Philippine national team makes...

security deserves our special focus. Our efforts must not be scattershot, but rather, cohesive, centralized and systematic," Marcos said.

• Created the Water Resources Management Office

• Urged Congress to pass the bill on the creation of a Department of Water Resource Management. It is unclear, however, as to what will be the difference between the two agencies.

• P14.6 billion have been allocated for water supply projects. An example that Marcos provided is the Wawa Bulk Water Supply Project in NCR and Rizal.

Build-Better-More program

• About 83% of the program is to build roads, bridges, seaports, airports and mass transports.

• Infrastructure spending is expected to be at 5 to 6% of the country's GDP.

• Travel time from Ilocos to Bicol will be reduced to just 9 hours from 20 hours with the Luzon Spine Expressway Network Program.

• Twelve bridges will be constructed for the Mega-Bridge program that aims to connect islands and areas separated by waters. Among the bridges included will link the following lands: Bataan-Cavite, PanayGuimaras-Negros and SamalDavao City.

• Over 4,000 km of roads and 500 bridges have been constructed, maintained and upgraded as of June 2023, Marcos said.

• Cebu Pier 88 smart port, Clark Airport and Calapan Port have new passenger terminal buildings.

• Marcos said that the NorthSouth Commuter Railway System is already fully operating. This is part of his railway project covering over 1,000 km.

• Marcos wants to use the Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF) to partially fund the Build-Better-More program. "In pooling a small fraction of the considerable but underutilized government funds, the MIF shall be used to make high-impact and profitable investments, such as the Build-Better-More program," he said.

Energy

• Eight new additional power plants have been built, increasing energy production by 1,174 megawatts.

• Marcos said 500,000 homes were provided with electricity.

He claims that a 100% electrification of households is "within our reach."

• There are 299 active solar projects, 187 wind projects, 436 hydroelectric projects, 58 biomass projects, 36 geothermal projects and 9 ocean-powered projects.

• Marcos claims the Malampaya project has benefited the country, providing 20% energy for Luzon.

• To push for more gas exploration in the country for energy sources.

• The Unified National Grid is said to "enable more efficient transfers and competitive pricing" of electricity. Sixty-eight projects under this program, however, is "much delayed."

Employment

• Marcos said there are sufficient funds to train those without a livelihood.

• The government's Social Pension for Indigent Senior Citizens, Social Equity, Cashfor-Work for persons with disabilities and Integrated Livelihood Program-Kabuhayan for small businesses are among the programs Marcos lauded. No relevant figures or findings on these programs were mentioned in the report.

• Increased employment rate to 95.7% as of May 2023.

• Marcos wants to "nurture the growth" of services from the Information TechnologyBusiness Process Management and tourism industries.

Military and Uniformed Personnel (MUP) Pension "Efforts are underway to make it fully functional and financially sustainable," Marcos said.

He added that the pension reforms will have no impact on MUP. According to the proposed bill, the pension of retirees is tied to that of an active personnel of the same rank. Should the latter experience an increase in salary, so will the retired personnel. Marcos did not elaborate on specific plans for the MUP pension.

Education

• Nine in ten newly created teaching positions have been filled and more administrative personnel have been hired.

• Adopt blended learning permanently.

• Build more classrooms and facilities, including climate-ready

PAGE 4

Football Ferns were deemed offside in the buildup. After celebrations in Wellington, the goal was waved off and the Filipinas were ahead once again. McDaniel also provided some crucial saves well into added time to preserve the scoreline.

The Filipinas thus put themselves in a good position to move on to the knockout rounds when they face World No. 12 Norway on July 30 in Auckland.

They now have three points, tied with New Zealand, and Switzerland.

The Football Ferns triumphed over Norway in their World Cup opener last Thursday, July 20 in Auckland, 1-0, while the Filipinas absorbed a fighting 0-2 loss to Switzerland in their debut the following day in Dunedin.

The Philippines and New Zealand previously engaged in a tightly-fought friendly in Fullerton, California in 2022. There, the wide-eyed Filipinas, then ranked 56th in the world, pushed the No. 22 Kiwis to the limit before conceding, 2-1, on account of two second-half goals from New Zealand. (with a previous report by Olmin Leyba)

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGIONAL RAIL AUTHORITY IFB NO. EP236-24 SAND SILO AIR FILTER REPLACEMENT

The Southern California Regional Rail Authority (SCRRA) is seeking Bids for the replacement of sand silo air filters. Bid documents may be downloaded at SCRRA's website at http://www.metrolinktrains. com/contracts. Bids are due on 08/28/23.

The contract to be awarded will be funded in part by grants under the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Transit Administration.

For further information contact: Tammi Phillips, Contract and Compliance Administrator, at PhillipsT@ scrra.net.

7/26/23

CNS-3720235#

ASIAN JOURNAL (L.A.)