia, thanks to President Arroyo's economic and fiscal policies.

In an interview with Radyo ng Bayan, Remonde cited Business World's report, showing "the peso has outperformed most of the emerging market currencies so far this year and is likely to prove a strong value in 2009 as the Philippine economy is least vulnerable to the factors of hammering markets elsewhere."

Remonde added that "the Philippines will likely be the only nation in Southeast Asia to post a sharp pick-up on its balance of payment surplus in 2009, partly, the result of loans and privatized proceeds. So, talagang dapat din nating malaman na kinikilala talaga ang ating bansa ngayon bilang the best performing economy in Southeast Asia despite the global crisis."

Reports said the U.S. is now showing signs of improvement and recovery from the crisis, which Remonde said will augur well for the Philippines and the rest of the world. "As you know, may kasabihan nga na that when America is sick, the rest of the world catches a cold. And it is precisely that reason na noong nagkaroon ng pag-collapse iyong mga financial houses ng Amerika ang buong mundo ngayon ay naharap itong global economic crisis."

"Buti na lamang dahil sa vision at determination ng ating Pangulo, we are not as badly affected as the rest of the world," Remonde said.

Besides, he said, under President Arroyo the Philippines diversified its export market and now "medyo iyong percentage ng ating international trade with the US has already gone down a bit compared to the previous years. So, we have become less dependent on the US for trade though the US remains our major trading partner and a world political and economic leader."

Remonde repeated that President Arroyo has her plate full, attending to her economic programs, creating jobs and addressing poverty and hunger rather than political issues like charter change.

"As I have already pointed out, si Pangulong Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ay wala ng panahon diyan sa mga pulitikang usapin. Dahil siya po ay nakatutok po sa ating ekonomiya at sa paglikha ng trabaho," Remonde stressed anew.

"By continuing investment in hunger mitigation programs, the President seemed to have succeeded in this area as borne by the Social Weather Station's February survey, showing hunger incidence dipping to only 15.5 percent," Remonde said.

"Ang sinabi nga ng Pangulo sa kanyang talumpati kahapon na patuloy ang investment ng ating gobyerno sa mga food for work programs, food for school programs, livelihood programs at ipagpatuloy at i-eexpand po ang pakikipagtulungan ng ating gobyerno sa simbahan at iba pang mga faith-based organizations na magkakaroon ng mga joint projects like feeding programs and livelihood programs po diyan."

Finally, he said that the Department of Public Works and Highways is now rushing its construction of a major road project that will link Surigao with Davao. This biggest road project for Mindanao was discussed in the Cabinet meeting in Misamis Oriental where the President tasked DPWH to work 24/7 to ensure its completion.
He added that the President will inaugurate today the P218 million provincial government complex in Maguindanao which will house the provincial Capitol, sports and social centers and other government offices. Of the P215 million, P25 million came from the President's Social Fund. She will lead the ribbon cutting to be assisted by ARMM Regional Governor Datu Zaldy Ampatuan, the Maguindanao Governor, and Cabinet Officer for Regional Development of ARMM, Department of Agrarian Reform Secretary Nasser Pangandaman, and other top local officials

Anyone who knows what city will lead the MinBizCon this year?

5 Mindanao provinces benefit from road management project
MindaNews
Saturday, 28 March 2009 11:11

DAVAO CITY (MindaNews/28 March) – At least five of seven provinces that will initially benefit from a $100 million, five-year Provincial Road Management Facility (PRMF) from the Australian Government are in Mindanao: Agusan del Sur, Surigao del Norte, Bukidnon, Misamis Occidental and Misamis Oriental.

The signing of the Memorandum of Subsidiary Arrangement (MSA) for the PRMF, Australia’s “single largest grant project in the Philippines to date,” was held at the Crowne Plaza in Ortigas Friday morning.
The PRMF was announced by Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith in Manila in October 2008.

Aside from the five Mindanao provinces, two other provinces that will initially benefit from out of 10 target beneficiaries are Bohol and Guimaras in the Visayas. The three other province-beneficiaries have not been named.

The PMRF “seeks to stimulate economic growth in partner provinces in Mindanao and the Visayas and is not a “roads program’ but also “a governance and capacity building program,” Rod Smith, Australia’s ambassador to the Philippines, said.

“Although a large portion of the $100 million will be spent on road rehabilitation and maintenance in partner provinces, a key emphasis will be to support institutional and governance reforms that will strengthen the service delivery capabilities of provincial governments,” he said.

A joint press statement from the Australian Embassy and the Department of Interior and Local Government said Australia has been a development partner of the Philippines for more than 50 years and has more than doubled its aid from “just under $70 million in 2006-07 to an estimated $109 million – around PHP4 billion – in 2008-09.”

“Good roads are crucial to economic development: They improve access to markets by significantly reducing travel times and costs, link producers to markets and connect rural to urban centres; And they improve access to jobs, health services and essential social and educational facilities in rural and regional areas,” Smith said.

“ Provincial roads are a crucial element in the overall road network. They provide key linkages between rural areas and national highways,” he added.

The press statement noted that the Philippines has more than 31,000km of provincial roads and the percentage defined as being in “good” condition is “far too low.”

In five years, Smith said, the PRMF is expected to have rehabilitated at least 1,000 km of provincial roads in up to 10 provinces in Mindanao and the Visayas; improved access for over four million citizens to schools and health centers; generated employment and income for local communities; and improved the investment climate through the provision of a reliable road network and reduced transport costs to business.”

PRMF, he stressed, “is not simply a mechanism to provide road rehabilitation. More important than the provision of funding for physical works, PRMF will assist Provincial Governments overcome some of the severe constraints that currently restrict ongoing service delivery.”

Cited as a key constraint is “provincial government access to sufficient resources to provide a good quality provincial road network (as well as other services such as health).”

PRMF seeks to assist provincial governments reduce this constraint by “both raising additional revenue and by improving the efficiency of current expenditures.”

Improving efficiency includes “significant capacity building assistance with a focus on: improving the efficiency of, and the links between, planning and budgeting; improving transparency through internal control mechanisms, including internal audit; improving human resource management and capabilities” and enabling more efficient delivery mechanisms such as contracting out to the private sector.

An innovative element of the PRMF is that “it provides a number of explicit incentives to encourage provincial governments to undertake the reforms that will underpin PRMF and other service delivery: the size of the program in each province will depend on the province meeting agreed annual reform targets in the areas of expenditure management, planning, contracting out of road service delivery, internal controls (internal audit), and human resource management and Development; a further incentive will be provided to encourage provincial governments to raise additional local revenue. An untied grant will be made to a province’s development fund based on the additional local revenue a province raises each year – on a peso for peso basis up to a cap.”

“The use of performance-based resource allocations is an important development in encouraging the efficient allocation of resources (both donor resources and the governments own resources). The PRMF incentive model may become a model for other projects and other donors,” Smith added.

The MSA was signed by Smith and Local Governments Secretary Ronaldo Puno, in the presence of Governors Robert Barbers of Surigao del Norte, Loreto Leo Ocampos of Misamis Occidental, Maria Valentina Plaza of Agusan del Sur, Jose Ma. Zubiri of Bukidnon and Erico Aumentado of Bohol, and Vice Governors Norris Babiera of Misamis Oriental and Aurelio Tionado of Guimaras. (MindaNews)

http://www.mindanews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6139&Itemid=50

2009/03/28

Operation Blessing settles in Davao
By Cyrielle R. Panisa

Davao City (28 March) -- Operation Blessing Foundation Inc. Philippines (OB), the humanitarian arm of CBN Asia Inc. which is the producer of 700 Club Asia, had set its new base here in Davao City.

On a press conference held at Philippine Information Agency XI office last March 27, Executive Vice President and Chief Executive of Operation Blessing Davao Dr. Kim April Pascual said that the Operation Blessing Foundation continues to enhance its capacity to provide community assistance programs to serve as many people as possible, and to bring hope and healing to the hopeless, hurting and needy people.

"We want to bless people. Gusto naming i-encourage ang mga tao, Mabuhayan ang mga tao. No politics," she added.

Operation Blessing together with the CBN Asia Inc. works to fight hunger, disease, unemployment, illiteracy, and abuse. The mission of Operation Blessing is to demonstrate God's love by alleviating human need by feeding the hungry and caring for the weak.

"That is why we are asking for the generous support of the Filipinos all throughout the Philippines," Ms. Coney Reyes said, Co-Host the 700 Club Asia.

With all the help and services being done already by the Operation Blessing and 700 Club Asia, they end up to be more blessed and happy, Coney Reyes said.

Operation Blessing has cared for the most under-served sectors of Philippine Society like children, women, rural poor communities in hard-to-reach areas, and the like.

It also aims to relieve human suffering by providing the basic necessities of life and developing healthy, self-sustaining communities. Operation Blessing includes different programs like health care, emergency aid, community transformation, bless-a-child, back-to-school program, livelihood, and Mobile Out-of-School Training, children's outreaches, and water and sanitation program.

"Anybody can be a volunteer of Operation Blessing," said Dr. Pascual.

The new Operation Blessing Davao office can be reached at 370 3rd Street corner 5th Street, Ecoland, Phase I, Matina with telephone number (082) 297-3080. (PIA XI) [top]

Spain says it's ready to help in talks (http://mb.com.ph/articles/200511/spain-says-its-ready-help-talks)
By CHARISSA M. LUCI

Spain has expressed its readiness to help the Philippine government in addressing the decades-old armed conflict in Mindanao, part of which will be through the continuous allocation of development
assistance to the conflict-affected areas in the troubled region, visiting Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos said.

Moratinos, who ended his three-day official visit last Friday, said the Philippines may expect more development assistance from his government.

“Of course, we have supported the Philippine government in search for peace. (But, this is) not to interfere, but to give support to the government and to also participate in international development cooperation projects in order to facilitate living in this part of the Philippines,” the Spanish diplomat said when asked by the Manila Bulletin if his government is willing to support the government of the Republic of the Philippines’ peacekeeping efforts.

The international community has been urging the Philippine government and the 12,000-strong Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) to go back to the negotiating table to once and for all end the armed conflict in Southern Philippines.

Moratinos said the Spanish International Agency for Cooperation and Development (AECID) already financed development projects in the south of Mindanao.

Under the newly signed bilateral agreement, it will provide a grant of five million euros to contribute to the improvement of the health delivery services and infrastructure in the Bicol and Caraga regions.

“We are ready, at the request of the Philippines, to increase and to maintain our commitment,” he said.

The monthlong attacks and intense skirmishes between government security forces and the MILF which has displaced more than half a million residents were aggravated by the Supreme Court’s temporary restraining order barring the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MoA-AD) last August.

Anyone who knows what city will lead the MinBizCon this year?

it will be Koronadal City..

it will be Koronadal City..

ang ganda nang koronadal..malinis saka peaceful di katulad sa bandang central mind puro aid(ausaid,usaud etc...) na nga ... pero ang yumayaman ang mga politiko....walang asenso tuloy ang lugar nila....:bash:

^^ yung ibang pulitiko inc. dyan kung pumupunta ng mall sa davao parang nagmamadali naka-siren pa kuno, yung iba mayayabang, bisita na nga nagpakapalan pa di marunong sumunod kahit basic traffic ethics. pero ang region mismo nila maraming naghihirap, dapat development duon unahin nila kesa magpapayabang sa ibang lugar.

Gov't urged to declare Mindanao 'Ebola-free'
Monday, March 30, 2009

By Joy Romares-Sevilla

MINDANAO's hog industry stakeholders, particularly in General Santos City, have urged the National Government to declare Mindanao as Ebola virus-free.

Elena Haw, vice president of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) in Mindanao, told reporters in a press conference Friday that the Department of Agriculture (DA) in Central Mindanao supports such advocacy.

"Part of the advocacy is for the officials of the DA (Central Office) to check the medical results of the meat examined from Mindanao and declare that these are free from Ebola virus," Haw said.

She said hog meat from Mindanao was supposed to be shipped to Singapore last year, but this was not materialized after the Ebola outbreak in Luzon.

"Mindanao is ready to export meat and hogs. There are already six hog farms in Mindanao that are now accredited to ship its products. There are one in Davao, two in General Santos, and three in South Cotabato," she said.

Haw said the volume requirement needed by Singapore is 7,000 heads of hogs per month, which will also mean P85 million in value.

Earlier, an official of the Philippine Veterinary Medical Association (PVMA) in Southern Mindanao said PVMA is hopeful that hog traders from General Santos and Davao City could still export hog products to Singapore after the same trade mission failed last year.

"We are waiting for the final report of the World Health Organization (WHO). Maybe they can isolate Mindanao from the Ebola issue that struck Bulacan," Dr. Antonio Marin, PVMA president for Southern Mindanao and city veterinarian of General Santos City, told business reporters in Davao during a press forum recently.

He said WHO is expected to release the final report on its study within this year.

He said should Davao and General Santos penetrate the market in Singapore, other Asian countries, like Hong Kong, would follow.

"Singapore is our gateway to exporting hog products to other Asian countries. Singapore is very strict in terms of importing hogs, its standards and requirements are high," he said.

Marin said hog products to be shipped to Singapore have already passed its requirements and standards.

"GenSan is the second largest hog producer in the country, next to Bulacan. GenSan has more than 37 farms. Last year, GenSan distributed a total of 199,000 heads of hogs to other parts of the country," he said.

http://www.sunstar.com.ph/davao/govt-urged-declare-mindanao-ebola-free

Power back to normal in Southwest Mindanao (http://mb.com.ph/articles/201194/power-back-normal-southwest-mindanao)

General Santos City (PNA) – Power services in various parts of southwestern Mindanao returned to normal levels early this week following the completion of repair works of power lines damaged by bomb attacks and severe weather conditions during the last two weeks.

Manuel Abellanosa, National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) Mindanao head, said in a statement that the company finally lifted the forced power service interruptions that affected at least five cities and five provinces in the area during the last 10 days.

As this developed, he assured that the power transmission facilities had stabilized after putting up remedial measures to the problems besetting its network.

Earlier, the NGCP implemented power service cuts in the cities of General Santos, Koronadal, Tacurong, Kidapawan and Cotabato and the provinces of Sarangani, South Cotabato, North Cotabato, Maguindanao and Sultan Kudarat as a result of the bombing of its tower No. 142 in North Cotabato last March 16 and the toppling of structures in Bukidnon last March 20 due to bad weather.

Authorities immediately blamed Moro rebels in the bomb attacks, which reportedly damaged two 138-kilovolt lines of the NGCP.

The affected area, which covered NGCP’s district 6, experienced three to eight-hour outages for several days due to their reduced power transmission capacity.

Natural resources conservation projects in Mindanao launched (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090404.htm&no=04&r=ALL&y=&mo=)
By Sherwin B. Manual

Davao City -- Over P30 million has been earmarked to salvage Mindanao's natural resources, the island's source of food and livelihood.

The said amount is funded by the Mindanao Rural Development Program (MRDP) through its Natural Resources Management (NRM) component along with counterpart of six covered towns.

Beneficiaries for the year 1 implementation of NRM are the towns of RT Lim, Zamboanga Sibugay in Region 9; Linamon, Lanao del Norte in Region 10; Don Marcelino, Davo del Sur in Region 11; Kalamansig, Sultan Kudarat in Region 12; Nasipit, Agusan del Norte in Caraga Region; and Datu Odin Sinsuat in Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

"Noting that protection and conservation of environment will spur sustainable development in the Mindanao, the second phase of MRDP has its NRM component that will implement environmental conservation activities," says MRDP Program Director Roger Chio.

The component will give primary consideration on watershed management and effective conservation management to pick up the dismal condition of the environment to "sustain the sources of our food and livelihood of many rural communities," Chio added.

"These sites were selected as the focus of our on-the-ground investments due to the interconnectivity of the uplands down to the coastal areas especially with the presence of watershed areas that need conservation interventions," Chio said.


Hard Investments

The town of RT Lim will implement Riverbank stabilization, mangrove rehabilitation, establishment of fish sanctuary, agro-forestry for upland and lowland barangays with a total project cost of P6.99 million.

The agro-forestry plantation aims to develop and strengthen capability of the local communities to improve and manage their remaining forest resources. Specifically it will develop an area of 100 hectares to be planted with rubber, durian, rambutan, lanzones, mango, and banana.

Mangrove rehabilitation project covers four coastal barangays with an area of 100 hectares to be planted with several mangrove species.

Moreover, a new fish sanctuary will be established in Barangay President Roxas while existing marine protected are in Barangay Magsaysay will undergo rehabilitation. Among the conservation interventions include establishment of perimeter buoys around the sanctuary for fishers to recognize the prohibited fishing operations in the area.

R.T. Lim Mayor Danilo Piodena said the identified projects will be a big boost in their efforts to conserve the town's marine protected areas and upland riverbanks.

While the town of Linamon is ready to implement the P7 million worth of coral reef restoration and enhancement, agro-forestry conservation and ecotourism development of its natural wonder the Tinago Falls and conservation of its key river of Larapan.

In the town of Nasipit, the local government is ready to implement the P6.1 million worth of projects for the agro-forestry project of the upland community of Hamiguitan, the Nasipit marine sanctuary and bio-engineering riverbank stabilization.

In southern Mindanao, at least P6.92 million is allotted for the rehabilitation and management of the watershed in the uplands of Don Marcelino town in Davao del Sur along with the establishment of its fish sanctuary in its coastal area.

Moreover, the town of Kalamansig in Sultan Kudarat province, will benefit from mangrove rehabilitation and preservation of Limulan river by planting Bamboo which is a deep rooted indigenous species trees and fruit trees to establish permanent riverbank protection to lessen the extreme widening, re-channeling and siltation of the water course caused by the rapid flow of the river.

Further in ARMM, Datu Odin Sinusat town is ready with its P7 million worth of subprojects consist of river stabilization, mangrove rehabilitation, fish sanctuary and Forest Plantation establishment.

Residents of the town are happy to note of the program because it's first of its kind since they were it by tsunami in the 70's. Manifesto for Environment.

To seal each town's commitment to pitch in for the environment, local chief executives, DA-MRDP officials and project beneficiaries sign a manifesto to live up to the aims of the projects by institutionalizing community-based approach implementation to instill ownership among beneficiaries by intesifying community's awareness, building capacity for sustainable agricultural practices and helping guard and eliminate illegal activities like kainging (slash and burn), dynamite fishing and other destructive activities.

MRDP, now on its second phase, is a long-term poverty alleviation program implemented under the DA with funding assistance from the national government, the World Bank and the local government units.

Mindanao gets P1.8 billion for livelihood, employment
By MIKE U. CRISMUNDO
April 4, 2009, 5:51pm

Butuan City – In full support of President Arroyo’s Comprehensive Livelihood and Emergency Employment program (CLEEP), some P1.8 billion is set to be allocated for Mindanao.

Officials said CLEEP programs will generate at least 6,715 jobs through farm-to-market road projects, 2,890 through restoration of irrigation facilities, 65 jobs through organic fertilizer production, 567 jobs through swine and poultry raising projects, and at least 1,780 jobs through “bantay dagat.”

It was learned that the banner programs and locally funded projects are schedule to be implemented during the first half of this year as part of the Economic Resiliency Plan (ERP).

In this project allocation, Southern Mindanao will receive P96 million in the form of livelihood and employment packages, said Department of Agriculture (DA) Regional Technical Director Romulo Parcon.

Parcon told Mindanao Economic Development Council (MEDCo) chair Undersecretary Virgilio Leyretana that a total of P1.6 billion is also set aside to provide livelihood and create job opportunities to Mindanaoans.

Region XI also gets around P227 million, Region XII with P578 million, while the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) gets P358 million.

The bulk of the said allocation goes to the government’s support for the FIELDS Program or the fertilizer, micro-nutrients, irrigation facilities rehabilitation and restoration, extension, education and training, loans for inputs, shallow tube wells, surface water pumps, dryers and other post-harvest facilities provision, and seed subsidy on quality genetic materials, a DA statement explained.

The DA-ERP allocation is designed to back up the CLEEP program of the Arroyo administration for the Filipinos amidst the global economic clampdown, DA officials said.

However, DA expects to face challenges such as lay-off in export industries, high production cost due to high energy rates, and front-loading of mobilization fund for hard infra projects.

But, the Agriculture department is expected to cushion such risks by expanding agribusiness enterprises for industrial crops with private sectors.

It will also subsidize seeds for rice and corn farmers through local government unit (LGU) partnership.

DA is also eyeing more investments coming with President Arroyo’s directive of prioritizing hard infrastructure projects.

The Arroyo administration also mobilizes all agencies of the government to fast-track all CLEEP projects in their respective departments and bureaus, it was gathered.

http://mb.com.ph/articles/201431/mindanao-gets-p18-billion-livelihood-employment

DPWH assists motorists on Holy Week
By MIKE U. CRISMUNDO
April 4, 2009, 5:54pm

Butuan City – The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) in Mindanao has activated its task forces in respective regional and district offices that will provide assistance to motorists during the weeklong observance of Holy Week which will start on Monday.

“Actually, we have already organized the task force intended for calamity, Holy Week and other purposes for any untoward situation. It will only be activated in time of needs,” said DPWH Undersecretary Romeo S. Momo.

Momo said the task force is composed of engineers, technical men and workers with equipment, while contractors will also provide standby personnel and workers including earth-moving equipment in times of “necessity.”

Based on the order of DPWH Secretary Hermogenes Ebdane Jr., Momo said he has already issued a directive to all the regional and district engineers to set up assistance centers in the various strategic areas in Mindanao to help motorists in case they would be stranded.

Momo said the directive was specifically sent to regional directors and district engineers.

In his message to concerned field officials, Momo said that the establishment of assistance centers must also be closely coordinated with other local law enforcement agencies, particularly in coordination with the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Land Transportation Office (LTO).

The field officers of the DPWH have also been instructed to set up road signage like detour signs in case the usual routes would be rendered impassable, should it will rain heavily during the Holy Week, or on some newly opened and rehabilitation work of roads.

The signage, Momo said, must thoroughly be implemented in the Bukidnon-Davao-North Cotabato road, Surigao-Davao coastal road and other ongoing ground works on national and provincial roads in some parts of Mindanao where mega projects of President Arroyo are being implemented.

“Signage must be thoroughly implemented to avert road accidents and confusions among travelers,” added Momo.

It is anticipated that a big volume of people would be going home to their respective provinces, cities and municipalities during the Holy Week.

http://mb.com.ph/articles/201432/dpwh-assists-motorists-holy-week

MEDCo launches MINDPeace (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&r=&y=&mo=&fi=p090404.htm&no=06)
by Sherwin B. Manual

Davao City (4 April) -- With the aim to converge and maximize the power in information for peace and development gains in Mindanao, the Mindanao Economic Development Council (Medco) hatched the Mindanao Information Network for Development and Peace (MINDPeace).

"Information is power and we need to capitalize on it for Mindanao," said Oibne Inobio, Medco's Communications and Media Affairs Officer.

"We hope to communicate the good side of Mindanao, contrary from its usual image in the media that depicts the island as conflict and poverty stricken area," she added.

Recently, MINDPeace was formally introduced the local media through a forum tackling the issues of the motherhood in the Philippines and women empowerment. The forum highlighted the report of save the children Program reporting the plight of mothers in the country.

While other agencies like MRDP, Equalls and Act for Peace presented how each organization has empowered women and mothers through its various projects implemented across the island especially among conflicted-affected areas.

MINDPeace is a convergence of various development projects in Mindanao including the Mindanao Rural development Program (MRDP), Act for Peace Program, the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the ARMM Social Fund Project (ASFP), the Philippine-Australia Basic Education Assistance in Mindanao-Stage 2 (BEAM-2), Catholic Relief Services (CRS), Education Quality and Access for Learning and Livelihood Skills (EQUALLS), the Growth with Equity in Mindanao (GEM-3) Program, GTZ Mindanao Office, Local Governance Support Program in ARMM (LGSPA), the United Nations Population Fund-Southern Philippines Office (UNFPA- SPO), and the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP).

In a statement, MEDCo chairman Usec. Virgilio Leyretana said that "we need to highlight and protect the peace and development feats of Mindanao to create the positive image of the island to other parts of the country and the world as a whole."

"There are gains in peace and development but we rarely hear of them, this convergence (MINDPeace) will hopefully herald the best side of Mindanao," he added.

Meanwhile, MRDP Program Director roger C. Chio in a separate interview said that the program will continue to strongly wage its development efforts to achieve lasting peace in the island as the peace and development are intertwined.

MINDPeace will stage a monthly forum discussing the most pressing issues of Mindanao. (MRDP-PIA XI) [top]

Natural resources conservation projects in Mindanao launched (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&r=&y=&mo=&fi=p090404.htm&no=04)
By Sherwin B. Manual

Davao City (4 April) -- Over P30 million has been earmarked to salvage Mindanao's natural resources, the island's source of food and livelihood.

The said amount is funded by the Mindanao Rural Development Program (MRDP) through its Natural Resources Management (NRM) component along with counterpart of six covered towns.

Beneficiaries for the year 1 implementation of NRM are the towns of RT Lim, Zamboanga Sibugay in Region 9; Linamon, Lanao del Norte in Region 10; Don Marcelino, Davo del Sur in Region 11; Kalamansig, Sultan Kudarat in Region 12; Nasipit, Agusan del Norte in Caraga Region; and Datu Odin Sinsuat in Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

"Noting that protection and conservation of environment will spur sustainable development in the Mindanao, the second phase of MRDP has its NRM component that will implement environmental conservation activities," says MRDP Program Director Roger Chio.

The component will give primary consideration on watershed management and effective conservation management to pick up the dismal condition of the environment to "sustain the sources of our food and livelihood of many rural communities," Chio added.

"These sites were selected as the focus of our on-the-ground investments due to the interconnectivity of the uplands down to the coastal areas especially with the presence of watershed areas that need conservation interventions," Chio said.


Hard Investments

The town of RT Lim will implement Riverbank stabilization, mangrove rehabilitation, establishment of fish sanctuary, agro-forestry for upland and lowland barangays with a total project cost of P6.99 million.

The agro-forestry plantation aims to develop and strengthen capability of the local communities to improve and manage their remaining forest resources. Specifically it will develop an area of 100 hectares to be planted with rubber, durian, rambutan, lanzones, mango, and banana.

Mangrove rehabilitation project covers four coastal barangays with an area of 100 hectares to be planted with several mangrove species.

Moreover, a new fish sanctuary will be established in Barangay President Roxas while existing marine protected are in Barangay Magsaysay will undergo rehabilitation. Among the conservation interventions include establishment of perimeter buoys around the sanctuary for fishers to recognize the prohibited fishing operations in the area.

R.T. Lim Mayor Danilo Piodena said the identified projects will be a big boost in their efforts to conserve the town's marine protected areas and upland riverbanks.

While the town of Linamon is ready to implement the P7 million worth of coral reef restoration and enhancement, agro-forestry conservation and ecotourism development of its natural wonder the Tinago Falls and conservation of its key river of Larapan.

In the town of Nasipit, the local government is ready to implement the P6.1 million worth of projects for the agro-forestry project of the upland community of Hamiguitan, the Nasipit marine sanctuary and bio-engineering riverbank stabilization.

In southern Mindanao, at least P6.92 million is allotted for the rehabilitation and management of the watershed in the uplands of Don Marcelino town in Davao del Sur along with the establishment of its fish sanctuary in its coastal area.

Moreover, the town of Kalamansig in Sultan Kudarat province, will benefit from mangrove rehabilitation and preservation of Limulan river by planting Bamboo which is a deep rooted indigenous species trees and fruit trees to establish permanent riverbank protection to lessen the extreme widening, re-channeling and siltation of the water course caused by the rapid flow of the river.

Further in ARMM, Datu Odin Sinusat town is ready with its P7 million worth of subprojects consist of river stabilization, mangrove rehabilitation, fish sanctuary and Forest Plantation establishment.

Residents of the town are happy to note of the program because it's first of its kind since they were it by tsunami in the 70's. Manifesto for Environment.

To seal each town's commitment to pitch in for the environment, local chief executives, DA-MRDP officials and project beneficiaries sign a manifesto to live up to the aims of the projects by institutionalizing community-based approach implementation to instill ownership among beneficiaries by intesifying community's awareness, building capacity for sustainable agricultural practices and helping guard and eliminate illegal activities like kainging (slash and burn), dynamite fishing and other destructive activities.

MRDP, now on its second phase, is a long-term poverty alleviation program implemented under the DA with funding assistance from the national government, the World Bank and the local government units. (With reports from NTProvido and Chedecastro MRDP/PIA XI) [top]

repost

GRDP PER REGION IN MINDANAO (2007-2008)
Region 10 - 67.6 b
Region 11 - 61.8 b
Region 12 - 47.7 b
Region 9 - 35.1 b
Caraga - 17.9 b
ARMM - 11.9 b

congrats also to Region 12, malaki rin pala ang Grdp nila..:)

Road network takes shape in Mindanao
Written by Manuel T. Cayon / Reporter
Monday, 06 April 2009 20:18

DAVAO CITY—The remote eastern coastline of Mindanao would soon become a major transportation route connecting the once sleepy and disaster-battered but resource-rich coastal towns of Manay in southernmost Davao Oriental and Claver in northernmost Surigao del Norte.

The different sections of the eastern Mindanao road network were in various stages of work, with the southernmost section, the Mati-Manay towns of Davao Oriental, already completed last year.

The southernmost section of the seven-section road network covers 66.85 kilometers, and where the government spent P984 million to build. This was the first of the sections constructed in October 2004 and finished last September.

The other six sections were started in 2007.

The adjacent section, the Boston-Manay section in northern Davao Oriental, is 52.54-percent complete and is the most expensive to construct, covering 83.89 kilometers.

The section was one of three sections that breached P1 billion in construction cost. The other sections were the Bislig-Boston section (P1.092 billion, covering 72.39 kilometers) and the Marihatag-Hinatuan-Bislig section (P1.175 billion, covering 89.06 kilometers).

The Bislig, Surigao del Sur-Boston, Davao Oriental, section was 61.1-percent complete, and the next adjacent section, from Bislig through Hinatuan to Marihatag, all in Surigao del Sur, was reported at 51.16-percent complete with a total of 69.06 kilometers.

The Cortes-Tandag-Marihatag section, also of Surigao del Sur, was 31.22-percent complete compared with its entire length of 75 kilometers.

The Adlay-Bon-ot section of Surigao del Norte was bidded out in June last year and the contractor was still awaiting the release of funds to start construction. The project cost was placed at P200 million.

The last section, the 40-kilometer Bacuag-Claver section, was already 60.42-percent complete.

The Davao Oriental-Surigao coastal strip has been one of the neglected areas in Mindanao, although the two regions where they belong performed fairly well in exports.

The Davao-Surigao coastal-road project is one of the major road-network projects of the Department of Public Works and Highways, which has an increased budget this year of P23.676 billion.

The budget outlay for the project has little component from foreign funding, accounting for only 6.7 percent of the outlay, or about P1.587 billion. The bulk, or P22.089 billion (93.3 percent) of are locally funded.

The budget outlay was higher that last year’s P15.203 billion, with 12.6 percent (P1.913 billion) of the projects being foreign-funded.

In this year’s total budget outlay of the department for the region, 87 percent, or P20.714 billion, was allotted to roads and bridges, as well as ongoing projects in the Zamboanga Peninsula and Central Mindanao. Part of the money was intended to support peace and development efforts in areas plagued by armed conflict.

The completed and ongoing major road-network projects in the regions were the Zamboanga City road project, Buug-Kabansalan section of the Zamboanga City-Pagadian City road network and the Barcelona-Katipunan Road project of Zamboanga del Norte for the Zamboanga Peninsula; the Pinamaloy-Damulog section of the Maramag-Kibawe (all in Bukidnon)-Kabacan (North Cotabato) road network, the Malalag-Malita road project in Davao del Sur, Surigao-Agusan-Davao road network, and the Bukidnon-Davao road project, all in Southern Mindanao.

Also, part of the inventory of road-network projects are the Alegria-Santiago and the Bayugan-Awa-San Francisco sections of the Surigao-Agusan-Davao road network and the second Magsaysay Bridge and Butuan City bypass road in the Caraga Region; and the Oroquieta City-Sindangan section and the Calamba-Barcelona sections of the Zamboanga del Norte road network in Western Mindanao.

Those road networks are major transportation routes in Mindanao, and complement the proposed Mindanao railway project being studied by government planners.

http://businessmirror.com.ph/home/regions/8432-road-network-takes-shape-in-mindanao.html

DepEd invests P19M in Muslim schools (http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/regions/view/20090407-198361/DepEd-invests-P19M-in-Muslim-schools)
By Philip Tubeza

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Education (DepEd) has allotted P19.2 million for selected madaris or Muslim schools in Mindanao “to further the cause of peace and development in the south through education,” Education Secretary Jesli Lapus said on Tuesday.

In a statement released Tuesday, Lapus said 37 private madaris qualified for financial assistance from the department, which will benefit 3,834 pupils at P5,000 each.

“Our efforts to push the peace process shifts to a high gear by providing financial grants in education initiatives. Our efforts towards achieving a lasting peace in Mindanao will surely contribute to our attaining peace in the whole country,” Lapus said.
“The Department is committed to providing quality education to all children regardless of their color, religion or culture,” he added.

The madaris include 27 schools from the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, which includes the divisions of Marawi City, Lanao del Sur I and II, Shariff Kabunsuan, Shariff Aguak, Maguindanao and Tawi-Tawi; eight from Region XII (Cotabato City and General Santos City); and two from Region XI (Davao City).

Madaris is the plural of madrasah, Arabic for school, whether religious or secular.

BPO, tourism in Mindanao seen to earn $10M (http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/infotech/view/20090407-198400/BPO-tourism-in-Mindanao-seen-to-earn-10M)
By Rizalene P. Acac

DAVAO CITY, Philippines--Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) companies and tourism in Mindanao were expected to bring in revenues of more than US$10 million by the end of 2009, a projection made by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) showed.

DTI Undersecretary Merly Cruz said in a report, a copy of which was obtained by the Inquirer on Tuesday, that the target for the BPO sector alone was more than US$7 million.

In 2008, Cruz said BPOs raked in close to US$6 million.

Aside from the projected increase in revenues, Cruz said BPOs were also expected to produce about 500,000 jobs in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, South Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Sarangani and General Santos City and in Southern Mindanao.

As for the tourism industry, Cruz said the DTI projected an income of US$5.5 million.

She said they were expecting to realize the projection because income in 2008 alone reached US$4.3 million.

Cruz said the expected increase in tourism revenue was due to the government's active push for Mindanao as a medical tourism area.

"The government targets to enhance the medical and wellness facilities in Mindanao in a bid to make it the medical and wellness tourism destination in Asia," she said.

Cruz said the government, through the Department of Tourism, also endorsed the P9-billion package for tourism projects, which would include hotels, resorts and spa, and medical centers to improve what the island could offer.

Aside from BPOs and tourism-related ventures, Cruz said they also increased their projection for other sectors.

She placed the projected income for the processed food industry at about US$2 million by the end of 2009.

Cruz said they have been considering strategies to boost exports, such as market diversification, which would entail a review of promotions to the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines-East Asia Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA), the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) and the Middle East markets.

She said the government, with the cooperation of the private sector, would enhance product positioning of halal products through the Halal Certification Board.

"Other efforts include the Export Pathways Program and the Regional Interaction Platform for Philippine Exporters (Ripples), both of which are support measures to facilitate exportation," she said.

Natural Resources Conservation Projects in Mindanao Launched
April 3, 2009

http://mindanao.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/dpd-de-mesa.jpg

Sherwin B. Manual

Over P30 million has been earmarked to salvage Mindanao ’s natural resources, the island’s source of food and livelihood.

The said amount is funded by the Mindanao Rural Development Program (MRDP) through its Natural Resources Management (NRM) component along with counterpart of six covered towns.

Beneficiaries for the year 1 implementation of NRM are the towns of RT Lim, Zamboanga Sibugay in Region 9; Linamon, Lanao del Norte in Region 10; Don Marcelino, Davo del Sur in Region 11; Kalamansig, Sultan Kudarat in Region 12; Nasipit, Agusan del Norte in Caraga Region; and Datu Odin Sinsuat in Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

“Noting that protection and conservation of environment will spur sustainable development in the Mindanao , the second phase of MRDP has its NRM component that will implement environmental conservation activities,” says MRDP Program Director Roger Chio.

The component will give primary consideration on watershed management and effective conservation management to pick up the dismal condition of the environment to “sustain the sources of our food and livelihood of many rural communities,” Chio added.

“These sites were selected as the focus of our on-the-ground investments due to the interconnectivity of the uplands down to the coastal areas especially with the presence of watershed areas that need conservation interventions,” Chio said.

Hard Investments

The town of RT Lim will implement Riverbank stabilization, mangrove rehabilitation, establishment of fish sanctuary, agro-forestry for upland and lowland barangays with a total project cost of P6.99 million.

The agro-forestry plantation aims to develop and strengthen capability of the local communities to improve and manage their remaining forest resources. Specifically it will develop an area of 100 hectares to be planted with rubber, durian, rambutan, lanzones, mango, and banana.

Mangrove rehabilitation project covers four coastal barangays with an area of 100 hectares to be planted with several mangrove species.

Moreover, a new fish sanctuary will be established in Barangay President Roxas while existing marine protected are in Barangay Magsaysay will undergo rehabilitation. Among the conservation interventions include establishment of perimeter buoys around the sanctuary for fishers to recognize the prohibited fishing operations in the area.

R.T. Lim Mayor Danilo Piodena said the identified projects will be a big boost in their efforts to conserve the town’s marine protected areas and upland riverbanks.

While the town of Linamon is ready to implement the P7 million worth of coral reef restoration and enhancement, agro-forestry conservation and ecotourism development of its natural wonder the Tinago Falls and conservation of its key river of Larapan .

In the town of Nasipit , the local government is ready to implement the P6.1 million worth of projects for the agro-forestry project of the upland community of Hamiguitan, the Nasipit marine sanctuary and bio-engineering riverbank stabilization.

In southern Mindanao , at least P6.92 million is allotted for the rehabilitation and management of the watershed in the uplands of Don Marcelino town in Davao del Sur along with the establishment of its fish sanctuary in its coastal area.

Moreover, the town of Kalamansig in Sultan Kudarat province, will benefit from mangrove rehabilitation and preservation of Limulan river by planting Bamboo which is a deep rooted indigenous species trees and fruit trees to establish permanent riverbank protection to lessen the extreme widening, re-channeling and siltation of the water course caused by the rapid flow of the river.

Further in ARMM, Datu Odin Sinusat town is ready with its P7 million worth of subprojects consist of river stabilization, mangrove rehabilitation, fish sanctuary and Forest Plantation establishment. Residents of the town are happy to note of the program because it’s first of its kind since they were it by tsunami in the 70’s.

Manifesto for Environment

To seal each town’s commitment to pitch in for the environment, local chief executives, DA-MRDP officials and project beneficiaries sign a manifesto to live up to the aims of the projects by institutionalizing community-based approach implementation to instill ownership among beneficiaries by intesifying community’s awareness, building capacity for sustainable agricultural practices and helping guard and eliminate illegal activities like kainging (slash and burn), dynamite fishing and other destructive activities.

MRDP, now on its second phase, is a long-term poverty alleviation program implemented under the DA with funding assistance from the national government, the World Bank and the local government units. (With reports from NTProvido and Chedecastro)

http://mindanao.com/blog/2009/04/natural-resources-conservation-projects-in-mindanao-launched/

Downsouth
By Hernani De Leon

Mindanao job situation feeling pinch of slowdown

DAVAO CITY — Data on Mindanao’s job situation provided by a ranking official of the Labor department last week have indicated that there is, indeed, an economic problem brewing on the island. While only retrenchments from Northern Mindanao’s industries have been significantly reported these past months, the data showed the equally alarming figures in Caraga and Zamboanga Peninsula.

Caraga’s woes are expected with the industrial slowdown that started last year. The region’s major outputs are metallic minerals primarily shipped to Chinese smelting and manufacturing plants. These commodities are produced by local miners in partnership with Chinese firms and shipped out mostly from the port of Cagayan de Oro. With the industrial slowdown, Caraga’s miners had resorted to layoffs.

Zamboanga Peninsula hardly reported major job cuts since January, but if the Labor department data covered the second part of 2008, the problem could be traced to the region’s commercial fishing industry — from oil prices to the lean fishing season that required job cuts even for the canning facilities. When the fishing season resumes, at about this time, employment should pick up near normal levels.

There’s no sign yet of an economic slump that could hit the Davao Region in the near term. Agribusiness is doing well, except for the coconut industry, which is a major economic contributor not only in the region but the whole of Mindanao as well. Foreign demand has gone down significantly as industrial users of coconut products falter, depressing prices of copra (desiccated coconut) all over the island to P15 per kilogram at farm gate from about P50 a year ago.

xxx

http://www.bworldonline.com/BW040809/content.php?id=079

Mindanao BPO, tourism to thrive this year: DTI
Written by Rizalene P. Acac
Tuesday, 07 April 2009 05:54


THE DEPARTMENT of Trade and Industry (DTI) is optimistic about the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) in Mindanao for this year.

DTI Undersecretary Merly M. Cruz, in a report presented during the 15th year anniversary of Mindanao Economic Development Council (MedCo) last month, showed the target for the sector to be at more than $7 million and 500,000 jobs generated. The BPO sector produced close to $6 million in 2008.

For this year, the IT and BPO promotion will be focused in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, Socsksargen, and the Davao Region.

Another sector seen to contribute greatly to the island’s economy is tourism. Cruz said prospects for the sector could reach $5.5 million which was only pegged at $4.3 million last year.

The government targets to enhance the medical and wellness facilities in Mindanao in a bid to make it the medical and wellness tourism destination in Asia.

The Department of Tourism has also endorsed the P9 billion package of tourism projects which would include hotels, resorts and spa, and medical centers to improve what the island can offer. But the target prospects for home furnishings was maintained at $1.14 million, which was also the recorded figure in 2008.

"Furniture and and houseware exporters are advised to create environment-friendly products as a way to penetrate the Japanese market," her report added.

For the agriculture sector, processed food and marine products are the main export products for the year. Cruz said the target for processed food is close to $2 million compared to the actual income of about $1 million last year.

Marine products, on the other hand, is targeted to reach $970,000 from the actual $808,000 in 2008.

Cruz said among the export strategies will be the promotion of these products and acceleration of market diversification which would entail review of promotions to Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines-East Asean Growth Area, Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and the Middle East.

She said the government will also enhance product positioning of halal products through the Halal Certification Board.

You know this quite different from the present. It was quite old pictures of different cities. But still it was nice looking the great views of it.

DENR holds writeshop for WB GEF-funded Ligawasan Marsh project (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090407.htm&no=49)

Koronadal City-- In an attempt to fast track implementation of a five-year project for the second largest wetland in the country, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) recently held a writeshop in Kidapawan, the capital city of (North) Cotabato.

Through the writeshop, the concerned local government units were assisted in plan formulation as one of the requirements in the release of funds for the World Bank-funded Ligawasan Marsh Biodiversity Conservation Project.

The three-day activity was participated in by the representatives from 11 municipalities -- seven of which were from Maguindanao Province in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) while four came from Cotabato Province in Region XII. It was held last March 23-25, in Mahomanoy Resort in Lake Agco in Barangay Ilomavis. The writeshop was conducted to cope with the target submission of their respective plans before July 2009 as requested by Assistant Secretary Analiza Rebuelta-Teh during her visit to Koronadal City early March this year.

Project consultant and retired DENR Regional Executive Director Raoul Geollegue, guided the LGUs in the formulation and integration of their plans. Director Geollegue was adviser and consultant to Task Force Macajalar, a coalition of people's organizations and non-government organizations in Northern Mindanao concerned with the environment.

Geollegue reviewed the Ligawasan Marsh Management Plan through the Integrated Ecosystem Management (IEM) framework and provided the workshop template to include profiling, biophysical resources, issues and constraints, among others.

"In the formulation of your plans, there must be an integration using different perspectives. You have to communicate your plans and once you have communicated it, protect it," Geollegue emphasized.

The LGUs, aggressive for the development of the globally significant Ligawasan Marsh, worked on the outline provided for the activity. Nine out of the 11 municipalities were able to present their respective plans with critiquing by a panel.

table three of page three is a table of the GDP and GRDP mindanao regions from 2005 to 2007. kindly click the link below

http://www.norminet.org.ph/downloads/2007_Regional20_devt_Report.pdf

Gov’t sees 500,000 jobs in Mindanao


By Rizalene P. Acac
Inquirer Mindanao
First Posted 00:22:00 04/08/2009

Filed Under: Regional authorities, Employment, World Financial Crisis, business process outsourcing (BPO), Tourism


DAVAO CITY – Government officials are projecting at least 500,000 new jobs in two regions, three provinces and a city in Mindanao this year.

According to a report made by Merly Cruz, trade and industry undersecretary, business process outsourcing companies (BPOs) and tourism in Mindanao were likely to bring in a combined revenue of more than $10 million by the end of 2009.

A copy of her report was obtained by Inquirer.

Cruz said in her report that the target for the BPO sector alone was already more than $7 million.

In 2008, Cruz said BPOs raked in close to $6 million.

Aside from the projected increase in revenues, Cruz said BPOs were also expected to produce about 500,000 jobs in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, South Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Sarangani and General Santos City, and in southern Mindanao.

As for the tourism industry, Cruz said the DTI has projected that its income would reach $5.5 million.

She said it was not remote because last year, income from tourism-related businesses was at $4.3 million in Mindanao alone.

Cruz said the expected increase in tourism revenue was due to the government’s active push to make Mindanao a medical tourism area.

“The government targets to enhance the medical and wellness facilities in Mindanao in a bid to make it the medical and wellness tourism destination in Asia,” she said.

Cruz said the government, through the Department of Tourism, also endorsed the P9-billion package for tourism projects, which includes hotels, resorts and spa, and medical centers to improve what the island can offer.

Aside from BPOs and tourism-related ventures, Cruz said they also increased their projection for other sectors.

She said the projected income for the processed food industry is about $2 million by the end of the year.

Cruz said among the export strategies they expected to boost exports was market diversification, which would entail a review of promotions to the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines-East Asia Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA), the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), and the Middle East markets.

She said the government, with the cooperation of the private sector, would also enhance product positioning of halal products through the Halal Certification Board.

“Other efforts include the Export Pathways Program and the Regional Interaction Platform for Philippine Exporters (Ripples), both of which are support measures to facilitate exportation,” she said.

The administration of President Macapagal-Arroyo has launched a program to cushion the effects of the global recession on migrant workers and workers in the manufacturing sector.

Aside from generating more jobs through infrastructure spending, the government has offered training for new skills for overseas Filipino workers who were removed from their foreign jobs as a result of the recession.

Joey Salceda, Albay governor and one of Ms Arroyo’s top economic advisers, said the government has to do more, however, as the worst is yet to come in terms of unemployment.

He said the government needed to spend more on a stimulus package for workers.

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/regions/view/20090408-198438/Govt-sees-500000-jobs-in-Mindanao

http://www.dpwh.gov.ph/news/img/07/matin-ao.jpg

i think early 90's pa to.. the bridge had its maintenance just last year i guess. and the roads are now concrete..

The presidentiables, senatoriables are now reaching out to Mindanao (http://www.mindanaoan.com/2009/04/10/the-presidentiables-senatoriab-are-now-reaching-out-to-mindanao/)
April 10, 2009 by Taga Mindanao
Filed under Bukidnon, Cagayan de Oro City, Commentary, Controversial, Government, Headline, Journalism, Media, Mindanaoan Update, Musings, News, Opinion, Personal, Personalities, Society


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The next Philippine national elections may still be a little over a year away from today but the various personalities believed to be among the “2010 senatoriables” and “2010 presidentiables” have started to make their presence felt here in Mindanao.

Just a few days ago, Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay paid Cagayan de Oro City, Mindanao a visit. He was the guest of honor in an SK-related event, I think. However, sources told me that he also proceeded to the Province of Bukidnon to meet some political allies.

Care to guess what they discussed?

Senator Mar Roxas, on the other hand, has also been visible around Mindanao as of late. Touted as the Liberal Party’s presidential bet, Senator Mar has been doing the rounds here as commencement exercises speaker.

Same thing with the solon from Sorsogon, Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero. He was in Iligan City, Davao City, Ozamis City, Cagayan de Oro City and Maguindanao recently. Chiz’s office also released some video greetings wherein he spoke in various dialects including Bisaya.

UaAl9jMOItE

Check out his Kaamulan 2009 greeting for the people of Bukidnon (this video also appears in Bukidnon Online):



The Office of Senator Richard Gordon, meanwhile, has also been on a roll as of late. I’ve been receiving a ton of press releases/media statements from his office.

Another Mindanaoan believed to have very good chances of winning a Senatorial seat has also slowly but surely started to become more and more visible — Atty. Adel Tamano.

With these types of direct and “subtle” PR efforts, you can’t help but wonder if the campaign season has already begun. When does being a public servant end and being a “presidentiable” or “senatoriable” begin?

And more importantly — given all their visits and PR campaigns here in Mindanao — do you think they’ve tickled the Mindanaoan’s fancy?

Konsult Mindanaw designs ‘web-based region’ (http://themindanaocurrent.blogspot.com/2009/04/peace-in-mindanao.html)

In an effort to assure greater public participation in the Mindanao peace process consultation, Konsult Mindanaw, (a peace project of Bishop Ulama Conference) has designed a special ‘web-based region’ so that even those in diaspora communities outside of Mindanao or even those in foreign lands could also participate.

However, the data that will come through this channel shall be separate. Initially, the consultation will reach the whole of Mindanao and more.

Mindanao, according to Konsult Mindanaw Primer, will be divided into eight regional centers. Each regional operation will be hosted by an existing research center that will coordinate the communication process, the conduct of the actual consultation and the initial interpretation of data.

About 300 focus group discussions (FGDs) are slated to be conducted in the eight regional groupings, namely, Basilan-Sulu-Tawi, Zamboanga Peninsula, Davao region, Caraga, Central Mindanao, Socsksargen, Northern Mindanao and Lanao region.

GROUPS TO BE CONSULTED

Konsult Mindanaw will also assure that ample representations will cover the various sectors among Muslims, Lumads, Protestants and Catholics.

The sectors include women, youth, rural and urban poor, local government units, non-government organizations, internally displaced persons, traditional leaders, religious groups, academe, business practitioners and professionals.

There will also be special group discussions among artists, armed groups and children.

Konsult Mindanaw relies initially from the network of the Bishop-Ulama Conference (BUC). The BUC provides regional contact persons for Muslims, Protestants and Catholics.

The Lumad leaders have been convened in order to identify the corresponding contact persons. The regional coordinators work intimately with these contact persons with the support of the Project Management Team.

Through networking skills and referrals, the list of participants and facilitators is completed.

Konsult Mindanaw is supported by many institutions. At the start, the process of designing the project had to be financed by the BUC itself, being the project proponent. (Mark S. Ventura)

New study on proposed Mindanao railway system to be completed within the year (http://www.bworldonline.com/BW041309/content.php?id=053)

DAVAO CITY — A new study on the strategic railway development for Mindanao is expected to be completed before the end of this year, a ranking official of the Department of Transportation and Communication (DoTC) said last week.

Guiling A. Mamondiong, undersecretary for railways, said the study component includes full-scale feasibility studies for the Cagayan de Oro-Iligan corridor; a pre-feasibility study for the Cagayan de Oro-Davao-General Santos City line; and technical assessment of the Iligan City-Zamboanga City line.

"The duration of the study will be 10 months," he said in an interview.

The initial plan of the Transportation agency was to connect Davao City, Iligan, Cagayan de Oro, Zamboanga City, Cotabato City, Marawi, Pagadian, and Dipolog via the railway system.

While Mr. Mamondiong did not cite figures, he had estimated in June last year that the project will cost between $800 million-$1 billion, compared to the $700-million estimate floated when it was first proposed in the Ramos administration.

The government had already approached Poland, Saudi Arabia and Spain for development assistance, he had said.

President Gloria M. Arroyo in June of last year formed the Mindanao Railways Project Policy and Coordinating Committee, designating Transportation Secretary Leandro R. Mendoza, Public Works Sec. Hermogenes E. Ebdane, Jr. and Budget Sec. Rolando G. Andaya, Jr. as members. House Speaker Prospero C. Nograles (Davao City, 1st District) was named adviser.

The planned railway consists of a criss-crossing network of lines linking Cagayan de Oro to Iligan, Iligan to Zamboanga City, and Cagayan de Oro to Agusan and Surigao, as well as extensions to Davao and General Santos cities. The first phase of the project consists of a 120 kilometer stretch of railway that will pass through the Cagayan de Oro-Iligan industrial corridor.

Mr. Mamondiong said the railway project is not the only big-ticket transportation development for Mindanao this year.

He noted that the island will get a lion’s share of the DoTC’s transport investment program for 2009. Mindanao, he said, has been allocated P2.791 billion or 40.70% of the department’s total budget for this program, against P2.429 billion for Luzon (35.43%) and P1.637 billion for Visayas (23.87%).

Among the ongoing projects, he said, are

* the Laguindingan Airport development project in Misamis Oriental with a budget of P7.853 billion and scheduled to be completed by January 2012;
* the P478.05-million Dipolog Airport development project which is set to finish by this October; and
* the P215.13-million Ozamiz Airport development project which should be completed this July.

Butuan airport is also now undergoing a P700-million makeover. Upgrading work on this facility includes extension and widening of the runway, rehabilitation of the terminal building and improvement of navigation facilities. The target completion of the project has been set for this December.

Mr. Mamondiong said the asphalt overlay of runway of the Cotabato Airport in Awang, Maguindanao, which was allocated a P600-million budget, has already been completed, while bidding for the rehabilitation of the terminal building was opened last month.

Moreover, development of Zamboanga and Pagadian airports, with respective funding costs of P428.5 million and P379.46 million, respectively should be completed this year, said Mr. Mamondiong. — Joel B. Escovilla

DPWH pledges to work ‘24/7′ to complete Surigao-Davao Coastal Road project
April 16, 2009 11:05 am

SURIGAO CITY, April 15 — Responding to the clamor by residents here for the expeditious completion of the Surigao-Davao Coastal Road project, Public Works and Highways Secretary Hermogenes Ebdane Jr. today pledged his agency and all the contractors involved in the project would work "24/7" to complete it as soon as possible.

Ebdane made the pledge to the people of Mindanao and to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo herself whom he joined in a regional 2-on-1 media interview on board a roll-on roll-off vessel bound for San Ricardo port in Southern Leyte from the Verano port here this morning.

In answer to a question fielded by a reporter from Surigao who asked for the estimated completion time of the Surigao-Davao coastal road project which importance the President stressed, Ebdane said they will complete the project before yearend.

"So far, out of the 300-plus kilometers (of the Surigao-Davao road project) from Surigao City to the boundary of Davao Oriental, we have been working to cement 109 kilometers and we have already accomplished 39 kilometers. We hope to complete (the remainder) by December (2009)," Ebdane said.

"But you're supposed to be working 24/7," the President interjected to which Ebdane answered; "Yes Ma'am. We will comply."

The Davao-Surigao coastal-road project is one of the major road-network projects President Arroyo has directed the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to complete as part of her legacy to the Filipino people.

The different sections of the eastern Mindanao road network are in various stages of completion, with the southernmost section, the Mati-Manay stretch in Davao Oriental, already completed last year.

Work on the southernmost portion of the seven-section road network covering 66.85 kilometers was started in October 2004 and was finished last September. Work on the other six sections were started in 2007.

The adjacent Boston-Manay section in northern Davao Oriental, covering 83.89 kilometers, is 52.54 percent completed. The Bislig–Boston section covering 72.39 kilometers, is now 61.1 complete while the 89.06-kilometer Marihatag-Hinatuan-Bislig section that is now 51.16 percent complete.

The Cortes-Tandag-Marihatag section, also in Surigao del Sur, covering 75 kilometers is 31.22-percent. The Adlay-Bon-ot section in Surigao del Norte was bidded out in June last year but the contractor, until recently, was still awaiting the release of funds to start construction.

The last section, the 40-kilometer Bacuag-Claver section, is already 60.42-percent complete.

Ebdane said he will make sure the road project is completed by December this year. (PNA)

LAP/OPS/ssc

http://balita.ph/2009/04/16/dpwh-pledges-to-work-247-to-complete-surigao-davao-coastal-road-project/

Meda integrates Mindanao dev’t (http://www.goldstardailynews.com/content.php?sectionid=3&id=2631)
April 16, 2009
BONG B. FABE
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The proposed Mindanao Economic Development Authority (MEDA) will act as the integrator of all peace and development initiatives in Mindanao to avoid fragment development and ensure harmony and synergy among regions, said the bill’s proponent.

With this, it is but proper to have the MEDA bill declared as urgent by President Arroyo, said Rep. Rufus Rodriguez (2nd District, CDOC, PMP-UNO).

Rodriguez, a first-term congressman, said that the State’s declared policy to accelerate the socio-economic growth and development in Mindanao by encouraging and increasing trade, tourism and investments, private enterprise, and advancing efforts towards peace and development will be better implemented with the immediate creation of the MEDA because it’s primary function is to “provide the institutional mechanism for an integrated and consolidated approach to Mindanao.”

He said that MEDA will preserve, protect and strengthen the gains derived from the peace and development efforts in Mindanao. It will also create a permanent mechanism to ensure consistency and continuity for development efforts in the island.

The MEDA will address “the need for a coordinative and integrative approach for the formulation and implementation of various Mindanao-wide, Mindanao-specific interregional development plans, programs and projects,” he said.

As proposed by Rodriguez’s House Bill 5620, MEDA’s role is “to promote, coordinate and facilitate the active and extensive participation of all sectors to effect the socio-economic development of Mindanao. It shall also act as an implementing agency for Mindanao-specific interregional and Mindanao-wide programs and projects whenever necessary.”

However, it will not duplicate or overlap functions with other government agencies but rather complement the initiatives of the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA), the Regional Development Council (RDC), Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) and the Southern Philippines Development Authority (SPDA).

Once created, the MEDA will replace the Mindanao Economic Development Council (MedCo), and will cover all the provinces and cities of Regions 9, 10, 11, 12, Caraga and the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

Rodriguez said he will ask the President’s Chief Legal Counsel Jesus Dureza to accompany him to Malacañang to talk with President Arroyo into certifying the MEDA bill as urgent.

The House of Representatives Committee on Mindanao Affairs is still in the process of integrating Rodriguez’s bill (HB 5620) and HB 5255 authored by by Rep. Simeon Datumanong (Maguindanao) and Pakung Mangudadatu, (First District, Sultan Kudarat).




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Mindanao foreign trade increased 41% to $5.28 billion in 2008 PDF Print E-mail
Economy
Written by Manuel Cayon / Reporter
Thursday, 16 April 2009 21:44
DAVAO CITY—Exports and imports churned up bigger numbers in Mindanao as the previously lagging regions posted a surprising performance, pushing to nearly 50 percent higher the total trade performance of this southern Philippine island.

In its Economic Report on Mindanao’s Foreign Trade Performance covering the period January to December 2008, the Mindanao Economic Development Council (Medco) said the island chalked up a total of $5.28 billion in value of its traded goods and services last year. This value is 41 percent higher the $3.75 billion that Mindanao posted the previous year.

Despite a sharp increase in imports, Mindanao still came up with a balance-of-trade position of $1.49 billion in 2008, though a small increase of 4 percent, from the previous year’s $1.44 billion.

Mindanao importers spent $1.89 billion in 2008, an increase of 64 percent from $1.15 billion in 2007.

Total export earnings, one the other hand, were valued at $3.39 billion in 2008, up 31 percent from $2.59 billion in 2007.

The Department of Trade and Industry, in a presentation on March 30 in a Medco-organized Mindanao economic briefing, said the Caraga region, which posted almost a flat rate in exports since 1994, and the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), of which areas have been troubled by war, posted a surprising performance.

Caraga region, comprised of the two Agusan provinces, two Surigao provinces and the recently formed Dinagat Island province, began revving up its mostly timber, mining and marine resources in 2005, earning nearly P400 million in 2007.

The ARMM already showed improvements in 2002 and earned almost P500 million in 2007. Its splendid performance could spell hope for most of its five provinces—Maguindanao, Lanao del Sur, Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi—which belong to the country’s poorest provinces.

The top 10 exports of Mindanao accounted for already $2.62 billion, a growth of 24 percent from $2.1 billion in 2007. Coconut oil is still Mindanao’s top export earner, posting earnings of $865.89 million, an increase of 54 percent, from $561.60 million in December 2007. Its earnings in 2008 was already 25.57 percent to the total exports that year.

Fresh bananas, of which Southern Mindanao is famous for, posted an aggregate receipt of $456.11 million, an increase of 16 percent to its exports in 2007 amounting to $392.80 million. Bananas posted a share of 13.47 percent from the total exports of all products from Mindanao.

Fish, either prepared or preserved, was the third top export product with a share of 9.49 percent of total exports. It posted the highest growth in sales amounting to 173 percent, from $117.54 million in 2007 to $321.34 million by December 2008.

Fruits, prepared or preserved, also posted a huge jump in earnings reaching 109 percent, with export receipts of $245.61 million last year as compared to $117.23 million in 2007.
The other products in the top 10 were organic chemicals, such as lauryl, cetyl and stearyl alcohol ($158.74 million); nickel ores ($148.17 million); iron-ore agglomerates, such as sinters ($128.93 million); fresh or frozen fish ($120.82 million); desiccated coconuts ($93.55 million); and fruit juices ($76.01 million).

Of the top 10 products, the products that posted declining receipts compared with their 2007 earnings were nickel ores (58 percent), iron-ore agglomerates (23 percent) and fresh or frozen fish ((37 percent). In imports, rice racked up the bulk of spending by a single product, pushed by the unpredicted surge in prices despite a claimed adequate supply, making the product inaccessible to many of the poor residents in the southeastern and central regions of Mindanao.

Mindanao spent $449.34 million last year to buy rice from Vietnam and Thailand, making Vietnam the recipient of outgoing dollars from the Philippines. Last year’s expenditure on rice imports was more tha twofold from $138.85 million in 2007.

Rice import was already one-fourth of the entire importation of Mindanao last year, reaching $1.24 billion. Total import expenses last year was 65 percent higher than the $617.33 million spent in 2007.

Other top imports were semifinished products of iron or nonalloy steel ($171.05 million), wheat and meslin used mainly for making bread and other items needing flour ingredients ($146.86 million), urea ($102.57 million) and uncoated kraft paper and paperboard ($99.46 million).

The US and Japan continued to be Mindanao’s top trade partners, posting a total trade value of $3.81 billion or 72.22 percent of the total. The two countries alone accounted for $2.69 billion in receipts, or 79.33 percent of the total exports receipts and total import payments of $1.40 billion.

Coconut oil, both crude and refined, already accounted for 65.23 percent of the total exports to the country from Mindanao, valued at $437.58 million. Preserved pineapples earned $89.23 million. The majority of the imported products from the US were wheat and meslin, valued at $95.89 million or 36.4 percent of the total imports, and Kraftliner, at $65.38 million or a 24.82-percent share of the total imports to the country.

Japan accounted for $803.84 million or 15.22 percent of the total trade with Mindanao. Export receipts from Japan reached $722.88 million while payments for imports were valued at $80.95 million, resulting to $641.93 million in trade surplus.

The biggest receipt was tuned in by fresh bananas, at $247.93 million or 34.30 percent of Mindanao’s exports to Japan. Iron-ore sinters had total receipts of $128.50 million or 17.78 percent of the total exports to the country.

Imported goods from Japan consisted of extras essences and concentrates of coffee, tea or mate worth $17.34 million or 21.42 percent of the total imports from the country. Mineral or chemical fertilizer (e.g. ammonium sulphate) was next at $14.91 million, or a share of 18.42 percent of the total imports from the country.

The other top trading countries were Vietnam ($413.06 million or 7.82 percent of the total trade, mostly rice, flat-rolled products of iron, oil-cake and other solid residues and tuna); the Netherlands ($365 million or a share of 7 percent to total trade in coconut oil and prepared or preserved fish); and China ($270 million or a share of 5 percent to total trade in nickel ores and concentrates and coconut oil).

http://businessmirror.com.ph/home/economy/8960-mindanao-foreign-trade-increased-41-to-528-billion-in-2008.html

Regional council withholds support of development body (http://www.bworldonline.com/BW041709/content.php?src=3&id=076)
CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY — Northern Mindanao’s Regional Development Council (RDC) has deferred its endorsement of the proposed Mindanao Economic Development Authority (MEDA) pending the consolidation of three separate proposals at the House of Representatives.

Cecilio Clarete, chief of the knowledge management division of the National Economic and Development Authority’s (NEDA) regional office, said the RDC is not against MEDA but it is suggesting a thorough deliberation so that the new agency would not overlap with NEDA.

The NEDA regional director is co-chairman of the RDC, and the regional socioeconomic planning office serves as the council’s secretariat.

The MEDA proposal is under bills authored by Cagayan de Oro City Rep. Rufus B. Rodriguez (House Bill 5620), Camiguin Rep. Pedro P. Romualdo (HB 2303), and Maguindanao Rep. Simeon A. Datumanong and Sultan Kudarat Rep. Pax Pakung S. Mangudadatu (HB 5255).

In previous interviews, civil society leaders in Mindanao expressed differing views on the proposed agency, said to be more powerful than the Mindanao Economic Development Council (Medco), which it would eventually replace. Medco is under the supervision of NEDA.

Rodolfo L. Meñez, president of the Cagayan de Oro Chamber of Commerce and Industry, told BusinessWorld there is a need for special focus on the island to meet the demands of peace and development.

He said the body should be apolitical and should be run by development managers.

Mr. Rodriguez said he will request for an audience with President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo so the bill could be certified as urgent. — Penny Lyn P. Cunanan

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Innolab to revolutionize technology in Mindanao
Monday, 20 April 2009 02:23
PDF

PLDT sets inauguration of innovation center in May

by Antonio M. Ajero

A MAJOR technological development will unfold in Mindanao with the launching in Davao City next month of an innovation laboratory and telecommunications education center (Innolab) by the country’s largest telecommunications company, the Philippine Long Telephone Distance Co., Inc.

The Innolab will serve as incubation area or breeding ground of software, inventions and all sorts of business solutions and new technological discoveries, according to Ben Melasa, head of the company’s Corporate Business Group in Mindanao.

To be inaugurated inside the sprawling PLDT headquarters on Ponciano Reyes St. in Davao City in May, the center will serve as an area where startup businesses, software developers, inventors and researchers in the academe can pilot their new technological solutions and computer programs before these are used privately by their individual companies or offered to the market for propagation and commercial use.

Melasa told business editors and reporters meeting regularly at the MediSpa Clinic at SM City Davao that the use of the center will be for free and that the company may even buy or help market the solutions that will be developed or validated in the Innolab.

The Innolab, the fourth in the country, will also serve as showcasing center for the PLDT’s new solutions. “We will be able to showcase our new products to these startups,” he said. The other areas where PLDT has opened Innolab are Manila, Cebu and Subic.

As a melting pot of innovative ideas and venue where new products and cost-effective solutions are tested, Melasa said the Innolab is expected to lead to some kind of technological revolution in Mindanao since it is going to service the needs and requirements of startup businesses, researchers, inventors and other stakeholders in the island region.

Aside from benefiting the academe in their research and development activities, the Innolab will also be very helpful in the solutions developed by members of the expanding information communication technology (IT) sector in Davao City.

Melasa first made a presentation about Innolab during a recent general membership assembly of the Davao ICT Inc. presided by Ms Lizabel “Wit” Holganza, head of the Medical Transcription Academy in Davao City.

Earlier, Samuel Abrenilla, chair of the Filipino Inventors Federation Inc., a national organization, said that one of the projects that his organization is implementing is helping new solutions developers be able to market their products.

Abrenilla said that the federation is planning to partner with big companies to help these thriving startup businesses.

Also, he said the organization is partnering with schools in developing the inventions of students, including those that are needed for the information and communications technology industry.

Abrenilla complained that while schools hold fairs for students to showcase their inventions, there is still not much effort provided to develop those inventions that can be mass produced.

“It is sad, but sometimes students are just contended and happy that some foreign companies imitate their inventions, failing to realize that they could have made huge profits out of these inventions,” he lamented.

http://www.edgedavao.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=305:innolab-to-revolutionize-technology-in-mindanao&catid=51:on-the-cover&Itemid=83

Mango growers adopt ‘hot water’ techniques to meet requirements (http://www.goldstardailynews.com/content.php?sectionid=3&id=2761)
April 21, 2009

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Hot water treatment (HWT) is a requisite for mangoes exported to China and Hongkong. In 2008, Mindanao exported about 2,300 metric tons of fresh mango valued at more than US$3.5 million, representing a volume increase of 16 percent over the previous year. (Photo Supplied)


ILIGAN CITY—As mango production expands in northern Mindanao, growers must be equipped with proper post-harvest technologies for meeting the quarantine requirements of target export markets.

Recently, the 40-member Mango Growers Association of Iligan City (MAGIC) and the 30-member Cagayan-Misamis Oriental-Bukidnon Mango Growers each received hot water treatment (HWT) facilities from the Department of Agriculture (DA).

USAID’s Growth with Equity in Mindanao (GEM) Program provided the initial design of the facilities and organized hands-on training for the association members.

The HWT process, which entails immersing green mature mangoes in a water bath for ten minutes at a temperature range of 52-55°C, arrests the development of diseases in the fruit.

Countries like Japan, South Korea and the U.S. require the more costly vapor heat treatment for mango imports, but other markets require HWT only.

“Growers in Iligan are working to make our fruits export-friendly. Once they’ve passed through the HWT facility, the mangoes can be shipped to Hongkong and China,” said MAGIC president Linda Halibas, who said that non-association growers in the area could also avail of the facility.

In 2008, Mindanao exported about 2,300 metric tons of fresh mango valued at more than US$3.5 million, representing a volume increase of 16 percent over the previous year.

There is also a demand for processed fruit: last year, Mindanao directly exported dried mango valued at approximately US$1.4 million, and mango juices and purees with an estimated total value of US$1.1million.

The GEM Program has worked in partnership with the Mindanao Fruit Industry Council and other industry proponents in developing off-season mango production and in strengthening the production supply chain by encouraging more private investments in quarantine treatment facilities like VHT and HWT.

Earlier, also in partnership with the DA and the local government, the GEM Program facilitated the design and training management of an HWT facility for the Moro United Multi-Purpose Cooperative, comprised of former combatants of the National Moro Liberation Front and their families, in Carmen, North Cotabato.

According to a DA study, the Philippines is among the top ten mango producing countries of the world, with a 3.5-percent market share in 2007. The DA projects 7 to10 percent growth in Philippine mango production in 2009.

SMI completes pre-feasibility study for Tampakan Project (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090422.htm&no=76&r=r12&y=&mo=)

Koronadal City -- Sagittarius Mines Inc. ("SMI") has delivered to its funding shareholder representatives the results of its work programs associated with the extended pre-feasibility study for the Tampakan copper-gold project in southern Mindanao.

These results, which are still subject to a final feasibility study, outline a potential mining operation based on:

* An annual average copper production of 340,000 tonnes per annum and 350,000 ounces per annum of gold, based on a 20 year operation.

* Open pit mining and land-based waste rock and tailings storage.

* Mill recovery rates of 83-90% for copper and 60-80% for gold, with a copper concentrate grade of 37-34%.

* An initial stage-one capital outlay of US$5.2 billion, including provision for associated infrastructure.

* A potential schedule for development with commissioning and first production in early 2016.

SMI President, Peter Forrestal said:

"We are pleased to have completed the work programs associated with our extended pre-feasibility study and to have delivered the results to our management committee, comprising representatives from Xstrata Copper, Indophil Resource NL and Alsons Corporation. Those organisations are currently evaluating the results of this study".

"SMI is planning to commence the public consultation phase for the project's Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) process later this year.

"This phase will involve a series of extensive, open and transparent public consultations with the project's stakeholders. The consultation will cover the proposed mining process, the scale and extent of the proposed project including the infrastructure requirements, the potential environmental and social impacts and benefits of the project; SMI's planned environmental management systems and socio-economic development programs.

"Most importantly, it will give our stakeholders the opportunity to understand the project better, and to express their views and any suggestions they may have in respect of the proposed project."

"Our aim is to develop the Tampakan project in line with leading environmental and social practices, working in partnership with our stakeholders to create mutual benefits for shareholders, the communities associated with the project and the Philippines."

CHR welcomes new commissioner from Mindanao (http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view/20090424-201156/CHR-welcomes-new-commissioner-from-Mindanao)
By Nikko Dizon

MANILA, Philippines— The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) hailed on Thursday the appointment of lawyer Jose Manuel Mamauag by Malacañang to fill up the last seat in the constitutional body's Fourth Commission.

"At least we are now complete," CHR chair Leila de Lima said in a statement.

De Lima described Mamauag as an "insider" whose experience as head of the CHR's Western Mindanao office would be valuable to the commission.

"We are truly glad for the appointment of Commissioner Mamauag. His expertise in the field of human rights, plus his dedication and passion to his work will definitely contribute to the Commission's thrust to be the premier human rights institution in the country," De Lima said.

The other CHR commissioners are Cecilia Rachel Quisumbing and lawyers Ma. Victoria Cardona and Norberto de la Cruz.

Mamauag, a native of Iligan City, has been known for his "outspoken and courageous stance in various human rights issues especially in Mindanao."

The GMA-7 online news reported that in July 2007, Mamauag was part of the CHR team attacked allegedly by militiamen on Limaong Island in Mindanao as they were about to exhume the remains of a possible human rights victim.

The regional office under Mamauag has also been investigating the rise of summary executions or unexplained killings in Zamboanga City.

DBP supports Mindanao muscovado production (http://mb.com.ph/articles/203570/dbp-supports-mindanao-muscovado-production)
By MELPHA M. ABELLO

The Development Bank of the Philippines has committed to extend an initial R11-million revolving credit line to Sultan Kudarat Muscovado Farmers and Millers Corp. (SKMFC) to boost its working capital in behalf of the farmers and millers in Sultan Kudarat.

The loan agreement was signed during the recent Second Partners Forum for Promoting Rural Industries and Market Enhancement (PRIME) program at the Bureau of Soils and Water Management auditorium in Quezon City.

SKMFC is one of the country’s leading muscovado producers and the biggest in Mindanao with an average production of about 320 tons of muscovado sugar a month. It is composed of two farmers’ cooperatives, eight individual millers and several farmers. It is based in President Quirino, a fourth class municipality in Sultan Kudarat.

The Philippine Development Assistance Program (PDAP), which has helped SKMFC grow into one of the most profitable groups in Mindanao, said that the loan will give the muscovado industry a much needed boost and solidify Sultan Kudarat’s position as the second largest source of muscovado sugar after Antique.

Muscovado sugar is one of the fastest growing organic products in the Philippines and is enjoying growing demand here and abroad, especially Europe. Its production is centered in Antique, Sultan Kudarat, Davao, Negros Occidental, Batangas and Abra.

Romy Carandang, who heads DBP’s microfinance unit that oversees the R200-million Organic Agriculture lending window, said that DBP extended the loan as part of its mandate to help spur development of vital industries in the countryside through loans at competitive rates.

DBP and PDAP have been working on joint projects since 2006 and the first fruit of the partnership was a R5-million loan last year to Tawi-Tawi-based Sitangkai Exports Corporation, one of the leading producers of seaweed in the Philippines.

PDAP executive director Jerry E. Pacturan said that PDAP, which is using funds from the Canadian International Development Agency, would work on more loan agreements with DBP as more farmer groups and cooperatives are now ready to take a bigger share of the growing market for organic products.

PDAP is supporting the growth of organic rice, muscovado sugar and seaweed through its PRIME project, which is designed to support enterprising communities by developing viable industries. This was born out of PDAP’s realization that focusing just on production and increasing productivity is not enough to increase farm income.

30,000 hectares of land eyed for rubber plantation (http://mb.com.ph/articles/204453/30000-hectares-land-eyed-rubber-plantation)
By MIKE U. CRISMUNDO

NABUNTURAN, Compostela Valley — At least 30,000 hectares of land is being eyed to be cultivated as rubber plantation in the Southern Mindanao region, said the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) in Southern Mindanao.

The areas being targeted are in the provinces of Compostela Valley (ComVal), Davao Oriental, Davao del Sur and Davao del Norte.

The DoLE said the five-year rubber development plan is all set for the maintenance of the regional clonal garden.

As this developed, the government will set aside at least P15 million for the Rural and Upland Barangays Benefiting from Employment in Rubber (RUBBER) project for the 10-year rubber plantation project in the region.

According to the DoLE, the funding from the government is aimed at developing the 30,000 hectares for the rubber plantation in the region for the next 10 years, the DoLE said.

The DoLE said this project is part of the one million-hectare target of the National Strategic Plan for Rubber (NSPR) for the year 2023.

The DoLE said this project will generate not only revenues but also job opportunities for the target areas.

“The RUBBER project is timely enough to provide additional employment for farmers especially in the middle of a global financial crisis,” said Southern Mindanao DoLE official Ofelia Domingo.

Meanwhile, at least 40,000 high yielding rubber seedlings were prepared along with the equipment for the land preparation and maintenance of the said clonal garden, the DoLE said.

The DoLE already hired nine workers, 75 Polly baggers and a farm supervisor to man the newly constructed administration building, storage, nursery and water facilities for irrigation located at the Sto. Niño area in Mandug.

Dole officials said the agency specifically promotes rubber not only for its potential for decent job creation and income augmentation but it is also suitable to the climatic conditions, and can be cultivated by farmers with small landholdings in hilly and upland areas.

“This is suitable to climatic conditions, create job and generate additional income for the villagers in the countryside,” DoLE officials said.

Tampakan project could be single largest investment for Mindanao (http://www.mindanews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6315&Itemid=160)

MAKATI CITY -- Construction of the Tampakan project in South Cotabato may yet be the single largest investment ever for Mindanao, Richard Laufmann, Indophil Resources NL chief executive officer, said.

Last week, Sagittarius Mines, Inc. (SMI) announced the construction of the Tampakan project would cost $5.2 billion, including provision for associated infrastructure like power plant and ports.

The Tampakan project is being pursued by SMI in the towns of Tampakan in South Cotabato, Columbio in Sultan Kudarat and Kiblawan in Davao del Sur.

The project has estimated deposits of 12.8 million metric tons of copper and 15.2 million ounces of gold.

“Bringing a large-scale copper deposit like Tampakan into production will help the world meet a demand-supply need for copper to use in electricity generation and distribution,” Laufmann said.

Laufmann said that as the world emerges from the current global financial crisis, it will need electricity to drive domestic infrastructure development.

“The Philippines, through Tampakan, will be seen as a major contributor to the future supply of global copper,” he said, adding the amount of $5.2 billion is more than three times the country’s foreign direct investment of $1.52 billion last year and bigger than the country’s entire Public Sector Infrastructure Budget for 2009 of P229 billion.

Swiss miner Xstrata Copper exercises management control at Sagittarius with 62.5% interest. Indophil holds 34.23%; Filipino conglomerate Alsons Corp. owns the rest but earlier agreed with Indophil for a buy-out.

Xstrata last year tried but failed to wrest Indophil’s Tampakan interest in a hostile takeover bid that eventually placed Alsons in the “priority seat.”

Indophil shareholders had voted for the board to sell its Tampakan asset to Alsons, which is backed by Crosby Capital Ltd. of Hong Kong, through the forging of a memorandum of intent by both parties (Indophil and Alsons).

Laufman said the corporate war with Xstrata is “over and both companies are maintaining a professional relationship” and that Indophil is committed to push forward the Tampakan project.

“The final feasibility study stage is expected to be completed in April next year at a cost of $50 million, and Indophil will be funding 37% of it,” he said.

Recently, Xstrata announced it has completed the extended pre-feasibility study (XPFS) of the Tampakan project and that deposits will be extracted through open-pit mining, a method opposed by the Koronadal diocese and environmental groups.

The South Cotabato provincial government is still deliberating on a proposed environment code that prohibits open pit mining in the area, as pressures mount from mining critics and national government officials.

Laufmann said financing for the project will be sourced through international banks or governments but he declined to identify them pending the completion of the final feasibility study.

Under the XPFS, initial production stage is set by 2016 in a 20-year operation that stands to earn the firm $2 billion estimated annual income.

Bahrain firm eyes agribiz deal in Mindanao (http://business.inquirer.net/money/breakingnews/view/20090504-203015/Bahrain-firm-eyes-agribiz-deal-in-Mindanao)
By Riza T. Olchondra

MANILA, Philippines--The Philippines and Bahrain have started discussing a possible agribusiness project in Mindanao that is expected to create some 20,000 jobs, according to the Department of Agriculture.

Citing a report by Marriz Agbon, president of the Philippine Agricultural Development and Commercial Corp. (PADCC), the DA said on Monday Bahraini Minister for Industry and Commerce Hassan Fakhro and officials of the Bahrain-based Nader & Ebrahim S/O Hassan (NEH) recently paid a courtesy call to President Arroyo to personally relay their intent to invest in the Davao region.

Their Philippine partner is the AMA Group Holdings Corp.

Ebrahim Hassan Mubarak Al Ameer of NEH and Ambassador Amable Aguiluz V, the chairman emeritus of the AMA Group, were present during the courtesy call to the President.

“This is an offshoot of President Arroyo’s visit last February 4 to Bahrain, where a memorandum of understanding to establish a general framework for agriculture and fisheries cooperation between the two countries was signed by Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap and Minister Fakhro,” Agbon said.

Agbon said that NEH organized a technical working group to study which crops could be grown commercially in Davao under its proposed agribusiness project.

The group would submit its recommendations in 180 days from the start of its technical mission, which began last March 7, he said.

Among the crops being considered by the Bahraini group are banana, rice, corn, pineapple, coffee and sugar in commercial quantities, according to Agbon.

National Grid allots P10b for Mindanao (http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=business4_may4_2009)
By Alena Mae S. Flores

National Grid Corp. of the Philippines has committed to invest as much as P10.32 billion for various transmission projects in the Mindanao grid starting 2009 to 2012.

National Grid said in a statement that it would continue to develop and improve the power transmission network in Mindanao to keep up with the growing power demand in the island.

Walter Brown, National Grid president, said the new operator of the country’s transmission highway would strive to remove inefficiencies in the network.

“National Grid has taken over a government corporation. While we are privileged to operate it as a private corporation, we are still responsible for providing a public service. We believe that providing service is a public trust which we intend to uphold at all times,” Brown said.

“We in National Grid are fortunate that we are working with competent people we inherited from TransCo. They were hampered by inefficiencies which we are in the process of trying to overcome,” he said.

National Grid has lined up several projects in Mindanao as part of efforts to upgrade and expand the power grid as well as align its operation and maintenance practices with global standards.

These include the Aurora-Polanco 138-kV Transmission Line Project and the Zamboanga City Area 138-kV Transmission Line Project.

from http://www.siargaogamefishing.com

http://i384.photobucket.com/albums/oo288/mike_durero/siargaoposter.jpg?t=1241526190

Schedule of activities
06 May 2009 (Wednesday):

9AM-4PM: Arrival / Registration of participants/guests

6PM: Anglers’ Briefing and Welcome Dinner / Press Briefing
Raffle of Boatmen

7PM: Cultural Show

07 May 2009 (Thursday): Grand Opening:

5:30AM: Anglers’ Check-out at Pilar Boulevard

10AM : Grand Opening of the 2nd Siargao Invitational Gamefishing
Tournament 2009 At Pilar Boulevard
(Guest of Honor: President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo)

12NN : Lunch / Relax

4PM: Angler’s Check-in at Pilar Boulevard / Weighing Station

7PM : Dinner / Free Time

08 May 2009 (Friday) : Tournament Proper:

5:30AM : Anglers’ Check-out at Pilar Boulevard

10AM : Gamefishing clinic/lessons for guests (optional)

12NN : Lunch / Relax & have leisure at Magpopongko Beach (Optional)

4PM : Angler’s Check-in at Pilar Boulevard / Weighing Station

7PM : Dinner / Free Time

09 May 2009 (Saturday): Closing Program and Awarding of Prizes:

5:30AM: Anglers’ Check-out at Pilar Boulevard

10AM : Gamefishing clinic/lessons for guests (optional)

12NN: Lunch

4PM : Angler’s Check-in at Pilar Boulevard / Weighing Station

7PM : Awarding Ceremonies

7PM : Bikini Babe

10 May 2009 (Sunday):

4 AM : Check-out / Proceed to Dapa

6AM : Depart for Surigao City via Chartered Boat

9AM : Arrive Surigao City / Breakfast at Peng Yu Restaurant

10AM : Proceed to Surigao City airport/ Check-In

11.45AM: Depart for Manila via PAL Express

Available Flights:

Cebu Pacific:

Manila-Cebu (4.50AM/6.35AM/8AM) + Cebu-Siargao (10.45AM/Return flight 12.15PM) every Monday/Wednesday/Friday
Cebu-Surigao (10.45AM/Return Flight 11.55AM ) every Sunday/Saturday/Tuesday/Thursday
PAL Express:

Manila – Surigao (9.30AM/Return Flight 11.45AM) daily[/CENTER]

originally posted by ibex

Surigao Del Norte
Summer Olympiks 2009
Schedule of Activities

May 4

"BANDAHAN SA TAG-INIT"
Battle of the Bands 2009
Venue: Gen Luna

May 4-6

Beach Football Cup
Skim Boarding Challenge & Clinic
Venue: Gen Luna

May 9-10

Gov. Robert Ace Barbers Invitational Mountain Bike Challenge 2009
Venue: Dapa & Gen Luna

May 10

"Search for SIARGAO SUMMER BODS 2009"
Venue: Gen Luna Boulevard

May 11

Launching of the "1st Gov Robert Ace Barbers
Inter-Municipality Basketball Tournament 2009"
& Beach Volleyball Challenge 2009 (Siargao Island)
Venue: Gen Luna Municipal Gymnasium

May 12

"SAJAW SIARGAO SA TAG-ARAW"
Modern Dance (Hip-hop) OPen Competition
Venue: Gen Luna Boulevard

May 11-14

Siargao International Women's Surfing Cup 2009
Venue: Cloud 9, Catangnan, Gen Luna

Beach Volleyball Man & Women's Cup
Venue: Gen Luna Boulevard

May 16

Launching of the "1st Gov Robert Ace Barbers
Inter-Municipality Basketball Tournament 2009"
& Beach Volleyball Challenge 2009 (Mainland)
Venue: City Gymnasium, Surigao City

May 16-17

Sen. Robert Z. Barbers Memorial Cup
"Bankarera 2009"
Venue: Mabua, Surigao City

May 18-20

Cloud 9 Masters Cup 2009
Venue: Cloud 9, Catangnan, Gen Luna



Sponsors:

Provincial Government of Surigao Del Norte
Municipal Government of General Luna, SDN
Department Of Tourism
Events Manila

FINAL RULING
SC: 16 municipalities can’t become cities

By Tetch Torres
INQUIRER.net
First Posted 14:38:00 05/07/2009

Filed Under: Local authorities, Judiciary (system of justice)

MANILA, Philippines – The Supreme Court has denied with finality appeals to reverse its ruling that declared as unconstitutional laws that converted 16 municipalities into cities.

Voting 6-5, the court voided the following Republic Acts: 9389 (Baybay City in Leyte), 9390 (Bogo City in Cebu), 9391 (Catbalogan City in Samar), 9392 (Tandag City in Surigao del Sur), 9393 (Lamitan City in Basilan), 9394 (Borongan City in Samar), 9398 (Tayabas City in Quezon), 9404 (Tabuk City in Kalinga), 9405 (Bayugan City in Agusan del Sur), 9407 (Batac City in Ilocos Norte), 9408 (Mati City in Davao Oriental), 9409 (Guihulngan City in Negros Oriental), 9434 (Cabadbaran City in Agusan del Norte), 9435 (El Salvador City in Misamis Oriental), 9436 (Carcar City in Cebu), and 9491 (Naga City in Cebu).

“In view of the denial of the second motion for reconsideration, no further pleadings shall be entertained. Let entry of judgment be made in due course,” the high court said in a three-page resolution.

The court had voided the said laws converting the municipalities into cities in a resolution dated November 18, 2008.

The court said the municipalities were not exempt from the income requirement for cities of P100 million.

The income requirement for cities was raised to P100 million from P20 million after Republic Act 9009 amended the Local Government Code. The laws converting the 16 municipalities into cities were passed after RA 9009 took effect.

The court said “limiting the exemption only to the 16 municipalities violates the requirement that the classification must apply to all similarly situated.”

The high court made the ruling following a petition by the League of Cities of the Philippines, saying a wholesale conversion of municipalities into cities would reduce the share of existing cities of the Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA).

Home » Sun.Star Davao » Business
Agrarian office launches project in Davao
Friday, May 8, 2009
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By Carlo P. Mallo



THE Department of Agrarian Reform launched in Davao City Thursday what may be one of its largest projects under the administration of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, the Agrarian Reform Communities Project (ARCP) 2.

In his speech, Agrarian Reform Undersecretary Narciso Nieto said ARCP 2 is the biggest project by far of the agrarian reform department for the delivery of support services.

"The project has a total cost of about P10 billion," Nieto said, stressing on the magnanimity of the project.

ARCP is a development framework designed by DAR that will ensure the productivity of awarded lands, bring about increase in household incomes, and enhancement of the socio-economic statures of beneficiaries and residents of agrarian reform communities. The first ARCP project was conducted from 1999 to 2007.

In attendance during the opening ceremonies are the governors, town mayors, and other stakeholders in the provinces of the Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao and Region 9.

ARCP 2 is financed by Asian Development Bank, Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) Fund for International Development, the national government, and local government units.

"The continuing support of ADB and our other partners in the donor community is perhaps a testament to the capability and credibility of the DAR to implement large-scale, multi-stakeholder development programs," Nieto said. "But the decision of ADB to approve our proposal for ARCP 2 attests to its overall satisfaction with the implementation of the first ARCP."

The target areas of ARCP 2 were selected by DAR based on the community's need for assistance and its potential for development.

Arabian firms looking for areas to invest in Mindanao
Written by: Acac , Rizalene P.
Friday, 08 May 2009

ABOUT 36 companies from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia visited the city to look for potential investments areas and enter into partnerships with local entrepreneurs.

Department of Agriculture Arthur Yap said these companies have poured in large sum of investments in Sudan, Ethiopia, and Egypt and are now looking for more places in Asia to bring in their resources. The investors are interested in planting crops such as corn, rice, cassava, and even sugar as well as venture into poultry production and food processing.

He said the investors are especially bullish on the agricultural activity of the island although they expressed several apprehensions during the initial discussions, which included the land reform policy, peace and security, and the law that prohibits them from buying their own property.

“They want to be certain that the money they will invest will be safe. They said they can’t bring the land to Saudi Arabia anyway. But I told them that I can’t help you in that because that is what the law says,” he said, adding that land reform is the government’s social commitment to the farmers to reduce inequity among the rich and poor.

Yap said with many other countries vying for Arabian investments, the country should find ways to cut its power and manpower costs. “We need to find ways to secure their fears,” he added.

Fahad A. Bal Ghunaim of the Arabian Ministry of Agriculture expressed confidence that something fruitful will come out of their trade mission.

“The relationship between the Philippines and Saudi Arabia has been long and excellent. We need to create opportunities that can benefit both countries,” he added.

Ghunaim said when they were told by their government to invest their resources and share their technical knowhow abroad and the Philippines is among the first places they wanted to check out.

The delegation also attended a business matching with entrepreneurs from Manila Wednesday but Yap said Mindanao has the edge because the delegation is more interested in investing in agriculture.

Roger C. Chio, regional executive director of the agriculture department, said there were more than 30 local companies from Mindanao that participated in the business matching yesterday. The companies come from various agricultural sub-sectors such as poultry, cut flowers, hogs, and banana among others.

^^
good news :)