BusinessMirror June 03, 2021

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Thursday, June 3, 2021 Vol. 16 No. 232

EJAP JOURNALISM AWARDS

BUSINESS NEWS SOURCE OF THE YEAR (2017, 2018)

DEPARTMENT OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

2018 BANTOG MEDIA AWARDS

PHILIPPINE STATISTICS AUTHORITY

DATA CHAMPION

P.  |     | 7 DAYS A WEEK

GENCOS TOLD: EXPLAIN ■

UNPLANNED SHUTDOWNS FISHERMEN take advantage of the low tide to tow their boats to safety as they wait for the possible landfall of Tropical Storm Dante, at Barangay Sineguelasan in Bacoor, Cavite. Dante headed for Romblon after making landfall in Masbate. ROY DOMINGO

B L L @llectura, S P. M  B F @butchfBM

sam_medenilla

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EGULATORS on Wednesday threatened power generation companies with sanctions for the series of unscheduled brownouts that began on Monday and which are seen to derail crucial efforts to help businesses recover while putting at risk operations of cold-storage facilities for Covid-19 vaccines.

However, several senators squarely put the blame on Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi, recalling a promise he gave lawmakers at a hearing on April 27 that there will be no outages despite borderline reserves because they have gotten firm schedules from gencos on their scheduled plant maintenance shutdowns.

The Senate Energy committee

is calling for an inquiry to demand answers from Cusi and other Department of Energy (DOE) officials, as well as the grid operator and the gencos. Cusi became focus of criticism by two of his partymates in PDP-Laban, Senators Manny Pacquiao and Koko Pimentel, because when the brownouts C  A

VAXX FREEZER INSPECTION Marikina City Mayor Marcelino Teodoro (second from right) together with officials from Meralco, DOH, PharmaServ and other government officials inspect the cold-storage facility of PharmaServ at Barangay Santa Elena in Marikina City. The facility is used for Covid-19 vaccines and there is fear that this week’s unplanned power interruptions might disrupt freezer operations and cause the vaccines to deteriorate. NONOY LACZA

PESO EXCHANGE RATES ■ US 47.6660

BIR REJECTS PRIVATE SCHOOLS’ BID TO USE REDUCED TAX RATE B B D. N @BNicolasBM

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HE Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has rejected an appeal by private schools to rectify the tax regulation limiting the temporary application of reduced tax rate of 1 percent to proprietary nonprofit educational institutions under the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) law.

The private schools had said the BIR erroneously “inserted” that in its implementing rules, and to leave the provision unchanged would result in a neardoubling of taxes they pay.

In a memorandum sent to the Coordinating Council of Private Educational Associations (Cocopea), the BIR said they were constrained to deny their request to revise and amend certain provisions of Revenue Regulation 5-2021 for “lack of merit.”

Contrary to Cocopea’s position, BIR said the definition of proprietary education institutions in RR 5-2021 is consistent with Section 27(B) of the Tax Code, as amended.

“Thus, the preferential tax rate of 10 percent [temporarily 1 percent from July 1, 2020 to July 23, 2023] shall apply on the income of the following institutions: [1] proprietary nonprofit educational institutions; and [2] proprietary nonprofit hospitals,” said BIR Commissioner Caesar R. Dulay in a memorandum dated June 1, a copy of which was released to reporters on Wednesday.

The BIR also argued that a proprietary nonprofit educational institution can “legally exist,” noting that a proprietary educational institution does not necessarily imply a stock corporation.

“Giving the stock and profit-oriented educational institutions the preferential rate under Section 27 [B] of the Tax Code means that the government will, in effect, subsidize through a reduced income tax rate the owners of these profitoriented educational institutions who can declare their profits as dividends. To be sure, Congress could not have intended this effect,” Dulay said.

Biz seeks longer grace period for water quality compliance B T J C. P @Tyronepiad

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EVERAL business groups have asked the government to extend the grace period to comply with the Water Quality Guidelines and General Effluent Standards of 2016 by at least around 1.5 years, if not for three years, amid the mobility restrictions due to the pandemic.

In a statement on Wednesday, foreign and local private sector groups said the industry understood that the compliance period for the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Department Administrative Order (DAO) 2016-18 is until December 31, 2022.

“This understanding was based

on the very explicit wording contained in EMB [Environmental Management Bureau] Memorandum Circular [MC] No. 2019-001 that stated the same so long as a Compliance Action Plan was approved by the concerned EMB Regional Office not later than

by December 31, 2019,” the joint statement reads.

However, the EMB MC 2021-01, which sought to clarify the implementation of DAO 2016-08, specifies a June 18, 2021 deadline, the business groups said.

With this, the business groups called on Congress to legislate, through Bayanihan 3, a moratorium on the immediate lifting of the C  A

Dominguez agrees

FINANCE Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III, who also signed RR 5-2021, backed BIR’s position.

“For our part, the DOF [Department of Finance] agrees with the BIR that the Supreme Court has already clarified this matter in a number of landmark cases. Since the CREATE Law did not substantially amend Section 27[B] of the Tax Code, except for the provisional rate, we cannot provide a definition other than what has been provided by the Court,” Dominguez told reporters in a message.

This, after Cocopea appealed to DOF and BIR to rectify the tax regulation, which they said will effectively double the tax rate applied to proS “BIR ,” A

■ JAPAN 0.4355 ■ UK 67.4569 ■ HK 6.1432 ■ CHINA 7.4682 ■ SINGAPORE 36.0424 ■ AUSTRALIA 36.9269 ■ EU 58.2240 ■ SAUDI ARABIA 12.7109

Source: BSP (June 2, 2021)

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News BusinessMirror

Thursday, June 3, 2021

BIR rejects...

C  A

prietary educational institutions’ tax rate to 25 percent from only 10 percent which has been applied to them since 1968.

Prior to receiving BIR’s reply, Cocopea Managing Director Atty.

Joseph Noel Estrada said in a statement on Wednesday that they “strongly protest BIR’s unilateral insertion in its Revenue Regulation 5-2021 of a condition that proprietary educational institutions must be nonprofit” to enjoy the reduced rate of 1 percent as a result of the passage of CREATE law.

Estrada argued that RR 5-2021 directly contradicts the CREATE law, which grants a temporary reduction of the concessionary income tax rate of proprietary educational institutions from 10 percent to 1 percent for the next three years.

Estrada said CREATE, as well as the Section 27 (B) of the Tax Code, do not state the condition that proprietary educational institutions should be “nonprofit.”

He claimed the RR 5-2021 would “impose a very heavy burden on the private education sector at a time when schools are already struggling to survive as a result of, first, the K- to-12 Act, and now the pandemic.”

CREATE reduces the corporate income tax (CIT) rate to 20 percent from 30 percent for domestic corporations with net taxable income of P5 million and below and have total assets of P100 million and below, effective July 1, 2020.

All other corporations, meanwhile, will have their CIT rate reduced to 25 percent from 30 percent.

The law also redesigned the country’s fiscal incentives system by making the grant of incentives performance-based, time-bound, targeted and transparent.

The government said the CIT cut and the rationalization of the tax incentives system are meant to attract high-value foreign direct investments by making the cost of doing business in the Philippines more competitive.

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Electronic bidding of PDIC assets nets P38.9M in April

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HE Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. (PDIC) reported on Wednesday that the electronic bidding of its assets yielded P38.9 million in April.

PDIC said this came from the sale of 22 corporate and closed banks’ properties through the conduct of three public electronic biddings in April 2021.

Public biddings of assets were undertaken via PDIC’s electronic

bidding portal on April 8, 14 and 23 as the new normal mode of asset disposal.

This was the first electronic bidding made by PDIC in light of movement and travel restrictions in place to curb the spread of Co-

vid-19.

In March, PDIC announced that it has shifted its mode of asset disposal to an electronic platform via its e-bidding portal.

Online bids shall be accepted by the PDIC Real and Other Properties Acquired (ROPA) Disposal Committee from direct buyers only who register through the e-bidding portal.

Eight vacant subdivision lots located in Waterwood Park Subdivision, Barangay Pagala, Baliuag, Bulacan were disposed of on April 8 for a total bid price of P22.7 million while a commercial lot with improvement was sold on April 14

for a bid price of P8 million.

Meanwhile, 13 residential lots were disposed of on April 23 for an aggregate amount of P8.2 million.

“Proceeds from the sale of closed banks’ properties are added to the pool of funds of these banks to help increase the chances of recovery of creditors and uninsured depositors,” PDIC said in a statement.

Meanwhile, the insurance corporation said proceeds from the sale of corporate assets are added to the Deposit Insurance Fund, PDIC’s main fund source for payment of valid deposit insurance claims. Bianca Cuaresma

DUTERTE FORMS PANEL ON ‘FULL DEVOLUTION’ OF NG ROLES B S P. M sam_medenilla

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RESIDENT Duterte formed a new committee to initiate the “full devolution” of some functions of the national government under Republic Act 7170 or the Local Government Code.

Under Executive Order (EO) 138, signed last Tuesday but only released to the media the following day, Duterte created the Committee on Devolution (ComDev) to be chaired by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) and cochaired by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG).

Its members include the secretaries of the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda); Department of Finance (DOF); Executive Secretary; and presidents of the Leagues of Provinces, Cities, and Municipalities of the Philippines, Liga ng mga Barangay ng Pilipinas and the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines.

Duterte issued EO 138 in re-

sponse to the Mandanas ruling of the Supreme Court, which states “all collection of national taxes, except those accruing to special purpose funds and special allotments for the utilization and development of the national wealth, should be included in the computation of the base of the just share of LGUs.”

Transition plans

AMONG the salient functions of the ComDev is to evaluate the status and monitor the implementation of the Devolution Transition Plans (DTP) of the national government agencies (NGA) and all local government units (LGU). The DTPs of NGA will “identify and clarify the functions and services to be devolved to LGUs under RA 7160.”

“The DTP shall be submitted by the NGAs concerned to DBM within 120 days from the effectivity of the EO 138,” Duterte said in his new nine-page issuance.

EO 138 will take effect immediately after its publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of

general circulation.

The ComDev will issue additional rules and regulations and supplemental guidelines, if necessary, related to EO 138, 30 days after its effectivity.

Growth Equity Fund

THE ComDev will also propose to Congress a Growth Equity Fund (GEF) to help “poor, disadvantaged, and lagging LGUs” with the transition for the devolution process. The GEF will be included in the National Expenditure Program of DBM starting fiscal year 2022 and thereafter.

The other functions of the ComDev include implementing administrative and fiscal decentralization; resolving issues related to EO 138; ensuring the prompt release of LGU shares on national taxes; adopting mechanisms for the continuous delivery of public services during the full devolution; launching an information campaign on the new delineation of the functions between the NGAs and LGUs. The ComDev is also mandated to

submit annual reports to the President on the implementation of EO 138 and the status of implementations of DTPs.

Employment impact

GOVERNMENT personnel who will be affected by the devolution will be given the chance to transfer to other units/offices within the department/ agency/GOCC or even to other government offices in the Executive Department without reduction in pay.

They will also be allowed to avail of retirement benefits and separation incentives. Those retired or separated in relation to the devolution will be prohibited from being reemployed in the Executive Branch of the government for a period of five years, except as teaching and medical staff of educational institutions and hospitals, respectively.

Duterte instructed DBM and DILG to coordinate with the Civil Service Commission (CSC) and LGUs to develop guidelines for workers, who will be affected by the devolution.

GENCOS TOLD: EXPLAIN UNPLANNED SHUTDOWNS C  A

began on Monday (May 31), Cusi was busy with an executive council meeting in Cebu that he called over the objections of some party top brass like the two senators, who said such events were needless distractions from more urgent national concerns.

Pacquiao is PDP-Laban president and Pimentel, his predecessor.

Cusi is vice chairman.

Economic sabotage

ON Wednesday, fending off the flak triggered by the outages seen to run till June 8, the DOE said it was studying filing economic sabotage charges against power generators, which performed unplanned maintenance that led to rotational brownouts in Luzon.

In an interview with PTV on Wednesday, Energy Undersecretary Felix Fuentebella said they asked the Department of Justice (DOJ) to look into possible legal liabilities of the operators of several power plants for violating DOE policies.

He said the power plants violated the DOE ban on the conduct of maintenance in the second quarter of the year due to a spike in electricity demand during that period.

“Preventive maintenance during April, May, and June, is not allowed except for hydropower since they have no water during that time,” Fuentebella explained.

Despite this policy, he said at least two plants still implemented “preventive maintenance,” thus contributing to the power shortage in Luzon.

According to the Senate Energy committee chairman Sherwin Gatchalian, the disruptions since Monday affected 339,000 house-

holds, 90 barangays and 60 local government units.

DOE is now also looking into the lack of the mandatory “contingency and dispatchable” energy reserves in the event of such maintenance or disruptions in the operations of major power plants, as well as possible “collusion” among power producers to manipulate power supply.

“We’re after compliance [with our regulations] and not penalties.

But if you force our hand, we will indeed pursue these cases,” Fuentebella said.

NGCP calls red alert

ON Monday, the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) placed the Luzon power grid under red alert due to a drop in power supply caused by unplanned shutdowns of some power plants, which coincided with a spike in electricity demand due to the hot weather.

Fuentebella said they expect this will be somewhat relieved by the resumption in operation of a power plant, which underwent maintenance, on Wednesday.

ERC to gencos: Explain

THE Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) on Wednesday directed 17 gencos to explain why they breached the maximum days of power plant shutdown.

“We are strictly monitoring and reviewing the weekly reports being submitted by the Generation Companies in compliance with our directive pertaining to the Reliability Performance Indices and Equivalent Outage Days Per Year of Generating Units.

“Based on the examination of our technical group, there are gencos that have breached the maxi-

mum allowable unplanned outage days as of April 2021,” said ERC Chairman Agnes VST Devanadera.

The 17 gencos told to explain are SEM Calaca Power Corp., GN Power Mariveles Coal Plant Ltd., Masinloc Power Partners Co. Ltd., Southwest Luzon Power Generation Corp., Team Sual Corp., SPC Power Corp., Panay Power Corp., SN Aboitiz Power-Benguet, Inc., CBK Power Company Ltd., SPC Island Power Corp., First Natgas Power Corp., FGP Corp., First Gas Power Corp., Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp., Energy Development Corp., Hedcor Bukidnon, Inc.; and PSALMSoosan ENS Co. Ltd. The ERC cited 35 of the 17 gencos’ units that went on extended forced outage.

The ERC limits the number of days power plants may undergo a shutdown, both planned and unplanned. This is meant to promote accountability among power plant operators and the transmission grid operator.

The 17 gencos were directed to submit their explanations within seven days from receipt of the RC Notice of Non-Compliance for having a cumulative unplanned outage beyond the maximum allowable unplanned outage days for the year 2021.

A total of 4,452 megawatts (MW) of power generating capacity was shaved off from the Luzon grid Wednesday morning mainly due to reduced capacity of power plants and forced outage.

This prompted the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) to place the grid on red alert earlier on Wednesday for 13 hours from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. to 11 p.m.

The red alert warning was issued due insufficient operating reserve

because many power plants could not deliver its output.

However, the NGCP lifted the red alert at 4 p.m. due to receding system demand. In addition, Sual power plant was back on line, adding 647 MW to the grid.

Latest figures showed that available capacity stood at 11357 MW versus a peak demand of 10,236 MW. Of the 4,452 MW of unavailable capacity, 435 MW was from the maintenance shutdown of San Roque hydro plant until June 13; 1,792 MW from unplanned outage; and 2,225 MW from reduced capacity.

The power plants that were on forced and extended outage include Sual unit 2, Sem Calaca unit 2 and GN Power Mariveles Energy Center (GMEC) units 1 and 2.

Sual, which has been on unplanned outage since May 16, was fired at 5:30 a.m. and fully synchronized to the grid.

Ilijan was among the gas plants with derated capacity due to Malampaya gas restriction. This means that even if the gas plants are available to produce at full output, they still could not deliver power because the fuel supply is constrained.

Most of the derated plants are hydro facilities since their output during summer months is every low.

Cusi’s accountability

MEANWHILE, two senators from Mindanao pressed for an early inquiry on the unplanned shutdowns.

Pimentel and Pacquiao said they hoped the Energy committee hearing would be held soon, as its chairman announced last Monday, when the unscheduled brownouts

first started.

Energy panel chief Senator Gatchalian confirmed he was calling the hearings to demand answers from regulators and power players, especially the DOE, which gave lawmakers a solid promise at a hearing in April that there would be no power outages because they had a clear schedule of plant shutdowns for maintenance.

Pacquiao raised the issue on the floor on Wednesday, saying he did not hesitate to demand accountability from Cusi, “even though he is my partymate.”

Taking the floor on Wednesday, both Pacquiao and Pimentel said Cusi’s “guarantee” given in April turned out to be hollow, and therefore he should be made accountable.

Pimentel pointed out, partly in Filipino, that even an unplanned shutdown is not an excuse because they “should not even happen” if regulators regularly check on the power plants.

Pacquiao added: “You [referring to DOE chief] have the authority and power to do everything to avert brownouts. Who do we blame now? The people? Consumers? It’s the Secretary of DOE.” For his part, Pimentel recalled past instances of sudden outages, “and then suddenly they announce an increase in power rates. I hope this is not part of a scenario where all of a sudden there is a proposal to increase the price of electricity.”

He quoted Senator Panfilo Lacson, who hoped for “a real, credible, understandable, reasonable and satisfactory explanation of what happened.” Pimentel added, “Otherwise, we will entertain the idea that this is part of a scenario detrimental to the best interest of the people.”

Biz seeks longer grace period for water quality compliance C  A

said grace period.

“We thus hope that Congress will see the wisdom in adopting this policy provision in Bayanihan 3 to at least retain the original grace period of DAO 2016-08 until December 31, 2022,” the private sector representatives said.

‘

The Covid-19 pandemic has in fact made it extremely difficult to stick to the timelines in the original Compliance Action Plans submitted to and approved

by EMB due to movement restrictions and imposition of minimum public health standards in workplaces...

Due to these delays, it in fact provides a basis to ask for an even longer grace period beyond December 2022.

’

—B 

“However, we also hope that Congress may consider extending the grace period three years from 18 June 2021, for regulatory relief until economic recovery has been achieved or when the quarantine is lifted, whichever is longer,” they added.

Several companies have already prepared for the compliance on a timeline that the grace period will be lifted by January 1, 2023 based on the approved compliance actions, they said.

5 months not enough

THE business groups said that the five-month adjustment period covering February to June is not enough time to comply with the new standards.

“The Covid-19 pandemic has in fact made it extremely difficult to stick to the timelines in the original Compliance Action Plans submitted to and approved by EMB due to movement restrictions and imposition of minimum public health standards in workplaces,” the statement reads. “Due to these delays, it in fact provides a basis to ask for an even longer grace period beyond December 2022.”

The private sector organizations lamented that the need to speed up the retrofitting of wastewater infrastructures poses financial risks as the sector is still reeling from the impact of the pandemic.

“The prospect of Notices of Violations, fines and penalties due to non-compliance adds even more salt to the economic injury discussed in the previous point,” the groups said. “Until the new standards are approved, DENR should waive the penalties based on the old standards.”

The statement was signed by the American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Australian-New Zealand Commerce of the Philippines, Canadian Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Japanese Chamber of Commerce & Industry of the Philippines, Korean Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Philippine Exporters Confederation Inc. and Semiconductor and Electronics Industries in the Philippines Inc. “We fully support the objectives of DAO 2016-08 to ensure the sustainability and quality of our water bodies and waterways, but this needs to be balanced with the realities we face during the Covid pandemic. Our proposal is an attempt to strike that balance,” the statement concluded.

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The Nation BusinessMirror

Eleazar pleads for public support in bid to boost PNP ‘cleansing’

By Rene Acosta @reneacostaBM

N

ATIONAL Police Chief General Guillermo Eleazar assured on Wednesday that he would implement reforms and undertake internal cleansing in the Philippine National Police (PNP) amid a flurry of criticisms against the organization following the coldblooded killing of a woman in Quezon City by a policeman.

“We are serious in pushing for reforms within the police organization. I am exhausting all efforts to get rid of these few police scalawags who put the PNP in a bad light. Like you, I am also angry at rotten policeman,” Eleazar stated on Wednesday.

The PNP chief said he understands the public’s outrage over last Monday’s incident where Police Master Sgt. Hensie Zinampan shot 52-year-old Lilibeth Valdez in the neck at point blank range in Barangay Greater Fairview, Quezon City.

Upon learning of the incident, Eleazar personally went to the Quezon City Police District where Zinampan is detained and confronted him. Later, he ordered the leadership to hasten the administrative proceedings against the policeman for his immediate dis-

missal from the service.

The PNP chief also assured the family of the victim of a speedy justice while expressing his condolences to them.

Eleazar assured the public that good policemen far outnumber the “few rogues” in the ranks as critics questioned the organization’s integrity over Zinampan’s crime.

“From our more than 220,000 policemen in the PNP, only a small percent make up of what we call misfits or abusive,” he said.

The PNP chief sought the public’s help in weeding out scalawags from the ranks, saying the PNP’s internal cleansing efforts would be more effective if the public reports and lodges complaints against police abuses or involvement in criminal activity.

“While we do our own investigation to weed out rogue policemen from our ranks, we also need the public’s help in ensuring that these few police scalawags are held accountable by reporting them to us through our E-Sumbong,” he said.

Eleazar directed the PNP Internal Affairs Service to fast-track summary dismissal proceedings against Zinampan, while the Quezon City Police District filed a murder charge against him in the city prosecutor’s office.

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Thursday, June 3, 2021 A3

DOJ panel sets review of PNP’s ‘deadly’ anti-drug campaign files

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By Joel R. San Juan

@jrsanjuan1573

HE Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on Wednesday that it has already received 53 case files from the Philippine National Police (PNP) pertaining to its anti-illegal drug operations where deaths have occurred.

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said the DOJ-led Inter-Agency Review Panel on anti-illegal drug operations would immediately scrutinize the records to determine if there’s criminal liability on the part of the police officers involved.

The PNP has initially given the DOJ access to 61 cases involving anti-illegal drug operations.

“With the exception of eight administrative cases that the PNP Internal Affairs Service [IAS] has not completely disposed of, 53 cases files were delivered to the DOJ this afternoon [Tuesday afternoon]. We shall

immediately go over the contents of these files and decide how to proceed further,” Guevarra said.

The DOJ chief said he does not see any need for President Duterte’s approval for criminal investigation and prosecution that may be conducted as a result of the panel’s review.

“But we shall keep in mind his concern for national security as we evaluate each and every case,” Guevarra stressed.

Guevarra also said he is taking into serious consideration President Duterte’s recent statement

But we shall keep in mind his (President Duterte’s) concern for national security as we evaluate each and every case.

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra

of concern that the panel review might compromise national security, adding that review does not contradict the President’s order to review such cases.

He noted that the President has not called his attention when he spoke about the drug war review last year before the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) and when he submitted to him an initial report on the matter.

The President, according to Guevarra, was silent about his speech before the UNHRC last February

BM

where he noted certain lapses in police operations.

“The President never called my attention to it. Then the DOJ and the PNP agreed to share information on administrative cases filed against erring police officers. Up to that point, the President has not raised any objection,” the DOJ chief explained.

Earlier, DOJ Undersecretary Adrian Sugay said the review panel was able to scrutinize the cases that were filed at the National Prosecution Service.

A4 Thursday, June 3, 2021 • Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug

Economy BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Duterte admin okays P4T worth of projects as of May ’21–Neda

By Cai U. Ordinario @caiordinario

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HE Duterte administration has approved over P4 trillion worth of projects as of May 2021, National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) Board documents showed.

Based on Neda Board approvals as of May 2021, approvals reached around P4.12 trillion, an increase of over 8 percent from the approvals as of February 2021 pegged at around P3.8 trillion.

However, based on the data, only one new project was added to the list of approvals, raising the total num-

ber of approvals to 92 in May from 91 in February.

The project that was added to the list was the Philippine Rural Development Project Retrofitting and the $280-million Second Additional Financing with Euro 18.3 million European Union co-financing Grant.

“The retrofitted AF2 [additional financing 2] will support programs and projects that will benefit farmers and fisherfolk who are vulnerable during crises and calamities, and contribute to the overall food resiliency of the country,” Neda documents stated.

“It will complement the government’s recovery initiatives under the ALPAS Kontra Covid-19 Program, and support the creation of jobs in rural areas under the new normal,” the documents added.

The project has four components such as the Local and National Level Planning (I-PLAN); Infrastructure Development (I-BUILD); Enterprise Development (I-REAP); and Implementation Support (I-SUPPORT).

Neda said the EU co-financing grant would further strengthen the project’s engagement in Mindanao. It will complement the AF2 in supporting and facilitating the implementation of infrastructure projects.

It will also provide capacity building activities for local government units (LGU) and farmer and fisherfolk organizations, including women and indigenous people (IP) communities, through engagement in viable agri-based enterprises.

Meanwhile, the inter-agency Investment Coordination Committee (ICC) pipeline now includes over a billion pesos worth of projects for

evaluation as of May. Based on the ICC Project Appraisal Monitor (IPAM), around 43 projects worth P1.77 trillion are now listed for evaluation by the ICC Technical Board (TB) and ICC Cabinet Committee (Cabcom) as of May 15.

The data showed P1.39 trillion covering 26 projects are being evaluated by the ICC-TB, while P379.03 billion are being evaluated by the ICC-Cabcom.

However, the list only included locally and Official Development Assistance (ODA)-funded projects. The list provided by Neda did not include the Public Private Partnership (PPP) projects being evaluated.

Of all the projects, the largest one is the North-South Commuter Railway System, which is under review by the ICC-TB costing P777.55 billion.

The NSCR project is composed of NSCR Phase 1, which is a 37.9-kilometer (km) standard gauge railway from Malolos to Tutuban; NSCR Extension or PNR North 2, a 50.7km railway from Malolos to Clark International Airport; and NSCR Extension or PNR Commuter, a 56.5-km railway from Solis in Tutuban to Calamba, Laguna. “[The project is] under Neda review [and] with pending agency submission of response to Neda letter dated 15 March 2021,” the documents stated.

The project with the least total cost of P938.7 million is the Super Maximum Security Compound of the Bureau of Corrections, which is also under ICC-TB evaluation.

The project involves the construction of dormitory buildings to accommodate 2,400 inmates that

includes an infirmary, visiting area, food preparation and distribution area, command center, Attorney’s Lounge, conference room, and administrative office.

Neda said the project would be equipped with Integrated Security Solutions composed of CCTV Surveillance System with Facial Recognition, Barrier Gates at Entry and Exit Points, Underground Camera and Barrier Gates for Vehicle Inspection, Turn-style Gate Access System, Walk-through Body Scanner, Signal Jamming System, Aerial Drone and Aerial Drone Jammer, UHF Handheld Radio, and Inmate Tracking System. “[The project is] under Neda review [and] with pending agency submission of response to Neda letter dated 10 March 2021,” Neda documents stated.

In terms of the projects for review by the ICC-Cabcom, the largest is the Laguna Lakeshore Road Network Project Phase 1 and the project with the lowest cost is the request for change in scope for the Capacity Building to Foster Competition Project by the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC).

Based on the data, the Laguna Lakeshore Road Network Project Phase 1, which costs P175.7 billion, involves the construction of a 376-km primary road with an 11.8km viaduct from Lower Bicutan in Taguig City to Tunasan, Muntinlupa City, and a 25.8-km shoreline viaduct and embankment from Tunasan, Muntinlupa City to Calamba City.

It aims to reduce transportation constraints and more convenient travel to various tourist and busi-

ness destinations in Laguna, Rizal, Quezon, and Batangas.

The PCC project, meanwhile, costs P1.41 billion. It is a long-term capacity building plan to support strengthening institutional and individual capacities of PCC and other agencies with competition-related mandates.

“For ICC-CC action pending agency compliance to the ICC-TB instructions during its 15 April 2021 meeting,” Neda said.

The Neda Board is the country’s premier social and economic development planning and policy coordinating body primarily responsible for formulating continuing, coordinated and fully integrated social and economic policies, plans and programs.

The powers and functions of the Neda reside in the Neda Board.

The ICC consists of the Secretary of Finance as chairman; the Secretary of Socioeconomic Planning and Neda Director-General, as co-chairman; and the Executive Secretary, the Cabinet Secretary, the Secretaries of Department of Budget and Management, Energy, Trade and Industry and Governor of Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas as members.

It evaluates the fiscal, monetary, and balance of payments; implications of major national projects; and recommends to the President the timetable of their implementation on a regular basis; This is similar to trading such as forex trading.

The inter-agency committee also advises the President on matters related to the domestic and foreign borrowings program and submits a status of the fiscal, monetary and balance of payments implications of major national projects.

Palace order grants hazard pay to state workers who ‘physically’ reported for work during MECQ

By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla

G

OVERNMENT workers who “physically” reported for work during the implementation of modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) period are now entitled to receive hazard pay.

President Duterte issued Administrative Order (AO) 43 on Tuesday grant-

ing these workers the said benefit due to high health risk from Covid-19 infection.

It will also cover government personnel authorized to physically report for work in their respective offices or work stations during the MECQ period.

Prior to the said policy, only government workers, who physically reported for work in ECQ areas were entitled to hazard pay not exceeding P500 per day, as stated under AO 26.

AO 43 also modified the funding source for the hazard pay for workers of government- owned or -controlled corporations (GOCC) to be charged in their approved corporate operating budget for the “current fiscal year” instead of 2020.

A similar amendment was also made for the funding source of the hazard pay in local government units, which will now also be chargeable

against the current year’s local government funds.

“Except for the foregoing amendments, all other provision of AO No. 26 shall remain unchanged,” Duterte said in the three-paged AO 43.

The President signed AO 43 on Tuesday, but it will only take effect upon its publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.

New private pension, retirement system bill sent to Senate continued from a12 Failure to exercise this option shall automatically subject the employee under the coverage of this proposal.

The employer of an employee who opts to be covered is mandated to transfer to the EPRI Account all contributions made, including all fruits and income accrued at the time of

transfer. Any existing account under the Personal Equity Retirement Act (PERA) may be converted to an EPRI Account.

Also, the bill provides that the contributions, income, and benefits made or received under the proposal shall be granted the tax exemp-

tions and privileges.

House Committee on Banks and Financial Intermediaries Chairman Junie Cua, principal author of the bill, said he filed the bill to provide for retirement and pension system that is fully-funded, portable, more actuarially fair and stable that

will enhance the current pension, at the same time, promoting and encouraging national savings and prudential investments on the part of employees.

He added he also filed the bill as the current private pension system has not developed.

UNDP returned ₧284M to DICT from Wi-fi project, House told continued from a12 The measure called for an inquiry, in aid of legislation, into alleged irregularities and setbacks on the Free Wi-Fi Internet Access in Public Places Project implemented by the DICT. With the Internet “fast becoming recognized as a basic human right in the country,” Aglipay told the panel in his opening remarks, it was important to finish the inquiry into how P1.3 billion of taxpayers’ money and another P500 million from the Bayanihan 2 were used.

The HOR statement said that during the inquiry, Speedcast executive James Trevelyan had said they were engaged by UNDP to import telecommunication equipment for the project.

Aglipay said that on the allegation of technical smuggling in the Bureau of Customs, Trevelyan asserted that Speedcast does not have the license to import equipment to the Philippines and relied solely on subcontractor Philcomsat.

Trevelyan likewise clarified the

“inaccurate perception that somehow, Speedcast was bankrupt.” At no point was it bankrupt, but voluntarily chose to recapitalize, to restructure its business through what is known as the Chapter 11 filing under the United States Bankruptcy Code.

“The key point here is at no point during this period that SPEEDCAST ceased operation, that we ceased to pay our suppliers, or the UNDP-DICT Wi-Fi project was affected in any way. On the contrary, we provided uninterrupted service to all our thousands of customers around the world as well as the UNDP and the people of the Philippines,” he said.

Project not affected

MEANWHILE, based on the statement of the UNDP, they were informed in April 2020 that Speedcast voluntarily filed for balance sheet restructuring under Chapter 11 of US Bankruptcy Law. UNDP said DICT was informed about it in a letter dated 4 May 2020 and that Speedcast updated UNDP

on the progress of the restructuring through regular meetings until Speedcast emerged from Chapter 11 in March 2021.

“Since the US Chapter 11 process is a financial restructuring aimed at reducing funded debt and gaining access to new sources of investment, it did not affect the implementation of the WiFi Project. Most of the sites [613 sites] under this project were installed during the period when Chapter 11 proceedings were ongoing,” UNDP said.

“Delays in deployment cannot be attributed to the Chapter 11 proceedings, but rather to the health, safety, and mobility restrictions brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic, coupled with the challenges in reaching the target sites,” it added.

In terms of customs-related issues, UNDP said it required its contractors to abide by national laws in performing and fulfilling their obligations.

In issues related to allegations of

mismanagement and other irregularities, UNDP said its policies and procedures on transparency and accountability are clear, robust and follow international standards.

In terms of alleged undervalued shipments of telecommunications equipment imported between January and June 2020 by the contractor, UNDP was made aware of the alleged irregularities in import duties by Philcomsat, on July 21, 2020.

UNDP said no evidence was produced and contacted Speedcast to take immediate action; it asked Philcomsat to clarify the matter with Speedcast. UNDP also asked Speedcast to self-report to the Bureau of Customs (BOC), to comply with national laws.

As a precaution, UNDP said regardless of the missing evidence, UNDP has referred all allegations received to its independent Office of Audit and Investigation (OAI), in accordance with policies and procedures.

News BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Thursday, June 3, 2021 A5

FDA releases 408 of 412 pending T drug applications, Arta reports

House panel OKs UP-DND accord

N

By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

@Tyronepiad

EARLY all pending drug applications for automatic renewal (AR) before the Food and Drug Administration Center for Drug Regulation and Research (CDRR) were released after the body was instructed to do so by May 31, the Anti-Red Tape Authority (Arta) said.

The anti-red tape watchdog reported on Wednesday that 408 of the 412 AR applications were processed within the prescribed period, as communicated by FDA CDRR Director IV Jesusa Joyce N. Cirunay.

“The four remaining applications are pending because two were not

submitted by the client while the other two were re-routed to other centers or units,” Arta said, citing Cirunay.

On May 11, Arta issued a showcause order for Cirunay to explain the hundreds of drug applications that have remained pending despite

complete submission of requirements.

These applications were filed as far back as 2014 or so.

Arta Director General Jeremiah Belgica explained previously that AR applications are not deemed complicated transactions. These products, he said, have been previously consumed or only have low to no risk when used. Cirunay was then given seven working days from receipt of the order to do an inventory of all pending permits, license, clearance or application. She was also told to immediately release all said applications which have been pending beyond the prescribed processing time.

In addition, Arta ordered the FDA official to submit a compliance report with a list of all permits, license, clearance or application issued in accordance with the show-cause order.

Cirunay was granted a motion for extension until end of May to fully comply with the order.

“The Authority is now evaluating FDA CDRR’s reply before recommending an

appropriate action,” Arta said.

“After FDA’s full compliance with Arta’s show-cause order, we are now verifying with the pharmaceutical companies who filed affidavits if their applications have really been released. We are also reviewing FDA CDRR’s response to see if any violations were made and if cases should be filed,” it added.

The anti-red tape agency earlier said it will be compelled to file formal charges against Cirunay before the Office of the Ombudsman should she fail to comply with the order. This is in line with the implementation of Republic Act 11032 or the Ease of Doing Business and Efficient Government Service Delivery law, the Arta said.

First-time offenders will be given 6-month suspension, Belgica noted, while two-time violators will be facing imprisonment.

Arta is “calling on the public to submit affidavit complaints if they have any pending applications with other government agencies.”

Vax trials to cover 15K Metro participants–UP doc

A

doctor from the University of the Philippines-Philippine General Hospital (UP-PGH) on Wednesday announced that the World Health Organization (WHO) is expected reveal in the next two weeks the vaccine brand that will be used under the Solidarity Vaccine Trials (SVT) in the country.

In a hearing of the House Committee on Health chaired by Angelina Tan of Quezon, Dr. Jodor Lim of UP-PGH said the SVT in the Philippines is part of global commitment to address the Covid-19 pandemic.

“After several months of waiting for the vaccine, the WHO is ready to announce the candidate vaccine in two weeks’ time and we’re hoping that we can start the actual trial in about a month’s time,” Lim said.

“The WHO believes that there’s still not enough vaccines for everyone around the world, so we still have to have newer vaccines made available for other countries,” he added.

According to Lim, the SVT will be conducted in Metro Manila that would involve 15,000 participants.

“With the rollout of vaccines [in high priority groups], we probably get the participants in those lower priority groups,” he said.

“SVT is the only mechanism which unites countries around the world to collaborate and accelerate the efforts in vaccine development with primary goal of evaluating promptly, safety and efficacy of candidate vaccine,” he said.

Science Secretary Fortunato dela Peña said that the main objective of SVT is to evaluate the efficacy of a two-dose regimen of SARS-CoV-2 candidate vaccines against RT-PCR confirmed symptomatic Covid-19.

“The participation in the Solidarity Vaccine Trials is one of the best strategies that will allow the Philippines to avail of newer Covid-19 vaccine candidates which are already in the later or more advanced stages of vaccine development,” he said.

He added that ongoing study to evaluate the safety and immunogenicity of mixing different Covid-19 vaccines and vaccine platforms in Filipino adults will address supply shortages through the proposed interchanging or mixing and matching administration of available Covid-19 vaccines in the country, as well as offer flexibility in the administration of the second dose.

Attending House panel meeting were key officials from the Department of Science and Technology and Department of Health and other stakeholders.

According to Tan, her committee sought for a briefing to seek updates on SVT, specifically on their safety and efficacy; the study on the mix and match of Covid-19 vaccine brands and platforms; and the immunosurveillance study on the effectiveness of the Covid-19 vaccines in the real world.

She said the panel also seeks to com-

municate the current efforts of the government, assess key issues, identify gaps and challenges, and pave the way for a robust collaborative endeavor as the country face the present Covid-19 health crisis.

Limitation

Experts, however, reminded the public of the limitations of Covid-19 antibody, or serology, testing.

Dr. Regina Berba of the University of the Philippines, Manila-National Institutes of Health explained that “while antibody tests are important in identifying individuals who may have been exposed to the SARS-CoV-2 virus and those who may have developed an adaptive immune response, antibody tests should not be used at this time to determine protection or immunity against Covid-19, especially after a person has received a Covid-19 vaccination.”

The United States Food and Drug Administration has previously warned that antibody tests are not one-sizefits-all and that misinterpreting antibody test results could lead people to take fewer precautions than necessary, or cause vaccine hesitancy on the part of the public.

Experts pointed out that the vaccines themselves can lead to positive antibody results on some tests, and on the other hand, a lack of antibodies detected does not mean that a vaccinated person did not have a protective immune response.

Rep. Tan, a medical doctor, reiterated the experts’ call against the antibody tests.

“I would like to call on the DOH and other concerned agencies to closely monitor and regulate health facilities that are offering serology testing among adult individuals who have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19 in order to protect the integrity of the government’s vaccination program and promote vaccine confidence among the Filipinos” Tan said.

VCO Dr. Imelda Angeles-Agdeppa, of DOST’s Food and Nutrition Research Institute, also presented an update on the study on virgin coconut oil (VCO) as dietary supplement among Covid-19 probable and suspect cases where 5 of the 29 patients who were served meals with VCO were shown to have manifested diminishing signs and symptoms as early as the second day.

On the other hand, she said, only one patient served with the same meals but without VCO showed similar improvement.

Based on a completed study, she added, participants in the intervention group showed a significant decline in the C-reactive protein level, with the mean CRP level normalized on the 14th day intervention.

She said this concludes that as an adjunct therapy, meals mixed with VCO is effective in fostering recovery from Covid-19. Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz

he House Committee on Higher and Technical Education on Wednesday approved the bill institutionalizing the 1989 University of the Philippines-Department of National Defense (UPDND) Accord into the UP Charter.

The committee chaired by Baguio City Rep. Mark Go approved the committee report on the substitute bill that would amend Section 11 of Republic Act 9500, or the UP Charter of 2008.

The measure, which was approved subject to style and amendments by the panel, substituted House Bill 8437 authored by Deputy Speaker Eduardo Villanueva, HB 8515 by Marikina City Rep. Stella Luz Quimbo, and HB 8545 by Kabataan Party-list Rep. Sarah Elago.

Among the salient amendments was the provision which states that “prior notification should be given by the Philippine National Police, Armed Forces of the Philippines, or any other law enforcement agency intending to conduct any police, military, or law enforcement operation in any UP campus nationwide to the UP President or the Chancellor of the constituent university or dean of the college concerned, or the respective officer-in-charge, in the event of their absence, as the case may be, when the situation so warrants.” However, DND Atty. Norma Daanoy told the committee the department is not supporting the whole bill, citing legal and constitutional questions.

“This is not an issue of the academic freedom; UP has all the academic freedom it wants. This is not an issue of freedom of expression; UP can exercise this right and being protected by the Constitution. UP is an autonomous educational institution, we believe that the issue involved here is protection of the students from being recruited by the Communist Party of the Philippines-New Peoples Army,” she said. Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz

TheBroa

Business

A6 Thursday, June 3, 2021• www.businessmirror.com.ph

In rising tide of financial inclus

By Bianca Cuaresma

T

@BcuaresmaBM

WO years ago, then central bank Governor Nestor A. Espenilla Jr. set out to put the country shoulder to shoulder with 14 nations in the world. It was a noble ambition.

The impetus came along with the release of the World Bank ’s comp re he n s i v e d at a b a s e on global financial inclusion. The 2017 Global Findex database, a data set that is published every three years, showed that the Philippines has one of the weakest financial inclusion coverages in the region, as reflected by the low account-penetration in its adult population.

In particular, only 34 percent of the country’s adult population has a form of formal relationship with a bank or a financial institution. This pales in comparison with members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and five additional countries namely Australia, China, Japan, Korea and New Zealand; collectively known as the Asean+5.

In the Asean+5 bloc, Singapore had the highest account penetration with 98 percent of its adult population being included in their financial system. This is followed

by Malaysia’s 85 percent, Thailand’s 82 percent and Indonesia’s 49 percent.

BSP initiative

SINCE then, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has pushed financial inclusion as a priority agenda.

Espenilla, then newly-minted BSP Governor, initiated a slew of reforms that would accelerate the current financial inclusion program of the government in place.

The BSP has also taken upon an agenda of expanding the account penetration of the country to 70 percent by 2023. Current BSP Governor Benjamin E. Diokno said this requires “openness to all possible transformative solutions and impactful innovations, such as digital technology, new business models and cross-sector collaboration.”

“It requires a concerted and holistic effort. It requires the participation of all key decision-makers and stakeholders, from the bank executives to the officers who go out in the field—including those in the expanding fintech [financial technology] industry,” Diokno said.

As such, financial inclusion in the country took a multi-faceted path.

Embracing digital

THE Covid-19 global health crisis has disrupted the norm and turned the world upside down. This includes the local financial system.

The pandemic, however, turned out to be a silver lining to the country’s financial inclusion journey.

As people were prohibited to go out, financial consumers had to adjust. This pushed more Filipinos to embrace digital banking.

“The year 2020 gave rise to unique challenges and upheavals on a global scale as a result of the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. Yet, 2020 also widened the path to accelerating financial inclusion. The pandemic gave new immediacy and put a much-deserved spotlight on the primacy of financial inclusion in

the government’s crisis containment and recovery efforts,” the BSP said.

“The pandemic illustrated financial inclusion’s vital role in social welfare and protection, as the transaction account became a necessary means for the country’s poorest and most vulnerable to receive cash assistance from the government,” the central bank said.

“With the imposition of lockdowns and physical distancing measures, consumers and businesses alike shifted to digital payments at an unprecedented speed and scale.”

Inclusion journey

ACCORDING to BSP Deputy Governor Chuchi G. Fonacier, “the upside of financial inclusion reform became more salient at the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.”

Fonacier said in the Central Bank’s recently published book, “No One Is Left Behind, The Philippine Financial Inclusion Journey,” this is “when more people, forced to stay at home, relied on digital platforms for their financial transactions that kept them connected and empowered.”

The latest data from the BSP also showed that active electronic money wallet accounts grew 61.6 percent from end-2019 to end-2020.

“Account registration and usage have grown exponentially since the start of the pandemic due to limited mobility and safety concerns. Consumers, businesses, communities, and even the government simply turned to digital and cashless solutions,” PayMaya President Shailesh Baidwan told the BusinessMirror.

PayMaya, an electronic wallet financial technology firm in the country, also said that their registered users for our consumer platforms doubled yearon-year, reaching 35 million by end-March 2021.

MSMEs, e-money

ON the enterprise side, PayMaya’s unique merchants also rose by 3,000 percent for the same period and most of these are micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) that are trying to shift into the digital space due to the pandemic.

“At first, growth was driven by necessity. Traditional financial institutions had more limited operations. For many consumers, having an e-wallet like PayMaya was simply the fastest and easiest way to send money to loved ones and pay for everyday transactions.

Going to a neighborhood remittance center like Smart Padala was the most convenient way to remit money as well as add and cash out funds,” Baidwan said.

“For businesses, going digital became necessary to survive and thrive. We saw a big leap to e-Commerce and the use of contactless payments for on-ground establishments. The government utilized digital payments to disburse financial assistance directly to citizens,” he added.

During the pandemic, BSP data showed that over four million new

accounts were opened via digital platforms, along with new online sign-ups and app downloads for digital financial services.

“For our consumers, using the PayMaya e-wallet has become the fastest and most convenient means to become financially included.

This is especially important this time given the public health situation because of Covid-19,” Baidwan said.

Access expansion

PAYMAYA’S user profiles showed that more than half of their users are now from outside Manila and the majority of them are unbanked and underserved.

As more Filipinos enter the financial system through nonbank financial institutions, the PayMaya president said they felt the need to expand to capture this opportunity.

“During the pandemic, it became even more necessary for us to scale up on our innovations as we improved our operations to pro v ide b e t te r s e r v ice s,” Baidwan said.

“To fully promote financial inclusion, we know how critical it is to also extend our services to millions of unserved and underserved Filipinos who do not have access yet to the digital world,” he added.

Baidwan said the company transformed its “Smart Padala” by PayMaya’s agent network “so they could become the one-stop-shop for their communities—offering their customers digital services such as remittance, bank transfer, bills payment, add money, buy load, and many others.” He added the company now has over 39,000 partner agent touchpoints nationwide with presence in 92 percent of all cities and municipalities.

E-money providers do not require a minimum balance and provide additional value through discounts and other benefits. Agents such as groceries, pharmacies, other financial institutions like pawnshops or other outlets can be used to load e-money and cash out. This means not having to go far to deposit or withdraw cash.

Growing branches

ANOTHER influential factor in financial inclusion is the actual physical access of consumers to financial institutions.

In the Philippines, BSP data shows that bank density concentrated in highly urbanized, densely populated, relatively developed regions of the country: the National Capital Region (NCR) with 29.8 percent share, Calabarzon or Region IV-A with 14.6 percent share, and Central Luzon or Region III

with 10.5 percent share.

“In the unbanked areas, or those regions with low bank density (less than 400 banks as median), the people are bereft of access to financial services and are ill-equipped to participate in economic development,” Fonacier said.

In the middle of the pandemic in 2020, despite higher provisions for upcoming bad loans, traditional banks are still able to expand their branches. In particular, bank branches increased by 2.9 percent in the second quarter of 2020 compared to the same quarter in 2019.

The largest increase was seen among universal and commercial banks, with 4.8 percent more branches during the period. This is followed by a 3.7 percent increase in rural and commercial bank branches. Thrift bank branches, however, went down by 2.4 percent during the period.

aderLook

sMirror

Editor: Dennis D. Estopace • Thursday, June 3, 2021

A7

sion, PHL seeks to lift all boats signed into law Republic Act 11055, otherwise known as the Philippine Identification System (PhilSys) Act. The law aims to establish a single national identification system for all citizens of the Republic of the Philippines.

This effort has been strongly supported by the BSP, saying it is a massive push for financial inclusion.

This is because, in its 2019 Financial Inclusion Survey, the BSP found that the lack of documentary requirement, including a valid ID, is one of the biggest hindrances as to why Filipinos choose to remain unbanked.

“The BSP supports the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) in its recent advisory emphasizing the Philippine Identification (PhillD) card as the official proof of identity for transactions with government and private entities,” Diokno said.

“The BSP reminds banks of the provisions in the Republic Act No. 11055 that the PhilID card, by itself, is a sufficient proof of identification honored and accepted in bank transactions without the need to present any other documentary requirements,” he added.

This initiative has already spurred early gains in financial inclusion.

Transaction accounts

The expansion of bank branches in the country during the time pushed the number of municipalities without banking presence down in the second quarter of 2020.

Innovations, strategies

IN the second quarter of 2019, the number of municipalities in the country without banking presence stood at 526, or 32.2 percent of all municipalities in the Philippines.

By the second quarter of 2020, this number went down to 509 or 31.2 percent of all municipalities in the country.

Also, in end-2017 BSP approved the rules on putting up branchlite units anywhere in the country “to facilitate greater access to efficient and competitive financial products and services.”

The BSP defines a branchlite unit as an office or place of

business of a bank that performs limited or simpler banking activities. Since these units are limited in the services they are offering, they are also subject to a proportionate regulatory framework, which means less strict rules and more f lexibility to execute financial strategies and innovations.

Banks used this regulatory provision to expand in 2020.

Data from the BSP showed that as of the second quarter of 2020, the number of operating branchlite units in the country grew 14 percent compared to its level in the same quarter in the previous year. The number of cities and municipalities with branch-lite units grew from 818 to 875 in the second quarter of last year.

‘New normal’

ALSO among the banks’ more pro-

nounced advancements towards financial inclusion is their ability to allow financial consumers to open so-called basic deposit accounts (BDA).

In 2018, the BSP allowed banks to offer these BDAs. By the end of that year, BDAs reached 428,000.

These BDAs are accounts designed by the BSP to encourage more people to open bank accounts and promote financial inclusion. Among their key features are: simplified know your customer (K YC) processes to open, no maintaining balance, no dormancy charges and 0-percent reserve requirement for the bank.

The surge in the opening of BDAs was tied up with the rise of online transactions due to movement and travel restrictions.

These BDAs are usually used as “transaction accounts”.

Diokno earlier said, “A transac-

tion account serves as the gateway to financial services. With it, a user can store funds and electronic payments then eventually avail of more products such as credit, insurance, and investments.”

BSP data shows that during the pandemic, some 4.6 million in BDAs were opened, with an aggregate value of deposits at P4 billion.

Diokno said they expect more transaction accounts to be opened as more online providers, as well as the government, are growing more and more digital as catalyzed by the restrictions in movement and travel.

A massive push

ASIDE from regulations set up by the BSP, the Philippines is also pursuing mass registration for the Philippine Identification System.

In 2018, President Duterte

THE Land Bank of the Philippines recently reported that more than 2 million previously unbanked people have registered for bank accounts in the first four months of the year as part of their partnership with the PSA. This initiative is part of LandBank’s partnership with the PSA to increase financial inclusion rates in the country by co-locating the unbanked through the PhilSys registration and providing them with their own transaction accounts.

Upon the invitation of National Economic and Development Authority Secretary Karl Kendrick T. Chua to co-locate with the PSA, the bank said its aim is to bank at least one household member of the estimated 18 million low-income households applying for the National ID. This account will help them and the government provide access to basic banking services and emergency government subsidies.

T he ba n k sa id a tot a l of 2,481,788 unbanked PhilSys registrants have already signed up for transaction accounts as of end-April.

Of the total 2,481,788 unbanked registrants, LandBank has issued Agent Banking Cards (ABCs) to 850,875 of them freeof-charge and without an initial deposit requirement. The rest will receive their cards by July.

Initial registrants

PREVIOUSLY, the PSA reported that 82 percent of the 10.52 million initial registrants do not have formal bank accounts.

“LandBank is one with the National Government’s financial inclusion agenda. In partnership with the PSA, we are focused on opening accounts for up to eight million low-income, unbanked individuals from the 32 PhilSys priority provinces at the soonest time,” LandBank President and CEO Cecilia C. Borromeo said.

In the legislative department, just last month, Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian pressed Congress leaders to front-load deliberation for the early approval of the proposed One Filipino, One Bank Account law envisioned to propel digitalization of financial transactions in the country.

The “One Filipino, One Bank Account” mandates the opening of a bank account for every Filipino that is expected to be a payment platform of the government in distributing financial aid, including educational assistance and medical assistance, among many others.

Gatchalian earlier said the remedial legislation aims to ensure equal access to financial services by boosting the digitalization of financial transactions in the country.

Vendor’s tale

THE merit behind giving all Filipino adults bank accounts is more than just including them into the financial system.

A case study in the BSP’s recently published book on financial inclusion featured fish-ball vendor Rodrigo Caadan who started to use a QR (quick response) code as an additional payment system in his fish-ball stand. Cadaan was able to do this by registering in one of the electronic money financial technology firms in the country.

Cadaan said he feels “safer” using the code as he does not have to hold a lot of cash.

He has also been able to save.

“Dati mahirap mag-ipon” (it used to be hard to save),” he said.

Cadaan said when he had all his cash on hand, he tended to spend almost everything he had. But with some payments now transferred directly to his account, he hardly has reason to touch the money he receives.

Cadaan’s case reflects the impact of financial inclusion not only on a country-level but also on a personal finance field.

Empowerment, entrepreneurship

IN the Asian Development Bank (ADB) summit on financial inclusion held late May, ADB Economic Research and Regional Cooperation Department (ERCD) Director of Regional Cooperation and Integration Cyn-Young Park said “economic literature suggests that higher financial inclusion leads to lower poverty and income inequality.”

Park said, “It also leads to higher women empowerment and entrepreneurship. Financial inclusion is a complex phenomenon linked to multiple underlying factors and evolving conditions.”

Park also said their recent study showed that economies with high per capita income tend to have higher financial inclusion and that the impact of financial inclusion and its dimensions is largest for poverty reduction.

With all engines fired up, along with the unexpected push brought about by the global health crisis, the Philippines’s financial inclusion journey has performed better than earlier expected.

Diokno earlier this year said that the Central Bank’s goal of reaching an account penetration level of percent by 2023 will now be attainable by the end of 2022. “ The real measure of a policy—its value and success—lies not in its complexities but in its responsiveness and practical benefit to everyone, especially those at the margins,” Diokno said. “ The task before us is to foster greater understanding and recognition of the advantages of participating in the formal financial system that in turn will result in inclusive, sustainable growth.”

The BSP governor just wants every Filipino to remember a maxim: “A rising tide lifts all boats.”

BusinessMirror

A8 Thursday, June 3, 2021

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

No.

1.

Basic Qualification: Analyze the productivity of the Marketing plans and projects, recommend to Senior Management.

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

ANOC99 CORPORATION 5/f To 10/f Ayala Malls Manila Bay Building D. Macapagal Blvd. Cor. Aseana Street Tambo Parañaque City

2.

ZHOU, XIANG Chinese Customer Service | Representative Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries

Basic Qualification: Able to Speak, Read, and Write Chinese Language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

3.

CHEN, JIAGUI Mandarin Customer Service Brief Job Description: Offer full range of customer service to employer and clients.

4.

CONG, PEIJUAN Mandarin Customer Service Brief Job Description: Offer full range of customer service to employer and clients.

Basic Qualification: At least college level and able to speak, read write and type fluently in Mandarin language.

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

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SONG, QILONG Mandarin Customer Service Brief Job Description: Offer full range of customer service to employer and clients.

Basic Qualification: At least college level and able to speak, read write and type fluently in Mandarin language.

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

SUN, BIN Mandarin Customer Service Brief Job Description: Offer full range of customer service to employer and clients.

Basic Qualification: At least college level and able to speak, read write and type fluently in Mandarin language.

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

TANG, QIANG Mandarin Customer Service Brief Job Description: Offer full range of customer service to employer and clients.

Basic Qualification: At least college level and able to speak, read write and type fluently in Mandarin language.

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

TU, HUAQIANG Mandarin Customer Service Brief Job Description: Offer full range of customer service to employer and clients.

Basic Qualification: At least college level and able to speak, read write and type fluently in Mandarin language.

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

XIE, XIUQUAN Mandarin Customer Service Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin/Fukien and at least college level with related BPO experience.

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

XIONG, ZHICHAO Mandarin Customer Service Brief Job Description: Offer full range of customer service to employer and clients.

Basic Qualification: At least college level and able to speak, read write and type fluently in Mandarin language.

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

XU, YOUFANG Mandarin Customer Service Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin/Fukien and at least college level with related BPO experience.

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

XU, YAKANG Mandarin Customer Service Brief Job Description: Offer full range of customer service to employer and clients.

Basic Qualification: At least college level and able to speak, read write and type fluently in Mandarin language.

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

ZHANG, SHAN Mandarin Customer Service Brief Job Description: Offer full range of customer service to employer and clients.

Basic Qualification: At least college level and able to speak, read write and type fluently in Mandarin language.

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

ZHAO, HONGFEI Mandarin Customer Service Brief Job Description: Offer full range of customer service to employer and clients.

Basic Qualification: At least college level and able to speak, read write and type fluently in Mandarin language.

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

CUI, ZHIGANG Mandarin Language Specialist Brief Job Description: Perform quality audit and translations in technical and non-technical issues reported by users or systems

Basic Qualification: Proficient in Mandarin language and has excellent communication skills both in written and oral.

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

HONG, AFANG Mandarin Language Specialist Brief Job Description: Perform quality audit and translations in technical and non-technical issues reported by users or systems

Basic Qualification: Perform quality audit and translations in technical and non-technical issues reported by users or systems Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

HUANG, BINGZHI Mandarin Language Specialist Brief Job Description: Perform quality audit and translations in technical and non-technical issues reported by users or systems

Basic Qualification: Proficient in Mandarin language and has excellent communication skills both in written and oral.

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

LIN, TIAN Mandarin Language Specialist Brief Job Description: Perform quality audit and translations in technical and non-technical issues reported by users or systems

Basic Qualification: Perform quality audit and translations in technical and non-technical issues reported by users or systems Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Proficient in Mandarin language and has excellent communication skills both in written and oral.

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

MA, TENGFEI Mandarin Language Specialist Brief Job Description: Perform quality audit and translations in technical and non-technical issues reported by users or systems

Basic Qualification: Perform quality audit and translations in technical and non-technical issues reported by users or systems Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

WANG, JIANGBIN Mandarin Language Specialist Brief Job Description: Perform quality audit and translations in technical and non-technical issues reported by users or systems

Basic Qualification: Perform quality audit and translations in technical and non-technical issues reported by users or systems Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

22.

WANG, BO Mandarin Language Specialist Brief Job Description: Perform quality audit and translations in technical and non-technical issues reported by users or systems

Basic Qualification: Perform quality audit and translations in technical and non-technical issues reported by users or systems Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

23.

WU, QINGFEI Mandarin Language Specialist Brief Job Description: Perform quality audit and translations in technical and non-technical issues reported by users or systems

Basic Qualification: Proficient in Mandarin language and has excellent communication skills both in written and oral.

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

YANG, WENHUA Mandarin Language Specialist Brief Job Description: Perform quality audit and translations in technical and non-technical issues reported by users or systems

Basic Qualification: Proficient in Mandarin language and has excellent communication skills both in written and oral.

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

ZHOU, YI Mandarin Language Specialist Brief Job Description: Perform quality audit and translations in technical and non-technical issues reported by users or systems

Basic Qualification: Proficient in Mandarin language and has excellent communication skills both in written and oral.

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

19.

20.

21.

BIG EMPEROR TECHNOLOGY CORP. 5f-13f, Jiaxing Tower Building Aseana Avenue, Aseana Business Park Tambo Parañaque City Basic Qualification: At least college level and able to speak, read write and type fluently in Mandarin language.

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

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

LIU, WEIXING Mandarin Language Specialist Brief Job Description: Perform quality audit and translations in technical and non-technical issues reported by users or systems

8 STONE BUSINESS OUTSOURCING OPC 5-10/f Tower 1 Pitx Kennedy Road Tambo Parañaque City ZHOU, TAO Marketing Staff Mandarin Speaking Brief Job Description: Monitor, review and report on all Marketing activity and result.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

24.

25.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

No.

26.

Basic Qualification: Develop and direct budget process Salary Range: Php 500,000 and above

EASTERN GOLD CORPORATION 503 Nueva St Binondo Manila

27.

28.

29.

CHENH KIM THANH Marketing And Sales Agent Brief Job Description: Researches and develops various marketing strategies for products and services and implements marketing plans and works to meet sales quotas.

Basic Qualification: Can contributes information, ideas, and research to help develop marketing strategies; can help to detail, design and implement marketing plan for each product or service being offered.

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

WANG, ZILONG Marketing And Sales Agent Brief Job Description: Researches and develops various marketing strategies for products and services and implements marketing plans and works to meet sales quotas.

Basic Qualification: Can contributes information, ideas, and research to help develop marketing strategies; can help to detail, design and implement marketing plan for each product or service being offered.

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

YANG, GE Marketing And Sales Agent Brief Job Description: Researches and develops various marketing strategies for products and services and implements marketing plans and works to meet sales quotas.

Basic Qualification: Can contributes information, ideas, and research to help develop marketing strategies; can help to detail, design and implement marketing plan for each product or service being offered.

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

GATEWAYSOLUTIONS CORP. Unit 2306 Antel Global Corporate Center Julia Vargas Ave. Ortigas Center, San Antonio Pasig City

30.

31.

32.

33.

CHEN, JIEJING Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Prepare product or service reports by collecting and analyzing customer information contribute to team effort by accomplishing related results as needed.

Manage large amounts of incoming calls.

Basic Qualification: Proven track record of delivering excellent customer service and support. Strong troubleshooting, problemsolving capabilities and people skills.

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

DAI, WEI Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Prepare product or service reports by collecting and analyzing customer information contribute to team effort by accomplishing related results as needed.

Manage large amounts of incoming calls.

Basic Qualification: Proven track record of delivering excellent customer service and support. Strong troubleshooting, problemsolving capabilities and people skills.

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

HOU, JUNCHAO Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Prepare product or service reports by collecting and analyzing customer information contribute to team effort by accomplishing related results as needed.

Manage large amounts of incoming calls.

Basic Qualification: Proven track record of delivering excellent customer service and support. Strong troubleshooting, problemsolving capabilities and people skills.

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

KE, YUANTING Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Prepare product or service reports by collecting and analyzing customer information contribute to team effort by accomplishing related results as needed.

Manage large amounts of incoming calls.

Basic Qualification: Proven track record of delivering excellent customer service and support. Strong troubleshooting, problemsolving capabilities and people skills.

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

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

34.

WONG CHEAH LEE Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Prepare product or service reports by collecting and analyzing customer information contribute to team effort by accomplishing related results as needed.

Manage large amounts of incoming calls.

Basic Qualification: Proven track record of delivering excellent customer service and support. Strong troubleshooting, problemsolving capabilities and people skills.

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

35.

YU, QIANCHENG Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Prepare product or service reports by collecting and analyzing customer information contribute to team effort by accomplishing related results as needed.

Manage large amounts of incoming calls.

Basic Qualification: Proven track record of delivering excellent customer service and support. Strong troubleshooting, problemsolving capabilities and people skills.

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

GENIX CONSULTANCY INC. 7/f Ba Lepanto Bldg. 8747 Paseo De Roxas Bel-air Makati City

36.

ESTHER CHAN JIA YING Mandarin Speaking Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Responsible inbound and outbound calls

Basic Qualification: proficiency in speaking, reading and writing in mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

37.

LIM KOK WEI Mandarin Speaking Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Responsible inbound and outbound calls

Basic Qualification: proficiency in speaking, reading and writing in mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

INVECH TREASURE PROCESSING CORPORATION 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th Floor Six West Campus Mckinley West Fort Bonifacio Taguig City

38.

DING, JUJIAN Chinese Customer Support Representative Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin/Fukien and at least college level with related BPO experience.

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

39.

GAO, WENJUN Chinese Customer Support Representative Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin/Fukien and at least college level with related BPO experience.

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

40.

JIANG, YONGLONG Chinese Customer Support Representative Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin/Fukien and at least college level with related BPO experience.

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

41.

LIU, ZHONG Chinese Customer Support Representative Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin/Fukien and at least college level with related BPO experience.

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

42.

NING, LIANGLAN Chinese Customer Support Representative Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin/Fukien and at least college level with related BPO experience.

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

43.

PENG, DAN Chinese Customer Support Representative Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin/Fukien and at least college level with related BPO experience.

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

44.

QI, HAO Chinese Customer Support Representative Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin/Fukien and at least college level with related BPO experience.

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

45.

SU, XIAOMING Chinese Customer Support Representative Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin/Fukien and at least college level with related BPO experience.

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

46.

SUN, XIAOQIANG Chinese Customer Support Representative Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin/Fukien and at least college level with related BPO experience.

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

47.

WANG, DANDAN Chinese Customer Support Representative Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin/Fukien and at least college level with related BPO experience.

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

48.

XU, JIANPING Chinese Customer Support Representative Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin/Fukien and at least college level with related BPO experience.

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

49.

YU, ZHIKAI Chinese Customer Support Representative Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin/Fukien and at least college level with related BPO experience.

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

CONDUENT BUSINESS SERVICES PHILIPPINES, INC. 7f One E-com Building Palm Coast Avenue Mall Of Asia Complex Pasay City URIZAR GARCIA, JAVIER ROLANDO Global Head Finance Shared Service Centers - Finance Vp Brief Job Description: Prepare and monitors internal financial controls by analyzing and interpreting financial data, includes but not limited to identifying trends, providing forecast and investing funds

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. 4th-11th Flr. Nexgen Tower C4 Rd. Edsa Ext. Brgy. 076 Pasay City

50.

HOANG VAN KHANH Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Customer service

Basic Qualification: College graduate/level and fluent in mandarin/basic English Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

51.

HUYNH MY YEN Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Customer service

Basic Qualification: College graduate/level and fluent in mandarin/basic English Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

www.businessmirror.com.ph• Editor: Angel R. Calso

China reports human case of bird flu, a possible first

B

EIJING—A man in eastern China has contracted what might be the world’s first human case of the H10N3 strain of bird flu, but the risk of large-scale spread is low, the government said Tuesday.

The 41-year-old man in Jiangsu province, northwest of Shanghai, was hospitalized April 28 and is in stable condition, the National Health Commission said on its web site.

No human case of H10N3 has been reported elsewhere, the commission said.

“This infection is an accidental cross-species transmission,” its statement said. “The risk of large-scale transmission is low.”

The news comes amid heightened awareness of the threat of emerging diseases as the Covid-19 pandemic continues to claim lives around the world.

But unlike with coronaviruses, there are global influenza surveillance systems that watch for human cases of bird flu, since a strain named H5N1 cropped up in the late 1990s in Hong Kong’s crowded live-poultry markets.

Between 2013 and 2017, another bird flu named H7N9 infected more than 1,500 people in China through close contact with infected chickens.

With that history, authorities aren’t surprised to see occasional human cases of various bird flu strains and they monitor closely for any signs one is spreading between people. AP

The World BusinessMirror

Thursday, June 3, 2021

A9

WHO grants emergency approval to second Chinese Covid vaccine

G

ENEVA—The World Health Organization has issued an emergency use listing for the Covid-19 vaccine made by Sinovac for adults 18 and over, the second such authorization it has granted to a Chinese company.

In a statement Tuesday, the UN health agency said data submitted to its experts showed that two doses of the vaccine prevented people from getting symptoms of Covid-19 in about half of those who got the vaccine. WHO said there were few older adults enrolled in the research, so it could not estimate how effective the vaccine was in people over 60.

“Nevertheless, WHO is not recommend ing a n upper age limit for the vaccine,” the agency said, adding that data collected from Sinovac’s use in other countries “suggest the vaccine is likely to have a protective effect in older persons.”

In April, a study published by a team of scientists in Brazil confirmed a previously reported efficacy rate of over 50 percent for Sinovac. A real-world study in Chile in April found an efficacy rate of 67 percent.

Last month, WHO gave the g reen l ig ht to t he Cov id-19 vaccine made by Sinopharm. It has also licensed vaccines developed by P f i zer -BioN Tec h, A stra Zeneca, Moder na and Johnson & Johnson.

WHO’s authorization means the vaccine can be bought by donors and other UN agencies for use

in poorer countries, including in the UN-backed initiative to distribute Covid-19 vaccines globally known as COVAX. The effort has been slowed considerably after its biggest supplier in India said it would not be able to provide any more vaccines until the end of the year due to the latest surge of new infections now ravaging India.

To d ate, t here i s no confirmed deal for Sinovac doses with COVA X. In May, Europe’s drug regulator began an expedited review process for the Sinovac vaccine, but it’s unclear when a decision might be made about its possible authorization for the 27-nation bloc.

Hundreds of millions of Chinese vaccines have already been delivered to dozens of countries around the world through bilateral deals, as many nations scrambled to secure supplies after rich countries reserved the vast majority of supplies from Western pharmaceutical makers.

While China has five vaccine shots in use, the majority of its exports abroad come from two companies: Sinopharm and Sinovac.

The Chinese vaccines are “inactivated” vaccines, made with killed coronavirus.

Most other Covid-19 vaccines

being used around the world, particularly in the West, are made with newer technologies that instead target the “spike” protein that coats the surface of the coronavirus.

Key developments:

Melbourne pandemic lockdown extended

MELBOURNE, Australia—A pandemic lockdown in Australia’s second largest city will be extended for a second week due to concerns over a growing cluster of coronavirus infections.

Victoria state acting Premier James Merlino on Wednesday confirmed that Melbourne will remain in lockdown for seven more days from Friday, but pandemic restrictions will be eased elsewhere in the state.

Merlino says that “if we let this thing run its course, it will explode.”

Victoria officials said Wednesday that the state recorded six new locally acquired coronavirus cases in the latest 24 -hour period, bringing the latest outbreak to 60 active infections. The lockd o w n i s t he fou r t h for Me l b ou r ne , w h ic h h a s 5 m i l l ion re s id e nt s .

Mexico reviews Covid deaths

MEXICO CITY—Mexico says a clinical review of past deaths has led officials to raise the country’s confirmed Covid-19 death toll by 4,272, to a total of 227,840.

The adjustment announced Tuesday is largely one of record keeping, because even government officials acknowledge the true death toll is far higher.

Because the country of 126 million people does so little testing, many Mexicans have died at home

or never got a test. So the government searches death certificates for mentions of symptoms related to Covid-19.

Those analyses of excess deaths related to Covid-19 now stand at over 348,750, which gives Mexico one of the highest per capita rates in the world.

Alaska offers jabs at airports

JUNEAU, Alaska—Alaska has begun offering coronavirus vaccinations at airports in a move that had been expected for the start of the summer travel season.

The state health department said that as of Tuesday, vaccine eligibility has been expanded to include anyone in Alaska who is at least 12 years old, including visitors from other states or countries.

Prior eligibility was for those who live or work in Alaska.

Vaccines will be offered outside the areas secured by the federal Transportation Security Administration at airports in Anchorage, Fairbanks and Juneau.

The health department says plans call for the Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport to have available all three vaccines authorized for emergency use in the US, including the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

Canada approves mix and match of different vaccines

TORONTO—Canada’s National Advisory Committee on Immunization says people who got the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine for the first dose can be offered either Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna for the second.

The advice affects more than two million Canadians who received the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine before provinces stopped using it for first doses last month.

The vaccine is potentially linked to a rare but serious blood-clotting syndrome. In Canada, 41 confirmed or suspected cases of vaccine-induced thrombotic thrombocytopenia have been diagnosed and five people have died.

Several European countries are giving Pfizer or Moderna as second doses to AstraZeneca recipients, including Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Sweden, Norway and Spain.

NACI’s published report says AstraZeneca recipients can be offered the same vaccine if they want it, or can be given either Pfizer or Moderna. T hey say they are basing their advice on the risk of VITT, and emerging evidence that mixing and matching different types of vaccines is not only safe but may produce a better immune response.

The guidance is not binding but most provincial governments have indicated they were waiting for the information before setting their policies for second doses.

London welcomes passengers from high-risk countries

LONDON—London’s Heathrow Airport has reopened a terminal that was mothballed during the coronav ir us pandemic to handle passengers now arriving from high-risk countries. Critics say the action should have been taken sooner.

Britain has barred travelers from a “red list” of 43 coronavirus hotspots including India, Brazil and Turkey. UK nationals and residents returning from those countries face a mandatory 10day quarantine in a hotel. Other travelers coming from “amber list” countries like the United States can do their mandatory 10-day quarantine at home in the UK. AP

A10 Thursday, June 3, 2021 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

editorial

Let’s save planet Earth before it’s too late

O

N the same day that the UN climate office in Bonn, Germany announced the opening of a three-week climate talks among officials from around the globe, an alarming report came out based on a study published in the journal Nature Climate Change, which said that global warming causes more than one-third of the world’s heat deaths every year.

The study said dozens of researchers who looked at heat deaths in 732 cities around the globe from 1991 to 2018 calculated that 37 percent of the deaths were caused by higher temperatures from human-caused warming.

That amounts to about 9,700 people a year from just those cities, but it is much more worldwide, the study’s lead author said. “These deaths related to heat can actually be prevented. It is something we directly cause,” said Ana Vicedo-Cabrera, an epidemiologist at the Institute of Social and Preventative Medicine at the University of Bern in Switzerland.

Climate change is also increasing fire risk in many regions across the globe, and experts said this trend will continue as the planet warms. In a new study published on May 24, 2021—in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences— a team of fire and climate scientists and engineers found that forest fires are now reaching higher, normally wetter elevations. And they are burning there at rates unprecedented in recent fire history.

Drought is arguably the biggest single threat from climate change. The World Health Organization (WHO) said an estimated 55 million people globally are affected by droughts every year, adding that droughts are the most serious hazard to livestock and crops in nearly every part of the world.

“Drought threatens people’s livelihoods, increases the risk of disease and death, and fuels mass migration. Water scarcity impacts 40 percent of the world’s population, and as many as 700 million people are at-risk of being displaced as a result of drought by 2030,” WHO said.

From the Associated Press: “The water crisis along the California-Oregon border went from dire to catastrophic this week as federal regulators shut off irrigation water to farmers from a critical reservoir and said they would not send extra water to dying salmon downstream or to a half-dozen wildlife refuges that harbor millions of migrating birds each year. In what is shaping up to be the worst water crisis in generations, the US Bureau of Reclamation said it will not release water this season into the main canal that feeds the bulk of the massive Klamath Reclamation Project, marking a first for the 114-year-old irrigation system. The agency announced last month that hundreds of irrigators would get dramatically less water than usual, but a worsening drought picture means water will be completely shut off instead. The entire region is in extreme or exceptional drought, according to federal monitoring reports, and Oregon’s Klamath County is experiencing its driest year in 127 years.”

The Philippines is ranked third worldwide in terms of disaster risk in the World Risk Index 2018, a composite index that also includes risks from climate-related hazards (www.WorldRiskReport.org). As of 2015, as many as 40.5 percent of the country’s total population of 100.98 million were city dwellers. Today, heat health risk is considered one of the key risks in the country, and thus adaptation to heat-related health impacts must be one of our adaptation priorities. However, the literature on heat health risk and vulnerability assessments in the Philippines is still limited, according to the World Risk Index.

Climate change is already affecting our health. Along with much of the rest of the world, Filipinos are now experiencing unprecedented levels of heat and humidity. For example, on May 9, the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration recorded a heat index of 50 degrees Celsius at Sangley Point in Cavite and in Ambulong, Batangas. To put that in perspective, 50 degrees Celsius is half the boiling point of water.

Last month, The Earth Institute at Columbia University released a report showing that the combination of extreme heat and humidity once believed never experienced by humans is already occurring. The study said this weather mix, often fatal, is surpassing the theoretical threshold of human survivability.

Global warming will increasingly test our limits well into the future. All of us need to act now to help save planet Earth before it’s too late.

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Understanding the reserve currency John Mangun

OUTSIDE THE BOX

T

here is a remarkable amount of ignorance about money.

Money is not a difficult subject to understand, but it is complex and can be complicated.

I don’t think that I am smarter than everyone else. But I have spent a good portion of my business life trying to figure out what is going on in order to protect and prosper my wealth. But as with many other topics, there is a strong tendency to ignore facts that would increase a person’s knowledge and therefore his conclusions.

Philippine inflation, at its peaks and valleys, tracks the global crude oil price, as it has done for the past 40 years. We saw a peak in 1980 and a bottom in 1985. More recently, peaks in 2014 were followed by bottoms in 2016. Crude oil (at $80) and Philippine inflation (at 6.5 percent)

hit trending highs in late 2018. Then came a bottom of inflation at about 1 percent in 2019 as oil continued going down to $20 in 2020.

Since then, both have gone significantly higher. The connection between oil prices and Philippine inflation (and US and global inflation, too) seems reasonably clear. But trying to explain that to someone who has unwavering preconceived notions about the causes of inflation is almost impossible. It is true that short-term price increases are usually caused by an imbalance between supply and demand. However, inflation trends are almost always “cost push” with the biggest factors

being either a depreciating currency or an increase in the price of crude oil or both.

The past few years have seen a continuous conversation about the US dollar being the world’s “reserve currency,” with most people not having much understanding about what that term means. Then comes the idea that at some point the dollar could or should be replaced with another currency or “something else.”

“A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...” or the entire global economic system prior to 1972, precious metal—gold and silver—was the reserve currency. That means that gold and silver were used to execute business, primarily goods trade, between nations. The reason that these metals were used was, among other reasons, because virtually every country had at least some of both. It did not matter if a country was selling olive oil, slaves, or porcelain jars, it would be paid in precious metal or the equivalent in other goods that it wanted.

A “trade surplus” meant that it was accumulating gold through trade.

Paper currency became common as countries used paper as a substitute for physical gold until some wise

guy figured out that no one was really counting the paper to make sure there was gold backing it up. Something else was needed.

In 1972, the US “volunteered” to make the dollar the instrument of global trade and that was done purely for self-interest. Instead of trading gold for goods, the US traded dollars.

“The trade deficit in the US widened to a new record of $74.4 billion in March 2021.” That means that the US imported $74.4 billion of physical goods and “exported” $74.4 billion of physical money. In 1880, that could have read, “The US imported 100 tons of coffee and rum and exported one ton of gold.”

In 2021, there are more physical (and electronical) US dollars held outside the US than domestically.

As long as the US continues to be the biggest exporter of its currency, the US dollar will be the global trade currency. Remember, China has a trade surplus, meaning, it in effect is “importing” currency.

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

‘Brilliant N.E.R.D with K-Pop Looks’

Confirmation of the Appointment of Karl Kendrick T. Chua as Secretary of Socioeconomic Planning and Director-General of the National Economic and Development Authority (Editor’s note: After serving as the country’s chief economist in over a year of a pandemic, Karl Kendrick Chua was confirmed Wednesday by the Commission on Appointments, a fitting nod to one of the most hardworking, brilliant, yet patient public servants in the country. Here’s the endorsement speech at the CA hearing by Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto)

M

R. President, my dear colleagues: The nominee is a NERD—but with K-Pop looks.

By NERD, I mean our National Economist for Recovery and Development.

In the Cabinet, he is the youngest in years, but one of the wisest in experience.

And it is not only his youthfulness that makes him stand out in a Cabinet of D-O-Ms—Davao connection, Oldies but goodies, and Military— but his intellect, too.

His CV is a fine print of academic and professional achievements. Taken together, they are the social and economic reforms writ large.

He has logged 18 years of experience in each of the following disciplines: economic policy, fiscal policy, tax administration, political economy, and tax policy.

Speaking of tax, he is the architect of the biggest tax hike—or make that plural, tax hikes in history—without having to be punished by the voters at the ballot box, like the fate of another Neda head.

Add 16 years of work in statistical development, plus 15 in public expenditure management, 13 in labor and social protection policy, and 11 in poverty studies.

The sum, which is more than a hundred years in multiple career tracks, is twice Enrile’s professional record but achieved at half his age.

Every leader, Mr. President, is dependent on some form of AI, or artificial intelligence.

And the President should be lucky to have this nominee, who is a walking terabytes of knowledge, in his official family.

It is good that he has topnotch qualifications, because the Cabinet portfolio he holds is one of the most important today.

The reason is that the pandemic has unleashed a health crisis and an economic crisis all at once.

It is a war being fought on two fronts. One is where lives are saved.

The other is where livelihoods are salvaged.

The fact is, only a few of those that have gotten the virus may manifest severe body ills.

But you don’t have to get hit by Covid to be hurt by the economic hardships it has caused.

Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick T. Chua

Not all Covid victims will see the inside of an ER. But this virus has placed our entire economy in the ICU. Our GDP cratered last year, sinking to a negative 9.6-percent growth.

The unemployment rate seesaws between 7 percent and 18 percent. As businesses bled, the economy shed 2.7 million jobs.

For every day of ECQ, income lost is P2.8 billion.

The toll on millions is best captured by this observation: “Ang dating isang kahig, isang tuka, ngayon ay kahig ng kahig, walang matuka.”

It falls upon the nominee as economic war minister to ease their pain, to prevent the economy from fully flatlining, and to lay the foundations of a turnaround.

A suki of this institution, he has been counseling us on the relief, recovery, resilience measures that we must undertake if we want the great-

est threat to this nation in 75 years to be over soon.

Mr. President, I have been working with the nominee for many years now on all the measures the economic team wanted us to pass.

I always find my encounters with him a learning experience for me, although I suspect that he may not have treated it as a teachable moment for him.

I value the hundreds of hours we have discussed policy, even if I know that he looks forward to meeting me with the same excitement as when he goes to the dentist for a root canal.

We have crossed swords on many issues, and we have lost count on the times we put each other’s ideas on our own crosshairs.

But always I come out of those encounters with a higher respect and deeper admiration for this patriot See “Brilliant,” A11

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Korea inflation at 9-year high amid growing rate hike views

By Sam Kim

Bloomberg Opinion

S

outh Korea’s inflation rose to its highest since 2012 in May as the economy’s rebound gathered pace, adding support to views that the central bank could be among the first in the region to start normalizing policy.

Inflation from a year earlier reached 2.6 percent from April’s 2.3 percent, according to data from the statistics office Wednesday that matched the median estimate from economists. The figures were buoyed by comparison with last year’s price drop at the onset of the pandemic.

Compared with the previous month, consumer prices rose 0.1 percent.

Inflation is rising globally as surging commodity costs feed into higher consumer prices and trigger debates about when central banks might start to raise interest rates again. For the Bank of Korea, faster price gains also reflect a broadening economic recovery that justifies the governor’s call for an orderly and timely exit from record-low interest rates.

The reading marks the second straight month that Korea’s headline inflation exceeded the central bank’s 2 percent target.

In a statement Wednesday afternoon, the BOK said the figures were in line with its expectations, adding that base effects played a large role. The bank said it’s closely monitoring the trend, given that inflationary pressure may grow more than expected as economic activity normalizes.

Most central bankers have sought to play down the risks of runaway inflation, saying price increases will be transitory. The Bank of Korea last week raised its inflation forecast for this year to 1.8 percent from 1.3 percent, but kept its outlook for next year unchanged at 1.4 percent.

While the central bank’s brighter economic outlook has prompted some analysts at banks including Citigroup and JPMorgan to forecast a rate hike this year, many still project tightening won’t start until 2022.

“The BOK will act when it sees

Brilliant. . .

continued from A10

and professional, whose love for his country and people is beyond doubt.

Mr. President, the likes of him should be the rule in the Cabinet, not the exception.

The presence of the Neda chief in the Cabinet serves as a constant reminder of the essential things a government must do for its people.

I mean the things that truly matter, not the trivial ones trolls want.

Things like jobs created, investments generated, GDP growth, exports, the poverty incidence slashed, literacy, among others—this is the scorecard Neda keeps. And it is the only accurate barometer that tells us where we are.

The true state of the nation is in our economic numbers.

They are not in opinion polls, which report the perception of the polled. Neither are they in the reach of socmed posts. Surveys can never be a substitute for the development index.

And the nation can only score high in that index if it follows and funds the plans of Neda and if the government heeds the advice of its head.

Mr. President: There is one line in the nominee’s official CV that strikes me the most.

No, these are not the impressive catalogue of his published works.

Neither are these his academic credentials, his AB from Ateneo, and his MA and PhD in Economics from that public school down the road which, as one joke goes, served as a re-education camp for anyone coming out of a Jesuit school.

Rather, I find it on his civil status, where he writes: “Married with one happy little boy who misses his dad.”

That boy is Keid Ashby, an incom-

Inflation is rising globally as surging commodity costs feed into higher consumer prices and trigger debates about when central banks might start to raise interest rates again. For the Bank of Korea, faster price gains also reflect a broadening economic recovery that justifies the governor’s call for an orderly and timely exit from record-low interest rates. inflation becoming entrenched,” said Lim Dong-min, an economist at Kyobo Securities. “Rising inflation on a base effect is a global phenomenon that’s been largely expected.

The question is, will this inflation pushed by commodity costs spill into inflation pulled by demand?”

In the May inflation report, prices of items swayed by supply-side issues led the gains. Transportation costs jumped 9.2 percent in May from a year earlier while prices for food and non-alcoholic beverages rose 7.4 percent.

There were also signs that consumer demand is gaining momentum. Restaurants and hotels saw prices rising 2 percent. Entertainment costs rose 1 percent, although communications prices fell 2.1 percent. South Korea’s core inflation which removes agriculture and oil prices, edged up to 1.5 percent from a year earlier.

In a separate statement, the finance ministry said it expects inflation to moderate in June as base effects become less favorable. To ease the burden from higher commodity prices, Finance Minister Hong Namki said the government will increase egg imports from 40 million to at least 50 million, ramp up rice supplies, and offer loans to companies to help with commodity purchases.

Still, price pressures could intensify if Korea’s consumer-sector recovery picks up steam. Consumer confidence was at the highest in almost three years last month while gauges on retail sales and service production reached record levels in April. ing Grade 1 student at, where else, the Jesuit school Xavier, where his dad was the high school valedictorian 25 years ago.

“Keid” is a star in the constellation of Eridamis, where habitable planets may exist. And “Ashby”, from what a contact tracer told me, is some economist.

Obviously, he was named after his father’s two passions: astronomy and economics, which bookends the day of this busy man.

Mornings, he bikes to work, with two pieces of pan de sal as baon, to his day job as the lead government economist.

And after a day of poring over spreadsheets, he searches the sky for stars.

So when we had that lunar eclipse some nights ago, I imagine father and son watching it together, with the dad annotating the phenomenon to his class of one.

But if he had the nation as audience that night, Karl Kendrick Chua would be telling us that we must have a “man on the moon” goal.

I am referring to the moment when Kennedy boldly vowed to put a man on the moon before the Sixties was over.

That we must break free of the political culture that treats grandiose dreams as grandstanding.

That although we are in the gutter, let us reach for the stars.

That we can do it in a way that we secure our children’s future without mortgaging it.

Mr. President, my dear colleagues: It is my honor to sponsor the confirmation of the appointment of Karl Kendrick T. Chua, father of a boy who misses him terribly, as the Secretary of Socioeconomic Planning and the Director-General of the National Economic and Development Authority.

Thursday, June 3, 2021 A11

Her body, she decides (…but only if she is 18) Juan Antonio A. Perez III, MD, MPH

Eye on population

I

N mid-May, the United Nations Population Fund in the Philippines (UNFPA) and the Commission on Population and Development (POPCOM) launched the 2021 version of the State of the World Population report entitled, “My Body Is My Own: Claiming the Right to Autonomy and Self-Determination.”

The Philippines has chosen to focus on young women and girls undergoing early childbearing (and rearing their children as solo parents) as a country focus in this year’s theme of bodily autonomy.

In my message at the launch, I defined bodily autonomy as a young woman having the following: One, the power to make choices over one’s physical body and future, without the elements of violence and coercion. Two, it includes the choice on when or with whom to have sex, if at all. Three, it includes the choice on when or with whom one wants to become pregnant if at all. And four, the freedom to visit a doctor whenever one needs to.

It has often been said that society has more limits and licenses attached to the female body than for the male body. As a matter of fact, obscenity and community-scandal regulations are the only limits I can think of for the male body, and it applies equally

to both female and male bodies, but not in the case of the breastfeeding mother nourishing her child in public, which is being regulated in some societies.

How do we limit the females in the use of their bodies? n The Revised Penal Code says girls can start having sex at age 12 without the male being accused of rape (this is almost after the start of menses, which on average happens at the said age). n The same code and the antirape law (Republic Act 8353) allows rapists (who may have had sex with a girl before 12 years old) to be forgiven if he marries his victim. n Sex with a girl aged below 12 is rape; from 12 onwards, it is labeled to “seduction.” n Girls from 10 up to under 18 can be sexually active and have children, but they do not have access on their own to family planning or reproductive health services to pre-

vent HIV or sexually transmitted diseases, according to the Supreme Court in 2014.

In many instances, the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Law, since 2012, has expanded the possibility that women will have their sexual and reproductive health rights recognized in a law that allows universal access to such health care information and services.

Where are the funds?

There are two barriers to universal realization of those sexual and reproductive health rights, though.

Money is one; and apparently, age is another.

While the Cabinet approved in 2019 a three-year program for population and family planning costing P10 billion, none of the expected funds were allocated by the Department of Budget and Management in 2020. Since family planning was not seen as essential to recovery from the pandemic, no funds were again allocated into the 2021 program.

Last March, however, President Duterte remarked that the family planning and population program needed to be reviewed, as he wanted the programs to contribute to the easing of congestion in urban communities where Covid-19 continues to thrive. The National Economic and Development Authority, Department of Health and POPCOM have issued a memorandum asking for a boost in family planning and

population development services in all local government units and for regional agencies to increase their support to LGUs with itinerant teams to provide permanent family planning methods that are in high demand.

That will only be half the problem solved.

Social protection

For bodily autonomy to be guaranteed in terms of sexual and reproductive health for minor girls who are sexually active, the Senate and House of Representatives must agree on a program to allow these minors to be given family planning and reproductive health services. Adolescent minors who are mothers also need social protection provided by local and national agencies, as they remain vulnerable to economic and health shocks, while they remain solo parents.

It all begins by understanding that male and female bodies (and their owners) are not treated equally in this country in terms of their sexual and reproductive health and rights.

And age should not be a barrier.

When it comes to child bearing and parenting, it is the minors who are most vulnerable, and their age should not stop us from protecting their health and rights.

Undersecretary Juan Antonio “Doc Jeepy” Perez III is the executive director of the Commission on Population and Development. For comments and reactions, e-mail juan.perez@popcom.gov.ph.

Gaza’s bereaved civilians fear justice will never come

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By Karin Laub & Fares Akram | Associated Press

AZA CITY, Gaza Strip—The al-Kawlaks, a family of four generations living next door to each other in downtown Gaza City, were utterly unprepared for the inferno.

Like others, they were terrified by the heavy bombing in Israel’s fourth war with Gaza’s Hamas rulers that began May 10. The explosions felt more powerful than in previous fighting. At night, parents and children slept in one room so they would live or die together.

Yet the relatively well-to-do Rimal neighborhood where the family lived in a cluster of apartment buildings seemed somewhat safer than areas along Gaza’s border with Israel, which had been devastated in this and past fighting.

Then one night disaster struck.

Azzam al-Kawlak’s four children had gone to bed, and he and his wife were preparing to join them.

At around 1 a.m. on May 16, a thunderous boom shook his topfloor apartment, followed quickly by a second and third. “The floor cracked below our feet and the furniture was thrown to the wall,” the 42-year-old engineer said.

The four-story building collapsed, with Azzam’s apartment dropping to the ground. The family escaped through the kitchen balcony, now almost ground level. Bizarrely, the laundry hanging on a clothesline seemed untouched.

It took a day for the full horror to emerge, as bodies and survivors were pulled from the rubble. The family and neighbors used ropes to clear chunks of concrete, working alongside ill-equipped rescue teams.

By nightfall, the family’s death toll stood at 22. Eight bodies were dug out of Azzam’s building and 14 from the one next door. The dead included 89-year-old family patriarch Amin, his son Fawaz, 62, his grandson Sameh, 28, and his greatgrandson, 6-month-old Qusai.

Just a day earlier, Qusai’s parents had celebrated a small milestone, his first tooth. Azzam’s two younger brothers were killed. Three nieces— 5-year-old Rula, 10-year-old Yara and 12-year-old Hala—were found in a tight embrace, their bodies the last to be pulled out, said Azzam’s surviving older brother, Awni.

The bombing along several hundred meters of al-Wahda Street took just minutes. In all, it brought down

three houses—two in the al-Kawlak compound and one nearby—and killed a total of 43 people, making it the single deadliest air raid of the 11-day war.

Israel said the target was a Hamas tunnel underneath the street, part of what it called a roughly 350-kilometer-long underground network. The tunnels served offensive and defensive purposes, military officials said, accusing Hamas of using civilians as human shields.

Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, a military spokesman, said during a wartime briefing that the military target in Rimal collapsed, causing nearby houses and their supporting structures to collapse as well. “That caused a large amount of civilian casualties, which were not the aim,” he said.

He said the army was reviewing the incident and “adjusting the analysis and the ordnance used in the future” to prevent similar events from occurring again. “It’s not a totally mathematic exercise in choosing the ordnance,” he said.

He said Israel carried out dozens of airstrikes in areas just as densely populated, with far fewer casualties.

Defense Minister Benny Gantz told foreign journalists this week that Israel does everything it can to avoid civilian casualties, but Gaza’s crowded urban landscape makes it virtually impossible to avoid them altogether.

“Hamas is aiming to hit civilians by purpose and we are trying our best for that not to happen,” he said.

The fighting began May 10 after Hamas fired rockets toward Jerusalem in support of Palestinian protests against Israel’s heavy-handed policing of the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, a site sacred to Jews and Muslims, and the threatened eviction of dozens of Palestinian families by Jewish settlers. In all, Hamas fired more than 4,000 rockets toward Israel during the war, while Israel said it struck hundreds of targets linked to militants in Gaza.

At Gaza City’s main police compound, Capt. Mohammed Meqdad picked through pieces of bomb fragments in a cardboard box labeled “alWahda Street.”

Two had serial numbers identifying them as fitted with Joint Direct Attack Munition kits manufactured

by Boeing Co. at its factory in St. Charles, Missouri, to make them so-called “smart bombs,” able to be guided to a target by GPS or lasers.

Boeing did not answer questions about the bombing, only saying in a statement: “In accordance with U.S. law, the US government authorizes and provides strict oversight for all defense exports.”

Meqdad said that based on the fragments, the bombs that brought down the al-Kawlak homes were likely GBU-31s, packed with 430 kilograms (945 pounds) of high explosives. The GBU-31 typically is used for large buildings, but also can destroy underground targets, said N.R. Jenzen-Jones, the director of Armament Research Services, a specialist arms investigations firm.

The bombs carry a powerful blast, meaning surveillance, intelligencegathering, pre-planning and the correct choice and explosive punch of the weapon should be carefully considered before an attack, he said.

“The intrinsic wide-area effects of large explosive munitions mean they must be used judiciously in the urban environment,” he said.

The Israeli military did not respond when asked what bombs were used in the al-Wahda Street strikes.

Earlier this year, the International Criminal Court began investigating Israel and Hamas for possible war crimes going back to the previous 2014 war. This includes random Hamas rocket fire toward Israeli communities—widely seen as a violation of the rules of war—and some of Israel’s deadliest practices, such as the toppling of high-rises that killed entire families in pursuit of militants.

Two Gaza rights groups—alMezan and the Palestinian Center for Human Rights—have been documenting Israel’s strikes and incursions for years. This time, they again interviewed survivors, including the al-Kawlaks, visited hospitals, took photos and collected death certificates, in preparation for possible new submissions to the ICC. Samir Zakout of al-Mezan and Mohammed al-Alami of PCHR said they believe the al-Wahda Street bombings—along with other deadly airstrikes—violated the laws of war, arguing the value of any possible military target was dwarfed by significant harm to civilians.

Zakout accused Israel of intentionally using excessive firepower to sow fear, saying it was “one of the direct goals of the war.” The Israeli military does not recognize the ICC, but says its airstrikes are cleared by lawyers to make sure they comply with international standards. During the fighting the military released video of what it said were air force teams calling off strikes because they spotted children in the vicinity. In many cases, it ordered occupants to evacuate buildings before bombing them.

International law professor Paola Gaeta said that “certainly we are witnessing something which is wrong,” referring to civilian deaths, but there is a high threshold for proving a war crime. This includes proving disproportionate use of force and intentional targeting of civilians, said Gaeta, who teaches at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva. If Israel says it made a reasonable mistake in calculating the amount of explosives in the al-Wahda Street strike, this could serve as a defense, she said.

In all, 254 people were killed in Gaza in this war, including 67 children and 39 women. according to the Gaza health ministry. Hamas has acknowledged the deaths of 80 militants. Eleven civilians, including two children, were killed in Israel, along with one soldier.

Awni al-Kawlak keeps 22 death certificates in a briefcase, along with the deeds for the two destroyed homes. A third family house was damaged and awaits demolition. The family business, a generator repair shop, was also destroyed. Two apartment buildings, including Awni’s home, remain intact.

Sitting in a courtyard behind the rubble, the 49-year-old shrugged when told of Israel’s apparent acknowledgement of error. “What will I do with this information?” he said.

“I lost my livelihood and I lost my brothers and their children.”

The fear that justice will never come makes it harder for the family to deal with loss, he said. He worries that Gaza and its problems, including a suffocating blockade enforced

by Israel and Egypt since 2007 to contain Hamas, will soon sink back into oblivion.

“We know that the world is now empathetic, but after a while it will forget our problem,” he said. “Even when they remember us again, they will remember us as numbers.”

A12 Thursday, June 3, 2021

Storm Dante lashes South, Palace assures relief funds

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By Rene Acosta @reneacostaBM & Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla

EAVY rains brought by Storm Dante triggered flooding and landslides, and stranded thousands of passengers and cargo in various ports in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao, disaster officials said on Wednesday, as Malacañang Palace said some P1.1 billion worth of standby fund could be used to help those affected by Dante (international name: Choi-wan).

In a statement on Wednesday, Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said the fund will be used by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) for its disaster response.

The National Disaster Risk R e duc t ion a nd M a n a ge me nt Counci l (NDR R MC) repor ted three fatalities in Davao Oriental, Davao del Sur and South

Cotabato while two others were injured and one missing.

The Philippine Coast Guard also reported that a vessel, LCT Jaqueline Star, was abandoned by its crewmen before it sank near the shoreline of Albuera, Leyte due to the storm.

The Jaqueline Star was owned

by Roble Shipping Line and skippered by Capt. Alexander Zamora.

It was carrying sand and gravel, and was on its way to the next port of Higatangan, Biliran.

Coast Guard spokesman Armand Balilo said PCG personnel are working to prevent a possible oil spill while a boom was thrown around the waters where the vessel sank.

Dante brought heavy rain in various parts of Eastern Visayas and Mindanao before moving toward the Bicol region, where it made a second landfall in Cataingan, Masbate at 2 a.m. on Wednesday.

Amid and even before the storm touched land, officials implemented preemptive evacuation in the provinces of Sorsogon, Bohol and Southern Leyte, with 96 families moved to safer areas.

The NDRRMC said Dante triggered incidents of flooding and landslides in the provinces of Cebu, Leyte, Cotabato, South Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao, Agusan del Norte and the Davao provinces.

Some key highways and bridges in the affected provinces were closed to traffic due to flooding while some areas experienced power outages.

On Tuesday, Northern Samar, Eastern Samar, Southern Leyte, Surigao del Sur and Tacloban City

suspended work in government offices and classes in schools due to Dante.

As of Wednesday, the NDRRMC reported that 566 families or 2,642 persons were affected by the storm in 18 barangays in Regions 11 and 12.

Balilo said the Coast Guard monitored a total of 3,007 individuals, 73 vessels and 792 cargo that were stranded in ports in Eastern Visayas, Central Visayas, Southern Tagalog, Northeastern Mindanao and Bicol region amid the storm.

DSWD fund

Meanwhile, Roque said P113 million of the P1.1-billion standby fund was used for the procurement of 222,383 food packs.

When the country was hit by its first typhoon this year (Auring, international name: Dujuan), DSWD still had P1.2 billion worth of relief and financial aid.

Roque said the government is monitoring the impact of Dante.

“The safety of everyone remains our main concern. Let us therefore remain alert and vigilant, and cooperate with authorities while observing the minimum public health standards against Cov id-19 dur ing this stor m,” Roque said.

NEW PRIVATE PENSION, RETIREMENT SYSTEM BILL SENT TO SENATE

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz

T

@joveemarie

HE House of Representatives has endorsed for Senate approval the proposed Capital Market Development Act, which seeks to establish a new private retirement and pension system.

Voting, 242 affirmative, 6 negative and 2 abstentions, lawmakers approved late Tuesday the House Bill 9343 to stimulate the development of the capital market so it can contribute significantly to the country’s economic growth.

The bill creates a Capital Market Development Council composed of institutional members from the public and private sectors whose main function is to promote and develop the Philippine capital market by formulating a five-year capital market development plan and recommending policies and reforms to stimulate investments. It will also promote investor confidence and financial literacy and streamline critical regulatory procedures.

It also establishes a mandatory, permanent, fully funded, and portable Employee Pension and Retirement Income (“EPRI”) Account for each employee at the start of employment, to which said employee (“EPRI own-

er”) and his employer is obliged to contribute in an amount that is fair, equitable, affordable, adequate and sustainable.

Under the bill, employers will pay 4 percent of worker salary and the worker, 1 percent of their salary to the pension plan. Micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) will only pay 2 percent of worker salary, while very small businesses with fewer than three workers will be exempt.

The bill mandates compulsory coverage for all employees and employers under the EPRI, except employees of the national government and its political subdivisions including governmentowned and -controlled corporations, domestic workers, self-employed, professionals, employees of a microenterprise with less than 3 years in employ, and those specifically excluded under the implementing rules.

Employees who are not covered may opt for voluntary coverage, in which case the EPRI contributions shall be borne and paid solely by them.

The bill also grants employees a one-time option to stay within the coverage of Republic Act No. 7641 or under an existing retirement pension plan within one year from the effectivity of this Act. Continued on A4

Frontliners serving at the One-Stop Shop for Management of Returning Overseas Filipinos get their first jab of the Covid-19 vaccine at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 4 on Wednesday, June 2, 2021. A total of 1,500 doses of Sinovac were used during the launch. NONIE REYES

UNDP returned ₧284M to DICT from Wi-Fi project, House told

By Cai U. Ordinario

T

@caiordinario

HE United Nations Development Prog ra mme ( U N DP) h a s re t u r ne d P283.99 million to the national government due to the termination of the Free Wi-Fi Internet Access in Public Places Project of the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT).

T his, as of f icia ls c lar if ied that the foreign contractor that UNDP got to carry out the project for DICT was not the listed importer of the telecommunications equipment that was earlier entangled in allegations of technical smuggling. The foreign contractor, Speedcast, told lawmakers they have no license to import equipment to the Philippines and they relied solely on their subcontractor, Philippine

Communications Satellite Corporation (Philcomsat) in strict accordance with their subcontractor agreement.

The amount of P283.99 million that was returned, UNDP said in a separate public statement submitted to the House of Representatives (HOR), has been returned to DICT, through the Bureau of the Treasury account.

This followed the termination of the contract mutually agreed with Speedcast on May 10, 2021, relating to Phase 2.

In an e-mail to BusinessMirror, UNDP said the amount is the full figure of the Phase 2 of the project. The amount for Phase 1 of the project will also be returned but is still “in the process of accounting.”

“The phase 1 contract is in the process of being terminated at the request of DICT. Once termination is concluded and accounts of

pending claims are done, we have agreed that we will return the funds to DICT,” UNDP said in an e-mail response to this newspaper.

UNDP also said that while they agreed to return the funds, DICT must ensure that the 882 free Wi-Fi sites that were installed and activated by the project should continue providing services to the 350,000 citizens these sites serve in remote areas nationwide.

These are in low-income communities of provinces such as Isabela, Cagayan, Benguet, Palawan, Davao del Sur, Lanao del Sur and Sorsogon.

Second hearing

In a statement, the House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability chaired by DIWA Party-list Rep. Michael Edgar Aglipay convened on Tuesday for the second hearing on House Resolution 1751.

Continued on A4

Companies BusinessMirror

Editor: Jennifer A. Ng

Thursday, June 3, 2021

B1

San Miguel unit to spend ₧30B for new feed mills

By VG Cabuag

S

@villygc

an Miguel Foods Inc., the food unit of conglomerate San Miguel Corp. (SMC), will spend an additional P30 billion in capital expenditures this year to expand its existing feed mills and build 7 new ones.

Ramon S. Ang, San Miguel Food and Beverage Inc. (SMFB) president and CEO, said the amount will be spent to expand its feed mill in Echague in Isabela City from its current capacity of 500,000 tons per year.

Ang said the company is also expanding its facilities in San Ildefonso in Bulacan, Sta. Cruz in Davao and Mandaue in Cebu.

“And we are also in the process of building 7 new feed mills. And these are greenfield projects of which each of this project cost about I think $50 million,” Ang said during SMFB’s stockholders’ meeting. He did not elaborate on the location of the new feed mills.

San Miguel Foods had a net in-

come of P3.39 billion in the first quarter, more than double from the same period last year, the company said.

First quarter consolidated revenues reached P36.18 billion, up 9 percent from the same period in 2020. Growth was driven by demand and more stable pricing across all business segments.

It said its protein segment, which posted an 11-percent year-on-year growth, continues to recover given improved market demand-supply dynamics.

The company said it was able to adapt to changes by launching its community resellers program, now totaling close to 11,000 active resellers, to improve availability and

consumer access to its poultry and other products.

Its prepared and packaged food segment, meanwhile, continues to remain a bright spot for the business, growing 6 percent as consumers continue to prefer at-home dining, it said.

“As we continue to navigate the pandemic, we remain optimistic about the future and stay focused on driving investments in products and innovate on systems that will better address the needs of Filipinos. We will work hard with greater efficiency and flexibility in order for our country to emerge from this pandemic stronger and more formidable,” Ang said.

Meanwhile, SMFB’s income in the first quarter rose 66 percent to P9.68 billion from last year’s P5.82 billion as the company implemented programs to adapt to changing market conditions.

Consolidated sales reached P76.36 billion, up 11 percent from last year’s P69.01 billion.

SMFB, through San Miguel Foods Inc., is the largest producer of animal feeds and operates a nationwide manufacturing network which includes 37 feed mills across Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

The Food Division recently built six new feed mills of which two facilities are in Luzon, in Bataan and San Ildefonso, and two in Davao and Misamis Oriental.

For the Animal Nutrition and Health segment, compound feeds are manufactured at 14 company-owned feed mills, 7 of which are located in Luzon, 3 in Visayas and 4 in Mindanao, plus 23 third party-owned and operated feed plants located throughout the Philippines.

Most of these plants are capable of producing pelleted and crumble format feeds and two plants have extrusion capabilities to produce aquatic floating feeds.

The feeds business also maintains tolling arrangements for 8 rendering facilities that convert animal by-products used as raw materials into some feed types.

The Animal Health and Nutrition segment had built 5 new feed mills with an estimated capacity of approximately 1,500 thousand metric tons for the period 2018 to 2020, one of which is equipped with capability to produce aquatic floating feeds.

These increased the Food Division’s capacity for higher margin products and help supply the VisayasMindanao region.

PHL installed RE capacity rose in Q1

By Lenie Lectura @llectura

T

he country’s total renewable energy (RE) installed capacity in the first quarter rose to 5,695.82 megawatts (MW) from 4,971.72MW in the same period a year ago.

Of the total, 5,519.37 MW were for grid use while 176.46MW were for own use.

Based on DOE data posted on its website, a total of 927 RE projects

were recorded. Of which, 407 are hydro, 307 solar, 87 biomass, 86 wind, 32 geothermal and 8 ocean projects.

In terms of capacity, the capacity of geothermal reached 1,928.07MW; hydro, 1,440.02MW; s ol a r, 10 9 5. 51 M W; w i nd , 4 4 2. 91 M W; a nd biom a s s, 789.32MW. The Department of Energ y (DOE) is targeting a 37.3-percent RE share in the power mix by 2030 and 55.8 percent by 2040.

To meet this target, the renewable portfolio standards (RPS) program of the government must go up to 2.5 percent from 1 percent.

The RPS program requires distribution utilities to tap eligible RE facilities for a portion of their supply needs. It is among the measures under the Renewable Energy Act of 2008 to raise RE production and meet renewables targets.

AC Energy President Eric Francia had urged the government to raise the RPS target in order to

meet the target numbers.

“My hope is that over time, the government will increase that. At the current level of RPS which is at 1 percent annual increment, we will not get to the 35 percent share of RE output by 2030. We are currently at 21 percent,” he said.

“If we are serious to be at 35 percent, we agree with NREB [National Renewable Energy Board] that the 1 percent increment must go up to 2.5 percent by 2023 or 2024.”

RCI inching ‘Investment scams sprouting up in Mindanao’ closer toward recovery—exec

By Manuel T. Cayon Mindanao Bureau Chief

T

he Covid-19 pandemic has shuttered businesses at an unprecedented pace and scale, but a culture of innovation and resilience has allowed Roxas and Company Inc. (RCI) to weather the health crisis and inch closer toward recovery.

“Covid-19 is and continues to be a human tragedy. It tested our resilience and brought out the creativity across teams,” said Edgar P. Arcos, RCI Chief Financial Officer (CFO).

To say that 2020 was a difficult year would be an understatement, Arcos said, as revenues declined by 36 percent year-on-year on the back of the pandemic and the Taal Volcano eruption that impacted on the operations on its hotels and real estate units.

But the first order of the day was to protect RCI’s people and partners, he said.

“Our first learning was how to prioritize people, customers, suppliers and business partners, and shareholders in that order. Moving resources to address the urgent requirements of our employees ensured that we secured their health and wellness,” Arcos said.

RCI ‘s full year loss in 2020 stood at P1.15 billion primarily due to the lockdowns that led to the temporary closure of Anya Resort Tagaytay and Go Hotels in Manila as well as the Roxas Sigma Agriventures Inc. (RSAI) coconut processing plant in Tupi, South Cotabato and its equity stake in RHI.

D

avao City—At least 6 more investment scams have surfaced in Mindanao, prompting the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to warn the public anew to either refrain from or exercise caution in dealing with individuals or organizations soliciting money for “get rich quick” schemes.

The SEC on Monday said the new investment scams came from the following: G-Harvest Inc/Great Harvest Inc. (GHI); Massdrop Marketing and Franchising OPC or “Massdrop Marketing”; Francis Leo Marcos Family Club Inc.; Llamadista Online Sabong Capital /Llamadista /Llamadista. com; Project 1.8 Financial Progam (Project 1.8); and Premium Business.

The SEC said these companies have been soliciting investments from the public without the necessary licenses. It said the G-Harvest Inc./Great Harvest Inc. (GHI) and the Massdrop Marketing are operating in the Davao Region, Soccsksargen and Maguindanao Province.

GHI is operated by a Vencint O. Canal, who claims to be its chief executive officer, and a certain Shunan Mae Cemene, the company’s corporate secretary. The company promises GHI partners a “return on investment (ROI)” equivalent to 23 percent to 27 percent for a minimum investment of P10,000 per slot for a period of 6 months.

Massdrop Marketing is headed by an Edgar Joseph Tan “EJ TAN”, who

claims to be its president, the SEC said. The group ”entices the public to invest online or through the internet to become a member thereof with a minimum investment of P1,000 with a guaranteed monthly return of 20 percent for 90 days plus a return of investment on the third month or a total of 160 percent income in just three months”, the SEC added.

The SEC said the Francis Leo Marcos Family Club Inc. “is falsely claiming to be registered as a corporation with the SEC and is soliciting donations from the public without any prior registration, license and/or accreditation from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD)”. It named 8 other persons as helping Marcos “plead donations from the public, mostly from overseas Filipino workers, for his supposed humanitarian activities”.

The SEC said the company was not registered with the agency, “hence it cannot act or operate as a corporation. It said the lack of registration, license and/or accreditation from both the commission and the DSWD “make the company dubious and susceptible to financial abuse and misuse”. The Llamadista group also promises a 5-percent payout for 42 days or a 210-percent ROI for a minimum investment of P1,000. This is operated by a Ferdinand Salantes.

Another group, the Project 1.8 Financial Program, purportedly “aims to help the public, particularly government employees, earn additional income and achieve debt clearance.

This would be accomplished allegedly

through the investor’s registration/ membership with UNO, purchase of a package of UNO products, and referral/recruitment of new members”.

“Investors are promised a guaranteed amount of P450,000 on their fifth month of participation upon meeting some conditions set by the group. This is founded and headed by a Kristofer Paul F. Pasag, aka Kyle Falcon and a Maria Delmar A. Fernandez, aka Thalia Fernandez, who claims to be a business partner of Unlimited Network of Opportunities International Corp. (UNO).

Premium Business, known in social media as Premium Biz Ph, is offering its program for just a one-time payment—from P1,000 for associate package to as much as P50,000 for the executive package where a member-investor is only required to do 5 captcha typing job per day and consequently be entitled to a 40-percent income per month. This company is headed by a Ronald de Leon.

“We are reminding the public to exercise caution when dealing with individuals or groups soliciting investments for and on their behalf,” the SEC said. It added that it cannot guarantee the recovery of their money already placed on these schemes.

“Those who act as salesmen, brokers, dealers or agents in selling, convincing or recruiting people to invest in illegal schemes may be prosecuted and held criminally liable, and penalized with a maximum fine of P5 million or a penalty of 21 years of imprisonment or both,” the SEC said.

Survey: Employers wary of mandating vaccination

P

hilippine employers are not keen on making Covid-19 vaccination mandatory for their workforce due to concerns about safety and labor rights, a survey by a professional services firm Mercer revealed.

Mercer said in a statement on Wednesday that only 2 percent of the respondents are considering requiring Covid-19 inoculation while 68 percent said they are not even thinking about it.

“When asked why they would not mandate, the top two reasons were employee concerns about vaccine safety (68 percent) and compliance with employment labor and human rights legislation (54 percent),” the firm said. Meanwhile, almost half of the company respondents flagged concerns about potential liability if a vaccinated employee has “bad reaction” from the doses Other reasons for not mandating the vaccine, according to the survey, are potential increase in employee turnover, inconsistent approach with other vaccines and administrative challenges.

Only 2 percent of the respondents have decided to give out incentives to encourage employees to get vac-

cinated. These rewards are in the form of cash, gift card or spending account contribution.

Nearly half said they will not provide financial incentive at all while 41 percent are still mulling over if they will do so. Still, about one-fourth of the companies said they will provide additional time off for employees to get vaccinated and around 15 percent said they will grant additional sick leave in case employees need to recuperate from the side effects of the vaccine.

“Given that the major issues surrounding the vaccination rollout are vaccine safety and human rights legislation, it’s not surprising that most respondents opted not to offer any form of incentive to respect their employees’ personal decision,” Mercer Philippines CEO Maria Theresa E. Alday said. “The decision to receive the vaccine ultimately boils down to trust. And employers play a critical role in educating and sharing accurate information with employees, including facts about the benefits of the vaccines, company policies and insurance coverage. Communication will be vital in helping employees decide whether or not to get the shot.” Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

B2

Thursday, June 3, 2021

Companies BusinessMirror

PSE: Online stock market accounts up 20% in 2020

By VG Cabuag

O

@villygc

nline stock market accounts continued to outpace its tradit ion a l cou nter pa r t for the third consecutive year in 2020, according to data from the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), as the number of individual investors trading surged by almost half last year.

PSE said its data showed online stock market accounts rose almost 20 percent last year to 936,200 from the previous 782,118 and cornered 67 percent of total accounts.

Non-online accounts rose 3 percent to 460,553 from the previous year’s 445,920.

In total, stock market accounts grew by 14 percent to 1.39 million from 1.22 million in 2019.

“The preference for opening online accounts continues to rise

since technology has made investing more accessible to investors.

At the PSE, we also continue to enhance and develop online services that will benefit the investing public,” PSE President and CEO Ramon S. Monzon said.

Retail investors held most of the accounts at 1.36 million or 98 percent of total stock market accounts while institutional investors owned 2 percent or 29,898 accounts.

Local investors made up for 1.37 million or more than 98 percent of total stock market accounts compared with 21,233 accounts of foreign investors.

“We noted that there was a 35.6-percent increase in the number of active accounts last year. The pandemic prompted retail investors to actively participate in the stock market,” Monzon said.

In 2020, average daily number of trades rose by 33 percent while

retail participation surged by 48 percent year-on-year.

Based on its latest stock market investor profile report on retail investors, the PSA noted that the difference in the number of accounts owned by male and female investors remain at less than 1 percent. Male traders comprise close to 51 percent of stock market accounts while female traders accounted for 49 percent.

In terms of age, investors in the 30 to 44 age group held 45 percent of stock market accounts, followed by investors aged 18 to 29 at 22 percent, then 45 to 59 and 60 years old and above at 20 percent and 12 percent, respectively.

Retail investors earning less than P500,000 annually made up 61 percent of stock market account holders while 21 percent of retail accounts were owned by those with an annual income of P500,000 to P1 million. Investors

whose annual income is above P1 million comprised 17 percent of retail investors.

Domest ic i nvestors h ad a 98-percent share of stock market accounts while investors based overseas held the remaining.

More than three quarters of domestic investors were based in Metro Manila, followed by Luzon at 13 percent then Visayas at 5 percent and Mindanao at 3 percent. The top five nationalities of foreign investors were Chinese, Japanese, American, British and Korean, the PSE said.

“The REIT [real estate investment trust] listings we’ve had attracted a good number of retail investors, particularly local small investors who use PSE EASy for their initial public offering subscriptions. We expect the upcoming IPOs and REIT listings to continue to support the growth in retail investors,” Monzon said.

mutual funds

June 2, 2021 NAV One Year Three Year Five Year

per share

Return*

Y-T-D Return

Stock Funds ALFM Growth Fund, Inc. -a

213.73

9.4%

-5.96%

-3.98%

-5.94%

ATRAM Alpha Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a

1.2704

30.22%

-6.14%

0.25%

-3.24%

ATRAM Philippine Equity Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 2.9121

11.32%

-10.77%

-6.41%

-7.05%

-5.92% n.a.

-6.72%

First Metro Consumer Fund on MSCI Phils. IMI, Inc. -a 0.6965 6.03%

-5.93% n.a.

-6.08%

First Metro Save and Learn Equity Fund,Inc. -a

10.64%

-4.22%

-2.74%

-5.32%

First Metro Save and Learn Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a,4 0.6721

1.83%

-7.87%

-7.6%

MBG Equity Investment Fund, Inc. -a

94.41

26.66%

-5.72% n.a.

-7.39%

PAMI Equity Index Fund, Inc. -a

43.6732

11.67%

-4.15%

-2.83%

-6.78%

Philam Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a

459.72

9.55%

-4.13%

-3.17%

-5.98%

Philequity Alpha One Fund, Inc. -a,d,5

1.033

19.08% n.a. n.a.

-5.86%

Climbs Share Capital Equity Investment Fund Corp. -a 0.7499 13.28% 4.6786

Philequity Dividend Yield Fund, Inc. -a

1.113

11.3%

-3.81%

-2.24%

-4.73%

Philequity Fund, Inc. -a

32.7336

11.67%

-3.69%

-1.78%

-5.86%

Philequity MSCI Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a

0.8518

10.44% n.a. n.a.

Philequity PSE Index Fund Inc. -a

4.475

Philippine Stock Index Fund Corp. -a

748.93

12.4%

Soldivo Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a

0.6746

10.81%

Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Equity Fund, Inc. -a 3.3923

8.9%

-6.6%

-3.45%

-2.19%

-6.58%

-8.07%

-5.57%

-6.16%

-5.93%

-3.6%

-6.39%

Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Stock Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.8555 11.86%

-3.81%

-2.34%

-6.78%

United Fund, Inc. -a

-3.88%

-1.21%

-5.39%

-3.24%

-1.58%

10.38%

-3.55%

-6.7%

-2.07%

3.1401

12.3%

-11.54%

Exchange Traded Fund First Metro Phil. Equity Exchange Traded Fund, Inc. -a,c 100.5088

12.41%

-6.55%

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ATRAM AsiaPlus Equity Fund, Inc. -b

$1.2711

41.26%

5.46%

9.03%

5.67%

Sun Life Prosperity World Voyager Fund, Inc. -a $1.7628

33.84%

11.18%

11.61%

5.38%

-1.46%

Balanced Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ATRAM Dynamic Allocation Fund, Inc. -a

1.6443

7.99%

-0.82%

-1.62%

ATRAM Philippine Balanced Fund, Inc. -a

2.1801

7.85%

-1.6%

-0.89%

-4.61%

First Metro Save and Learn Balanced Fund Inc. -a 2.5346

5.98%

-0.65%

-1.06%

-3.52%

First Metro Save and Learn F.O.C.C.U.S. Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a,1 0.1898

2.71% n.a. n.a.

NCM Mutual Fund of the Phils., Inc. -a

1.9168

5.31%

1.25%

0.39%

-2.4%

PAMI Horizon Fund, Inc. -a

3.603

5.34%

0.03%

-0.79%

-4.89%

Philam Fund, Inc. -a

16.1481

5.76%

0.14%

-0.79%

-4.66%

Solidaritas Fund, Inc. -a

2.0157

6.64%

-0.97%

-0.61%

-3.74%

Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 3.4257 5.79%

-2.23%

-1.82%

-4.13%

Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2028, Inc. -a,d 0.9664

4.36% n.a. n.a.

-5.5%

Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2038, Inc. -a,d 0.8798

6.54% n.a. n.a.

-7.31%

Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2048, Inc. -a,d 0.8646

7.81% n.a. n.a.

Sun Life Prosperity Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a

0.8518

6.3%

-3.19%

-2.24%

-7.34% -4.04%

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Cocolife Dollar Fund Builder, Inc. -a $0.03799

-0.81%

2.77%

1.29%

PAMI Asia Balanced Fund, Inc. -b

22.66%

3.55%

5.64%

0%

Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Advantage Fund, Inc. -a $4.6759 25.16%

8.63%

8.45%

3.61%

Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Wellspring Fund, Inc. -a,3 $1.2079 13.17%

4.89%

4.73%

0.48%

0.07%

$1.1502

-2.89%

Bond Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a

371.33

2%

3.11%

2.48%

ATRAM Corporate Bond Fund, Inc. -a

1.9157

-1.06%

0.96%

0.17%

0.81%

Cocolife Fixed Income Fund, Inc. -a

3.2252

1.36%

3.82%

4.36%

0.33%

Ekklesia Mutual Fund Inc. -a

2.2543

-1.21%

2.14%

1.42%

-1.82%

First Metro Save and Learn Fixed Income Fund,Inc. -a 2.4341 0.07%

3.16%

1.71%

-0.78%

-4.43%

www.businessmirror.com.ph

PSE STOCK QUOTATIONS

June 2, 2021

Net Foreign Bid Ask Open High Low Close Volume Value Trade (Peso) Stocks Buy (Sell) FINANCIALs

ASIA UNITED BDO UNIBANK BANK PH ISLANDS CHINABANK EAST WEST BANK METROBANK PB BANK PHIL NATL BANK PSBANK PHILTRUST RCBC SECURITY BANK UNION BANK COL FINANCIAL FERRONOUX HLDG NTL REINSURANCE PHIL STOCK EXCH

43.2 106.2 85.5 24.1 9.66 48.55 9.9 22.95 55 98.5 17.3 123.6 75 4.02 2.99 0.67 191.3

44.65 106.5 85.7 24.4 9.77 48.6 9.94 23 55.55 108 17.36 124 75.15 4.04 3.14 0.7 195

44.65 105 84 24.4 9.55 48.45 9.94 22.35 55.55 101 17.3 121.6 75 4.04 3.14 0.67 183.5

44.65 107.3 85.95 24.4 9.77 48.9 9.96 23.05 55.55 101 17.4 125.5 75.15 4.04 3.14 0.7 199.9

44.65 104.8 83.95 24.1 9.55 48.3 9.9 22.35 54.75 101 17.3 121.6 74.8 4.02 3.14 0.67 180.7

44.65 106.5 85.7 24.4 9.66 48.55 9.94 22.95 55.55 101 17.3 124 75.15 4.02 3.14 0.7 195

400 17,860 2,754,390 293,081,923 3,486,490 298,480,191.50 47,100 1,148,790 242,000 2,325,036 4,211,100 204,567,890 96,300 954,460 1,943,200 44,391,150 770 42,481 100 10,100 12,500 216,260 1,009,470 125,262,773 58,210 4,366,562 96,000 386,910 23,000 72,220 3,000 2,040 17,380 3,280,440

13,395 56,310,374 -19,061,760 -673,440 59,008 45,647,410 -10,293,955 -6,920 -6,470,216 -2,091,729 -18,840 2,185,550

INDUSTRIAL AC ENERGY 7.42 7.44 7.35 7.55 7.34 7.42 37,745,100 281,796,744 ALSONS CONS 1.33 1.34 1.34 1.35 1.32 1.34 534,000 714,110 23.35 23.4 22.85 23.55 22.85 23.4 8,044,300 188,114,420 ABOITIZ POWER 0.82 0.83 0.79 0.86 0.79 0.82 82,808,000 68,881,010 BASIC ENERGY FIRST GEN 30.45 30.5 29.95 30.55 29.85 30.5 1,372,100 41,636,690 FIRST PHIL HLDG 68.3 69 69.8 69.8 68.15 68.3 53,830 3,677,388.50 282 285 280 285 278.2 285 165,860 46,887,566 MERALCO 14.62 14.64 14.2 14.64 14.2 14.64 956,900 13,894,612 MANILA WATER PETRON 3.17 3.18 3.11 3.18 3.11 3.18 959,000 3,028,170 4.02 4.15 4.01 4.15 4.01 4.15 102,000 416,400 PETROENERGY 12.78 13.08 13.06 13.18 12.62 13.08 178,100 2,309,070 PHX PETROLEUM PILIPINAS SHELL 20.65 21 20.85 20.85 20.5 20.65 181,000 3,747,235 SPC POWER 11.4 11.48 11.24 11.6 11.18 11.48 655,000 7,433,652 13.52 15.02 15.02 15.02 15.02 15.02 200 3,004 VIVANT 6.35 6.4 6.43 6.44 6.29 6.4 5,288,000 33,729,972 AGRINURTURE AXELUM 3.01 3.02 2.94 3.02 2.94 3.02 351,000 1,040,940 CNTRL AZUCARERA 13.12 13.44 13.44 13.44 13.44 13.44 300 4,032 23.65 23.7 23.45 23.9 23.3 23.65 1,006,100 23,796,735 CENTURY FOOD DEL MONTE 14.24 14.38 14.48 14.5 14.02 14.24 473,800 6,761,784 DNL INDUS 7.75 7.76 7.4 7.75 7.4 7.75 30,594,700 232,674,609 9.7 9.79 9.65 9.79 9.57 9.79 320,000 3,116,878 EMPERADOR 69.5 69.85 68.5 70 68 69.5 47,110 3,276,079.50 SMC FOODANDBEV ALLIANCE SELECT 0.61 0.64 0.61 0.63 0.61 0.63 432,000 269,760 FRUITAS HLDG 1.44 1.46 1.45 1.47 1.43 1.46 20,932,000 30,341,000 72.4 72.95 70.9 73.5 70 72.95 46,480 3,358,009.50 GINEBRA JOLLIBEE 194.7 195 188.5 198 188.5 194.7 907,450 177,026,262 LIBERTY FLOUR 28.85 28.9 33.5 33.5 28.5 28.85 47,800 1,505,810 7.25 7.65 7.65 7.65 7.2 7.64 600 4,541 MACAY HLDG MAXS GROUP 6.57 6.58 6.4 6.59 6.4 6.57 327,700 2,136,175 MG HLDG 0.255 0.265 0.255 0.265 0.255 0.265 2,270,000 583,650 MONDE NISSIN 13.46 13.48 13.48 13.5 13.46 13.48 68,682,500 925,889,904 7.96 7.98 7.88 8.1 7.88 7.98 342,800 2,730,422 SHAKEYS PIZZA 1.04 1.06 1.03 1.09 1.03 1.04 2,292,000 2,441,280 ROXAS AND CO RFM CORP 4.56 4.64 4.6 4.6 4.5 4.5 118,000 538,100 1.43 1.49 1.49 1.49 1.49 1.49 5,000 7,450 ROXAS HLDG SWIFT FOODS 0.129 0.131 0.13 0.131 0.128 0.129 8,910,000 1,145,350 UNIV ROBINA 140.7 142 137 143.8 137 142 1,023,850 145,720,561 VITARICH 0.87 0.89 0.87 0.89 0.85 0.89 2,924,000 2,558,340 54 56.7 56.95 56.95 53.05 53.05 50 2,778.50 CONCRETE A CONCRETE B 60 62.9 60 60 60 60 690 41,400 CEMEX HLDG 1.28 1.29 1.23 1.28 1.23 1.28 3,350,000 4,224,730 DAVINCI CAPITAL 2.95 2.96 2.96 2.99 2.9 2.95 1,252,000 3,659,530 13.2 13.3 12.98 13.6 12.98 13.3 61,700 815,274 EAGLE CEMENT EEI CORP 7.4 7.42 7.19 7.4 7.19 7.4 72,000 527,688 HOLCIM 6.41 6.42 6.4 6.44 6.4 6.41 659,700 4,229,543 6.44 6.45 6.35 6.47 6.35 6.45 2,199,300 14,170,977 MEGAWIDE 12.4 12.44 12.4 12.4 12.34 12.4 73,600 911,698 PHINMA TKC METALS 1.07 1.12 1.06 1.12 1.06 1.12 98,000 104,140 VULCAN INDL 2.08 2.09 2.08 2.12 2.08 2.08 3,508,000 7,343,850 1.73 1.74 1.75 1.75 1.73 1.73 770,000 1,339,020 CROWN ASIA EUROMED 1.88 1.92 1.92 1.92 1.92 1.92 15,000 28,800 LMG CORP 4.25 4.79 4.25 4.25 4.25 4.25 225,000 956,250 5.1 5.19 5.19 5.19 5.19 5.19 100 519 MABUHAY VINYL PRYCE CORP 5.5 5.52 5.5 5.52 5.5 5.5 402,000 2,211,362 CONCEPCION 21 21.5 21.45 21.5 21.45 21.5 6,000 128,720 GREENERGY 3.83 3.89 3.93 3.93 3.83 3.83 6,342,000 24,565,400 9.13 9.14 9 9.23 8.98 9.13 2,127,700 19,337,730 INTEGRATED MICR 1.07 1.08 1.06 1.09 1.06 1.09 449,000 483,630 IONICS PANASONIC 5.81 6.11 6.2 6.2 6.11 6.11 9,800 60,398 1.3 1.33 1.32 1.32 1.3 1.32 337,000 441,720 SFA SEMICON CIRTEK HLDG 5.73 5.74 5.69 5.75 5.69 5.73 1,160,400 6,631,921

-15,945,794 54,000 -84,758,300 757,860 1,046,145 -174,907 5,252,494 799,876 509,780 -8,300 234,538 -2,140,155.00 -1,086,520 -3,004 475,313 -2,072,045 149,330 -10,486,907 -703,292.00 728,884.50 -12,600 -43,690 -39,804.50 90,772,329 -19,116 -52,436,390 -131,305 1,440,720 0 7,860 79,784,704 3,000 -82,120 -35,170 536,018 65,400 287,828 -870,920 83,900 26,150 12,144 -1,209,380 9,193 2,069,760

HOLDING & FRIMS

ABACORE CAPITAL ASIABEST GROUP AYALA CORP ABOITIZ EQUITY ALLIANCE GLOBAL AYALA LAND LOG ANSCOR ANGLO PHIL HLDG ATN HLDG A COSCO CAPITAL DMCI HLDG FILINVEST DEV FORUM PACIFIC GT CAPITAL HOUSE OF INV JG SUMMIT LODESTAR LOPEZ HLDG LT GROUP MABUHAY HLDG METRO PAC INV PACIFICA HLDG PRIME MEDIA SOLID GROUP SM INVESTMENTS SAN MIGUEL CORP SOC RESOURCES TOP FRONTIER WELLEX INDUS ZEUS HLDG

1.03 7.2 810.5 39.5 10.68 3.1 6.79 0.83 0.7 5.07 5.71 8.2 0.255 610 3.56 59.45 0.85 3.18 13.8 0.455 4.01 3.56 2.8 1.15 991 118.7 0.72 128.7 0.25 0.206

1.04 7.38 811.5 39.7 10.74 3.14 6.8 0.84 0.71 5.1 5.74 8.22 0.28 615 3.75 59.9 0.86 3.28 14 0.48 4.04 3.61 2.83 1.19 1,000 120 0.73 130 0.265 0.212

1.02 7.2 780 39 10.32 3.07 6.8 0.81 0.7 5.02 5.69 8.02 0.255 585 3.77 57.35 0.85 3.15 14 0.475 3.95 3.6 2.74 1.2 965 116.5 0.72 130 0.265 0.214

1.04 7.38 810.5 40.1 10.76 3.17 6.8 0.85 0.7 5.14 5.78 8.22 0.28 615 3.77 60.5 0.87 3.3 14 0.48 4.04 3.61 2.83 1.2 1,000 120 0.73 131 0.265 0.214

1.01 7.2 780 38.95 10.32 3.07 6.78 0.8 0.7 5.02 5.68 8.02 0.255 585 3.56 57.35 0.84 3.15 13.78 0.475 3.95 3.58 2.74 1.13 965 116.1 0.7 130 0.244 0.205

1.03 7.38 810.5 39.7 10.7 3.14 6.78 0.84 0.7 5.07 5.71 8.2 0.28 615 3.56 59.9 0.85 3.18 13.8 0.48 4.04 3.61 2.83 1.13 1,000 120 0.73 130 0.265 0.212

5,579,000 300 359,380 809,300 8,381,200 1,197,000 66,900 5,311,000 37,000 2,259,700 6,575,000 9,300 380,000 413,700 7,000 2,297,690 710,000 38,000 1,787,800 20,000 26,789,000 7,000 528,000 121,000 464,020 267,290 129,000 10,910 740,000 1,050,000

5,705,660 2,178 288,363,915 32,194,290 88,989,186 3,750,780 454,842 4,411,760 25,900 11,434,767 37,662,180 76,297 100,650 248,669,015 25,970 137,591,044.50 604,400 122,600 24,805,678 9,550 107,770,850 25,170 1,477,190 139,140 458,378,140 31,700,623 93,810 1,418,330 193,800 216,470

PROPERTY ARTHALAND CORP 0.62 0.64 0.62 0.64 0.61 0.64 2,087,000 1,297,030 ANCHOR LAND 7.34 7.79 7.83 7.83 7.33 7.79 300 2,295 36.8 36.95 35.05 36.95 34.9 36.95 23,316,900 841,119,720 AYALA LAND 1.16 1.23 1.14 1.23 1.14 1.16 43,000 50,010 ARANETA PROP AREIT RT 36.55 36.6 36.5 36.7 36.35 36.6 292,300 10,684,635 BELLE CORP 1.38 1.41 1.43 1.44 1.38 1.38 1,578,000 2,209,590 0.97 0.98 0.95 1.04 0.93 0.98 205,823,000 196,043,770 A BROWN CITYLAND DEVT 0.9 0.91 0.92 0.92 0.9 0.9 433,000 392,090 CROWN EQUITIES 0.123 0.125 0.127 0.127 0.123 0.125 760,000 94,360 6.5 6.6 6.28 6.6 6.28 6.6 70,200 458,298 CEBU HLDG CEB LANDMASTERS 7.15 7.17 7.1 7.2 7.1 7.15 928,400 6,639,499 CENTURY PROP 0.4 0.405 0.4 0.405 0.395 0.405 6,780,000 2,721,950 CYBER BAY 0.315 0.32 0.315 0.335 0.315 0.32 2,730,000 864,650 12.28 12.36 12.1 12.42 12.06 12.28 1,167,100 14,340,332 DOUBLEDRAGON 1.93 1.94 1.92 1.94 1.91 1.94 15,697,000 30,203,090 DDMP RT DM WENCESLAO 6.82 6.85 6.88 6.88 6.82 6.85 2,978,500 20,316,416 EMPIRE EAST 0.275 0.28 0.265 0.285 0.265 0.28 210,000 58,400 0.172 0.174 0.178 0.182 0.174 0.174 12,970,000 2,305,540 EVER GOTESCO FILINVEST LAND 1.09 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.09 1.1 4,109,000 4,498,550 GLOBAL ESTATE 0.86 0.89 0.89 0.89 0.89 0.89 316,000 281,240 7.2 7.33 7.1 7.35 7.05 7.35 81,100 576,212 8990 HLDG 1.31 1.33 1.34 1.34 1.31 1.33 4,697,000 6,206,620 PHIL INFRADEV CITY AND LAND 1.75 1.77 1.72 1.79 1.7 1.75 967,000 1,689,460 MEGAWORLD 3.2 3.21 3.1 3.22 3.09 3.21 79,260,000 252,855,320 0.37 0.375 0.365 0.375 0.36 0.375 27,540,000 10,173,750 MRC ALLIED 0.55 0.56 0.57 0.57 0.55 0.56 5,829,000 3,263,120 PHIL ESTATES PRIMEX CORP 3.89 3.9 3.88 3.93 3.72 3.89 3,527,000 13,602,050 18 18.02 17.1 18.04 17.1 18.02 3,719,300 66,595,116 ROBINSONS LAND 0.243 0.249 0.241 0.25 0.241 0.25 1,240,000 300,730 PHIL REALTY ROCKWELL 1.49 1.5 1.5 1.5 1.5 1.5 16,000 24,000 STA LUCIA LAND 2.51 2.6 2.48 2.6 2.48 2.6 97,000 251,910 37.8 38.05 36.5 40.05 36.5 38.05 28,115,400 1,048,980,385 SM PRIME HLDG 3.79 3.83 3.67 3.83 3.67 3.79 31,000 117,780 VISTAMALLS SUNTRUST HOME 1.55 1.6 1.53 1.6 1.53 1.6 574,000 885,430 3.75 3.76 3.8 3.9 3.76 3.76 30,260,000 115,874,820 VISTA LAND

SERVICES ABS CBN 11.6 11.66 11.5 11.78 11.5 11.66 92,700 1,077,946 GMA NETWORK 9.04 9.05 9.01 9.06 8.99 9.04 1,140,100 10,283,545 0.425 0.45 0.45 0.45 0.45 0.45 10,000 4,500 MANILA BULLETIN MLA BRDCASTING 9.75 10 10 10 10 10 7,900 79,000 GLOBE TELECOM 1,835 1,839 1,836 1,845 1,825 1,835 72,820 133,749,250 PLDT 1,309 1,310 1,315 1,333 1,310 1,310 158,660 208,578,770 0.182 0.183 0.181 0.184 0.179 0.183 81,090,000 14,757,710 APOLLO GLOBAL 19.94 19.96 19.76 20.1 19.72 19.94 2,658,000 52,978,166 CONVERGE DFNN INC 3.86 3.89 3.88 3.92 3.82 3.87 489,000 1,873,620 10.06 10.08 9.78 10.06 9.61 10.06 16,143,800 159,751,752 DITO CME HLDG 1.6 1.74 1.75 1.77 1.75 1.75 23,000 40,360 IMPERIAL JACKSTONES 2.05 2.17 2.13 2.17 2.05 2.05 29,000 61,690 NOW CORP 2.42 2.43 2.42 2.49 2.41 2.43 1,260,000 3,067,840 0.405 0.41 0.405 0.415 0.4 0.41 5,120,000 2,092,850 TRANSPACIFIC BR PHILWEB 2.45 2.47 2.41 2.49 2.41 2.47 514,000 1,244,500 2GO GROUP 8.25 8.3 8.36 8.36 8.2 8.3 46,200 382,710 ASIAN TERMINALS 14.48 15.12 14.56 15.18 14.48 15.18 79,300 1,153,272 3.05 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.01 3.05 671,000 2,047,230 CHELSEA CEBU AIR 45.1 45.25 44.85 45.35 44.6 45.25 709,700 32,033,140 INTL CONTAINER 149.1 149.2 145 150 144.5 149.1 2,538,720 378,357,688 16.72 16.78 16.72 16.72 16.72 16.72 12,300 205,656 LBC EXPRESS LORENZO SHIPPNG 1.01 1.04 1.03 1.04 1.03 1.04 52,000 53,890 MACROASIA 5.13 5.15 4.84 5.18 4.78 5.15 7,166,000 36,146,550 METROALLIANCE A 2.07 2.12 2.04 2.14 2.04 2.07 72,000 150,490 5.94 6 5.9 6 5.9 6 68,900 410,554 PAL HLDG HARBOR STAR 1.18 1.2 1.19 1.2 1.16 1.19 354,000 420,550 BOULEVARD HLDG 0.1 0.101 0.101 0.106 0.098 0.1 266,850,000 27,338,740 3.45 3.56 3.44 3.59 3.21 3.56 222,000 763,260 DISCOVERY WORLD GRAND PLAZA 11.8 16.3 16.46 16.46 16.38 16.38 200 3,284 WATERFRONT 0.55 0.56 0.54 0.56 0.54 0.55 787,000 433,920 IPEOPLE 7.3 7.85 7.4 7.85 7.4 7.85 1,100 8,230 0.37 0.375 0.375 0.375 0.37 0.375 920,000 343,900 STI HLDG BERJAYA 4.91 4.95 4.82 4.95 4.82 4.91 18,000 88,490 BLOOMBERRY 7.05 7.06 6.6 7.15 6.56 7.06 13,370,800 94,003,161 2.06 2.14 2.06 2.14 2.05 2.14 47,000 97,120 PACIFIC ONLINE LEISURE AND RES 1.56 1.58 1.54 1.58 1.54 1.56 648,000 1,004,590 PH RESORTS GRP 1.91 1.92 1.88 1.93 1.87 1.91 2,705,000 5,154,790 PREMIUM LEISURE 0.415 0.42 0.42 0.42 0.405 0.42 410,000 171,550 5.8 6 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.8 2,000 11,600 PHIL RACING ALLHOME 7.58 7.6 7.3 7.74 7.3 7.6 11,706,100 87,949,073 METRO RETAIL 1.33 1.34 1.33 1.34 1.28 1.33 1,354,000 1,790,160 PUREGOLD 38 38.1 36.65 38.4 36.65 38 3,859,800 146,249,910 52.4 52.7 50.05 52.5 50.05 52.5 999,200 51,888,500 ROBINSONS RTL PHIL SEVEN CORP 103.9 105.9 103.8 105.5 103.7 103.9 44,000 4,569,221 SSI GROUP 1.25 1.26 1.2 1.26 1.18 1.25 2,754,000 3,412,150 18.22 18.28 18.4 18.42 17.96 18.22 2,088,200 38,081,172 WILCON DEPOT 0.385 0.39 0.39 0.39 0.385 0.385 460,000 178,100 APC GROUP EASYCALL 6 6.25 6.25 6.25 6.25 6.25 2,000 12,500 IPM HLDG 5.05 5.09 5.09 5.09 5.09 5.09 6,500 33,085 1.88 1.89 1.85 1.92 1.79 1.88 14,084,000 26,407,190 PRMIERE HORIZON 4.22 4.24 4.22 4.22 4.22 4.22 1,000 4,220 SBS PHIL CORP

208,870 153,636,530 14,820,615 9,898,038 -100,760 -6,201,607.00 1,521,392 9,020.00 141,161,550 42,303,932.50 18,600 -6,402,772 39,070,240 228,220 -10,117,165 2,365,501 -26,500 -10,650 384,020,420 107,620 -2,109,740 0 -45,510 336,908 1,221,100 -1,473,908 141,450 -40,592 131,560 212,700 1,292,060 84,410 32,617,380 203,200 40,320 1,033,040 16,452,008 7,290 878,501,650 36,716,500 -49,457,025 -13,688,715 182,080 10,916,878.00 155,360 1,223,805 1,665 797,646 15,300 -11,073,010 48,295,872 -18,513,340 -7,050 -277,730 7,673,172 130,220 -49,450 8,400 85,920,565 122,620 -28,736,105 3,220,495 -162,375 -1,405,870 -7,880,416.00 -141,760 -

MINING & OIL ATOK 8.92 9 9.22 9.42 8.92 9 628,200 5,718,251 25,190.00 1.73 1.74 1.7 1.74 1.67 1.73 3,969,000 6,800,480 -211,860 APEX MINING 7.42 7.43 7.25 7.44 7.17 7.43 2,661,600 19,307,577 239,932 ATLAS MINING BENGUET A 4.18 4.24 4.04 4.35 4.04 4.25 826,000 3,468,750 Philam Bond Fund, Inc. -a 4.4827 -1.6% 4.03% 1.64% -3.28% BENGUET B 4.06 4.19 4.09 4.24 4.06 4.06 350,000 1,452,640 206,800 0.3 0.315 0.315 0.315 0.3 0.315 640,000 196,200 COAL ASIA HLDG Philam Managed Income Fund, Inc. -a,6 1.3248 2.79% 4.32% 2.8% 0.27% CENTURY PEAK 2.81 2.85 2.85 2.85 2.85 2.85 20,000 57,000 57,000 DIZON MINES 6.61 6.74 6.83 6.83 6.58 6.74 22,900 151,578 19,830 Philequity Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.9694 1.24% 4.43% 2.48% -0.79% 2.56 2.58 2.53 2.58 2.53 2.56 1,075,000 2,747,680 -183,280 FERRONICKEL 0.315 0.32 0.315 0.325 0.31 0.32 730,000 232,500 GEOGRACE LEPANTO A 0.154 0.155 0.156 0.157 0.153 0.155 25,940,000 4,023,220 Soldivo Bond Fund, Inc. -a 1.0253 0.21% 4.06% 1.67% -1.6% LEPANTO B 0.157 0.167 0.157 0.157 0.157 0.157 70,000 10,990 0.012 0.013 0.013 0.013 0.012 0.013 304,700,000 3,960,200 MANILA MINING A Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.2017 1.64% 5.27% 2.87% -0.13% MANILA MINING B 0.013 0.014 0.014 0.015 0.013 0.014 54,600,000 767,600 286,100 MARCVENTURES 1.25 1.26 1.2 1.26 1.2 1.25 591,000 730,660 -19,820 Sun Life Prosperity GS Fund, Inc. -a 1.7447 0.56% 4.54% 2.18% -0.59% NIHAO 1.42 1.44 1.42 1.44 1.39 1.44 1,336,000 1,875,820 5.09 5.1 5.11 5.17 5.07 5.09 4,429,600 22,603,094 -1,721,776 NICKEL ASIA Primarily invested in foreign currency securities OMICO CORP 0.39 0.4 0.385 0.41 0.385 0.4 620,000 245,000 ORNTL PENINSULA 0.95 0.97 0.98 1 0.95 0.97 346,000 338,510 18,620 ALFM Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $484.8 2.86% 3.11% 2.34% 0.19% 7 7.01 6.9 7.1 6.85 7 3,825,100 26,654,748 66,560 PX MINING 13.66 13.68 13.3 13.66 13.3 13.66 4,618,200 62,344,976 14,953,372 SEMIRARA MINING ALFM Euro Bond Fund, Inc. -a Є219.69 2.28% 1.11% 1.18% 0.23% UNITED PARAGON 0.0092 0.0093 0.0092 0.0092 0.0091 0.0091 107,000,000 977,200 91,000 ACE ENEXOR 16.48 16.5 16.4 16.48 16 16.48 516,800 8,339,030 210,520 ATRAM Total Return Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -b $1.1795 -2.88% 1.99% 1.15% -7.88% 0.011 0.012 0.012 0.012 0.011 0.012 8,300,000 95,300 ORNTL PETROL A ORNTL PETROL B 0.012 0.013 0.012 0.012 0.012 0.012 21,800,000 261,600 First Metro Save and Learn Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $0.0259 0% 1.46% 0.95% -2.63% PHILODRILL 0.011 0.012 0.011 0.012 0.011 0.012 41,700,000 465,200 8.14 8.15 8.1 8.4 7.9 8.14 1,593,800 12,905,982 -369,523 PXP ENERGY PAMI Global Bond Fund, Inc -b $1.0501 -1.26% 0.41% -0.58% -3.9%

PREFFERED

Philam Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $2.4911 2.89% 4.94% 2.23% -1.76% HOUSE PREF B 100 101.5 101.5 101.5 101.5 101.5 3,000 304,500 HOUSE PREF A 100.5 101 101 101 100.5 101 21,010 2,112,010 Philequity Dollar Income Fund Inc. -a $0.0628452 4.73% 3.48% 2.23% 0.85% 525.5 535 525.5 525.5 525.5 525.5 210 110,355 110,355 AC PREF B1 101 101.8 101.8 101.8 101.8 101.8 40 4,072 ALCO PREF B Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Abundance Fund, Inc. -a $3.1481 -0.51% 2.91% 1.05% -2.34% ALCO PREF C 103 114.9 103 103 103 103 500 51,500 AC PREF B2R 517.5 520 520 520 517.5 517.5 22,190 11,538,775 Money Market Funds 42.9 43.5 42.15 43 42.15 42.9 83,500 3,580,335 -1,652,125 CEB PREF 103.5 104.4 104.4 104.4 103.5 104.3 1,900 196,778 CPG PREF A Primarily invested in Peso securities DD PREF 101.2 101.4 101.4 101.4 101.3 101.4 11,190 1,134,132 1,005 1,010 1,010 1,010 1,010 1,010 10 10,100 GTCAP PREF A ALFM Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 130.15 1.9% 3.07% 2.52% 0.26% MWIDE PREF 100.5 100.7 101 101 100.5 100.7 11,330 1,139,007 MWIDE PREF 2A 100.3 104.5 104.5 104.5 104.5 104.5 100 10,450 First Metro Save and Learn Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 1.0519 1.18% n.a. n.a.

0.36% MWIDE PREF 2B 100.5 101.8 100.5 100.5 100.5 100.5 20,000 2,010,000 106 106.9 106 106.9 104 106.9 570 60,425 PNX PREF 3B 2.57% Sun Life Prosperity Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 1.3042 1.83% 2.88% 0.59% PNX PREF 4 1,002 1,008 1,001 1,008 1,001 1,008 955 955,990 PCOR PREF 2B 1,020 1,035 1,022 1,022 1,022 1,022 30 30,660 Primarily invested in foreign currency securities PCOR PREF 3B 1,146 1,163 1,146 1,146 1,146 1,146 10 11,460 79.6 79.9 79.95 79.95 79.6 79.6 2,340 186,641.50 PREF 2C SMC Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Starter Fund, Inc. -a $1.0571 1.36% 1.7% n.a.

0.45% SMC PREF 2E 77.5 78 77.5 77.85 77.5 77.5 5,850 455,125 SMC PREF 2F 79 79.85 79 79 79 79 120 9,480 Feeder Funds 78.3 78.85 78.3 78.8 78.3 78.8 7,000 549,100 SMC PREF 2H SMC PREF 2J 77.1 78.4 77.8 77.8 77.8 77.8 200 15,560 Primarily invested in Peso securities SMC PREF 2K 76 76.95 76.95 76.95 76 76 7,790 592,733.50 -

Sun Life Prosperity World Equity Index Feeder Fund, Inc. -a,d,7 1.2383 n.a. n.a. n.a. 9.62% PHIL. DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS ABS HLDG PDR 10.8 10.86 10.8 10.8 10.8 10.8 2,800 30,240 Primarily invested in foreign currency securities GMA HLDG PDR 8.6 8.79 8.6 8.65 8.52 8.65 47,500 409,139 -86,500

ALFM Global Multi-Asset Income Fund Inc. -b,d,2 $1 8.7% n.a. n.a.

2.04% WARRANTS LR WARRANT 1.69 1.7 1.64 1.71 1.64 1.7 501,000 844,080 -

SMALL & MEDIUM ENTERPRISES a - NAVPS as of the previous banking day. b - NAVPS as of two banking days ago. c - Listed in the PSE. d - in Net Asset Value per Unit (NAVPU).

ALTUS PROP 17.58 17.9 17.5 17.9 17.5 17.9 134,200 2,352,934 17,860 1 - Launch date is September 28, 2019. 2 - Launch date is November 15, 2019. 3 - Adjusted due to stock dividend issuance last October 9, 2019.

ITALPINAS 2.41 2.42 2.35 2.45 2.35 2.42 318,000 767,890 7,210 5.13 5.35 5.35 5.35 5.13 5.35 12,900 68,993 KEPWEALTH 4 - Renaming was approved by the SEC last October 12, 2018 (formerly, One Wealthy Nation Fund, Inc.). 5 - Launch date is December 09, 2019.

MERRYMART 4.71 4.72 4.51 4.74 4.5 4.72 5,886,000 27,543,040 155,000

6 - Re-classified into a Bond Fund starting February 21, 2020 (Formerly a Money Market Fund). 7 - Launch date is July 6, 2020.

EXHANGE TRADE FUNDS

"While we endeavor to keep the information accurate, the Philippine Investment Funds Association (PIFA) and its members make no warranties as to the correctness of the FIRST METRO ETF 102.2 103.7 101 103.7 101 103.7 48,520 4,999,022 -1,212,654 newspaper’s publication and assume no liability or responsibility for any error or omissions. You may visit http://www. pifa.com.ph to see the latest NAVPS/NAVPU."

Agriculture/Commodities BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Editor: Jennifer A. Ng • Thursday, June 3, 2021 B3

BusinessMirror file photo

Average live hog price falls to ₧220/kg–ProPork

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas @jearcalas

T

HE retail price of pork should have declined to as low as P330 per kilogram (kg) after the average live-weight price of hogs softened in recent weeks, an industry leader said.

Pork Producers Federation of the Philippines Inc. (ProPork) Chairman-elect Nicanor Briones said the farm-gate price of live hogs has fallen

to P220 per kg from P250 per kg.

Briones said the reduction in farm-gate prices was committed by the hog industry after the economic managers and senators reached a compromise on pork tariff reduction and the hike in minimum access volume (MAV).

“We promised that [reduction in prices] and since there has been a compromise [on the tariffs and MAV] and we are willing to help the consumers. It is a show of goodwill,”

he told the BusinessMirror.

Given the prevailing farm-gate price of live hogs, Briones said the retail price of pork should be at a range of P330 per kg (pigue) to P360 per kilogram (liempo).

He added that the markup should only be around P105 to P110 per kg, which would provide both retailers and traders an income of P50 per kg.

At the current farm-gate price, Briones said hog raisers are earning P30 per kg since their average production cost is now estimated at P190 per kg due to higher feed costs.

Price monitoring reports from the Department of Agriculture (DA) showed that the retail price of pork in Metro Manila wet markets is steadily declining.

As of June 2, the average price of pork kasim is now at P340 per kg while pork liempo averaged at P370 per kg, P10 lower than the average quotations recorded on June 1, based on the DA’s price monitoring reports.

Compared to the previous month, the average retail price of a kilo of pork kasim is now cheaper by P30 while pork liempo price is lower by P20 per kg, according to the DA. Latest DA data showed that the agency was able to facilitate the de-

livery of 472,057 heads of hogs and 3.545 million kg of pork to Metro Manila as part of its measures to temper high pork prices caused by supply shortage.

Last month, President Duterte issued Executive Order (EO) 133 which raised the MAV for pork imports to plug the supply shortfall created by African swine fever (ASF). The EO increased the MAV for pork this year to 254,210 metric tons from the usual 54,210 MT. “The MAV of pork meat for the MAV Year 2021 of 54,210 MT is hereby increased to 254,210 MT, provided that a ny u nava i l able balance at the end of 2021 shall not be carried over to 2022,” EO 133 read.

A DA interagency committee has recommended that 55 percent or about 110,000 MT of the pork MAV plus be imported w ithin July to September

DA allots ₧30M for crafting of commodity road maps

T

HE Department of Agriculture (DA) will allocate P30 million for the development of six commodity road maps, including livestock and poultry, as part of its commitment during the last National Food Security Summit (NFSS).

Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar issued Memorandum Order (MO) 37 which outlined what the DA will undertake in terms of crafting the commodity road maps following the recently concluded NFSS. “During the NFSS we made a commitment to complete different commodity industry road maps discussed during the summit and allocate funds of P5,000,000.00 for each road map from concerned commodity programs and the Philippine Council for Agriculture and Fisheries [PCAF],” Dar said in the MO he issued last week.

Under the MO, the DA will craft 6 com-

modity road maps for corn, livestock and poultry, HVCDP (high-value crops development program).

The funding for each commodity road maps shall be shouldered by the concerned DA commodity programs.

The commodity programs are also tasked to “provide technical support and documenters in the development of the road maps.”

The PCAF was instructed to ensure the “active participation of the stakeholders in finalizing the commodity industry road maps.”

The PCAF can form teams from stakeholders or industry experts to spearhead the road map development.

“In addition it shall prepare the detailed budget required to successfully accomplish the tasks that the commodity programs and PCAF will fund,” the document read.

Dar also instructed the Bureau of Agricultural Research (BAR) to mobilize and support the engagement of various technical and industry experts to support the road map developments.

He ordered the DA’s Policy Research Service to conduct consultations and discussions to provide the content and direction in the areas of incentives, regulations and trade policies for the different road maps.

“PCAF, Commodity Programs [and other operating units], and BAR shall submit a detailed work plan and budget for review and approval of the Secretary on or before June 11, 2021,” he said.

“The final review and approval of the road maps shall be done by the concerned stakeholders through PCAF and separately by the DA Management Committee,” he added.

Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

N. Vizcaya farmers develop own BOC lowers tariff brand of brewed Robusta coffee rates on rice imports

By Jonathan L. Mayuga

as EO takes effect

@jonlmayuga

F

ARMERS in Ambaguio, Nueva Vizcaya were able to develop their own brand of brewed, upland “barako” coffee, according to the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR).

Farmers belonging to the Tiblac-Lingak Farmers Association Inc., a DAR-assisted agrarian reform beneficiaries’ organization (ARBO) in Ambaguio, Nueva Vizcaya unveiled Ambaguio Kapi, the first Nueva Vizcaya brand of Robusta coffee.

Dindi Tan, DAR Nueva Vizcaya Provincial Agrarian Reform Program Officer said Ambaguio is producing 2 varieties of coffee—Arabica and Robusta.

DEPARTMENT of Agrarian Reform Nueva Vizcaya-Provincial Agrarian Reform Tan went around the area Program Officer Dindi Tan is promoting Nueva Vizcaya’s “Ambaguio Kapi.” and practically conducted CONTRIBUTED PHOTO hands-on coffee production processes—from grinding, drying to packbusiness have been experiencing difficulty aging and assisted the farmer-members in pitching for a pricing mechanism that will the development of their new product label. not put them at a terrible disadvantage,” DAR-Nueva Vizcaya said it has been Tan said. instrumental in crafting the new brand To help the farmers cope with the situing and labeling of the “Robustica Coffee” ation, Tan said DAR-Nueva Vizcaya has amid the pandemic. It has also committed forged partnerships with other national to help the farmers’ association to market government agencies like the Department their produce. of Agriculture and the Department of “We will continuously help and guide our Trade and Industry to help develop and ARBOs in all the stages of their operations so market the farmers’ products, such as the that they may be able to sustain their busiRobusta coffee. ness,” she said.

“This convergence initiative of various Tan said the price of coffee was also segovernment agencies help the farmers to verely affected by the pandemic. stay afloat especially during these challeng “Our farmers who are into the coffee ing times,” she said.

By Bernadette D. Nicolas @BNicolasBM

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HE Bureau of Customs (BOC) on Wednesday said it has started imposing lower tariffs on rice imports.

Customs Commissioner Rey Leonardo B. Guerrero signed Customs Memorandum Circular (CMC) 108-2021 formalizing the one-year imposition of lower tariffs on rice imports after President Duterte’s Executive Order 135 took effect on June 2.

EO 135 reduced the Most Favored Nation (MFN) tariff rates for rice, to 35 percent from 40 percent (in-quota) and 50 percent (outquota) for a period of one year.

“In view of the effectivity of Executive Order No. 135 [Series of 2021] on ‘Temporarily Modifying the Rates of Import Duty on Rice’ under Section 1611 of Republic Act No. 10863, otherwise known as the ‘Customs Modernization and Tariff Act’ on 02 June 2021, which shall be effective for a period of one [1] year from such date, all concerned are informed at all articles specifically listed in Annex A of EO 135 [s. 2021], which are entered into or withdrawn from warehouses in the Philippines for consumption, shall be levied the temporary MFN rates of duty as prescribed therein,” Guerrero said in the CMC dated June 1.

Moreover, Guerrero also said BOC’s Electronic to Mobile System must reflect the temporary tariff rates.

Last month, Malacañang said there is a need to lower tariffs for rice imports to offset the expected 10-percent shortfall in the local supply of rice this year.

EO 135 earlier drew criticism from farmers and senators who said the directive was “unnecessary” due to the sufficiency of the local rice production this year.

to immediately boost domestic supply and temper retail pork prices.

The BusinessMirror learned that the interagency committee created by Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar and led by Agriculture Assistant Secretary Noel Padre has sent its recommendation for the pork MAV plus implementing guidelines to the MAV Management Committee.

The recommendation includes allocating the additional 200,000 MT of pork MAV among existing MAV licensees, pork producers and other importers/new entrants.

Based on the panel’s recommendation, 25 percent of the total volume shall be allocated for existing MAV licensees, another 25 percent for pork producers and the remaining 50 percent for the new entrants.

Envoys&Expats BusinessMirror

B4

Thursday, June 3, 2021

www.businessmirror.com.ph

US, SoKor solidify devt deal via joint projects

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EADING development-assistance agencies of the United States and South Korea have agreed to pursue joint-development projects in the Philippines to boost the country’s climate resilience and address ocean plastic pollution.

The partnership was a result of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed between the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Korean International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) on April 7 to explore potential collaboration in an array of sectors—including poverty reduction in rural areas, empowerment

of women and girls, water-resource management, community rehabilitation in Marawi City, as well as climate resilience.

In particular, the US and the Republic of Korea have agreed to jointly pursue the “Climate Resilient Cities’’ project to strengthen the adaptability of Philippine cities against growing climate threats

and vulnerability, as well as Marine Litter Management initiatives to mitigate the impacts of ocean plastic pollution.

Expanding the US-Korea partnership in Southeast Asia—including in the Philippines—is a key element of the Joint Statement and the Joint Fact Sheet of the KoreaUS Summit in Washington, D.C. on May 21.

“For the past 75 years, [our country] has been a strong friend, partner and ally of the Philippine government in achieving its long-term vision of sustainable and inclusive growth for the Filipino people,” US Embassy Chargé d’Affaires John Law said. “Our work with likeminded partners [such as] Korea will further advance our shared development objectives, as we support the Philippines in its journey to self-reliance.”

“Korea is glad to strengthen its partnership with the US in the areas of development cooperation in the Philippines, as reflected in the MOU last month and highlighted in [the recent] Korea-US Summit,” remarked Ambassador Kim In-chul of South Korea. “We will continue to work closely together in the Philippines to promote sustainable development in the bayanihan spirit—particularly in addressing challenges faced by Philippine cities and vulnerable communities amid rising climate-change concerns, among others.”

Korea and the US are among the largest bilateral donors in the Philippines. In the past 30 years, the former has expanded its development assistance in both grants and budgetary support, and is the Philippines’s second-largest development assistance country donor.

Building back better thru intl trade, investment, cooperation Daniel Pruce

Ambassador of the United Kingdom to the Philippines

& Chris Nelson

Executive Director British Chamber of Commerce Phils.

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N the 75th anniversary of the diplomatic relations between the United Kingdom and the Philippines, we reflect on the way more international trade and investments can serve as key tools to support economic recovery, and to build back better.

It has been more than a year since the pandemic took hold and posed enormous challenges to our prosperity globally. It hit the Philippine economy hard. This is partly because it is highly dependent on domestic consumption. Growth needs Filipinos to be able to go out and spend their disposable income. Over the last year, however, their ability to do so has been limited by necessary health restrictions, as well as the pandemic’s impact on factors such as employment and remittances.

Last week the Philippine government released its latest report on the economy. After the worst recession the country has seen in recent history, there is some cause for hope.

While there was still a gross domestic product contraction of 4.2 percent, this was less pronounced than in previous quarters. With the continuous arrival of safe and effective vaccines in the coming months (including that of Oxford-AstraZeneca), there is hope that things will continue to improve. But after such a difficult

PRUCE

NELSON

time, it is key to do everything possible to help the economy.

With this in mind, the British Embassy and the British Chamber of Commerce Phils. welcome the government’s recent policy actions to provide fiscal relief for local businesses and foreign investors affected by the pandemic, and to support the recovery. A landmark reform—Republic Act 11534, or the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) Act that was signed in March 2021—lowered corporate income-tax rates, which had long been the highest in Southeast Asia. This will stimulate more business investments and create many more jobs.

A few weeks ago His Excellency President Rodrigo Duterte certified as urgent the enactment of three pending economic bills which would further encourage more foreign businesses to invest in the Philippines.

Members of Congress are now reviewing Senate Bill (SB) 2094, which aims to amend the Public Service Act, and SB 1156 which proposes amendments to the Foreign Investment Act. Last week the Senate voted unanimously to amend some provisions

of the Retail Trade Liberalization Act, bringing it a few steps closer to enactment. It is essential that the final version of the bill will keep barriers to foreign investment as low as possible.

The British Embassy and the British Chamber strongly support these measures. Together, they will make it easier to attract foreign direct investment into the country by increasing the openness of the economy. Advancing dynamism and flexibility in investment procedures in key sectors, while improving transparency and ease of doing business, will make the Philippines more competitive, regionally and globally. This, in turn, can promote competitiveness and ensure quality and affordably priced goods and services for consumers.

The UK is an important investor and trading partner of the Philippines, and we place high priority on further expanding these links this year, as we celebrate another milestone in UK-Philippines bilateral relations: our 75th anniversary. We continue to encourage more British companies to look at the business opportunities in this country.

Already, several UK brands have established a strong reputation in key sectors of the economy: in pharmaceuticals, banking and finance, construction and engineering, energy, manufacturing and distribution, as well as retail.

But there are plenty more British companies interested in investment opportunities—including in the food and drink, advanced engineering and manufacturing and business-services industries—if the right business environment is in place. These economic measures would help.

The UK’s Prosperity Programmes support the Philippines in the areas of health, education, low-carbon energy, infrastructure, intellectual property, digital economy, finance, and business environment. We worked closely with the Anti-Red Tape Authority and provided capacity building and technical advice around the implementation of the Ease of Doing Business Act. And last year the Philippine government, with support from the UK’s Investment Promotion Programme, launched the “Make It Happen in the Philippines” campaign. With these additional economic reform measures, we believe this message will resonate even more strongly to global investors.

As the British Embassy and the British Chamber help cement the 75-year UK-Philippines friendship, we look forward to continuing to work with our partners and friends to encourage greater trade, investment and cooperation between our countries.

Indian traders urge govt: Focus on ‘NCR Plus’ to achieve herd immunity

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GROUP of Indian businessmen in the country has recommended to the national government the implementation of a “buhos” (focused) approach in deploying all available vaccines and resources to the National Capital Region (NCR) Plus bubble.

This, it said, is to achieve quicker immunity of a significant proportion of the Philippine population.

“Achieving a 70-percent vaccination rate in NCR Plus will achieve herd immunity much faster in the area which will, in turn, allow a faster jumpstarting of our economy,” the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce (Phils.)

Inc. (FICCI) said in a statement.

“That will [be for] the benefit of the entire country.”

FICCI noted that the NCR is the “heart of our economy,” given that 70 percent of all warehouses of goods—both essential and nonessential—are located in NCR Plus, which supplies the entire country.

Majority of head offices of service industries, it added, are all in Metro Manila and surrounding areas that provide such services nationwide.

“While we focus on saving lives, we must also equally focus on livelihood and ensure our people keep their jobs and their income as we beat [the pandemic] together,” FICCI added. “Many in our provinces depend on their relatives who work in the NCR Plus area.”

The “buhos” strategy, according to the group, does not in any way intend to leave behind the rest of

the country with vaccination. It pointed out that the proposal will fast-track the realization of national herd immunity, rather than continue vaccinating all areas in the country, thereby spreading human resources and vaccines thinly given the limited stock due to international supply-chain disruptions.

Once the critical number of the populace is protected from the virulent disease, FICCI suggested that the NCR Plus resources must be deployed immediately to other regions so that health facilities are no longer overwhelmed, and the alreadyexhausted health-care workers are given their much-needed respite from their “daily Covid wars.”

The chambers, likewise, appealed to national and local lead-

ers to systematize its inoculation program by issuing just one vaccine card using technology as its backbone to enable it to open the economy safely.

“A standardized vaccination... card will ensure proper control and uniformity in the many uses this card will have moving forward,” FICCI stated. “Having too many different cards will cause confusion and undermine the authenticity of such… [It] may even allow fake cards to proliferate.”

It cited that vaccine cardholders, once they got their jabs, may be allowed to freely move around while following health protocols, as establishments can start serving those carrying these cards freely and without any restrictions. Roderick L. Abad

Closing the vaccination gap

By Josep Borrell

European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice President of the European Commission

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E need to close the vaccination gap between advanced economies and developing countries to avoid what Tedros Ghebreyesus, head of the World Health Organization (WHO), has called “vaccination apartheid.”

Therefore, we need global multilateral action to increase the production of vaccines and accelerate the rollout worldwide.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, this has been the path chosen by the European Union (EU). It is now also the one defined by the G-20 leaders at the Global Health Summit in Rome on May 21.

The pandemic is still killing thousands of people every day and at the current pace, the whole world will not be vaccinated before 2023. Yet, a widely vaccinated world population is the only way to end the pandemic; otherwise, the multiplication of variants is likely to undermine the effectiveness of existing vaccines.

Vaccination is also a prerequisite for lifting the restrictions that are holding back our economies and freedoms. These restrictions penalize the whole world, but they weigh even more heavily on developing countries.

Advanced countries can rely more on social mechanisms and economic-policy levers to limit the impact of the pandemic on their citizens.

If the vaccination gap persists, it risks reversing the trend in recent decades of declining poverty and global inequalities.

Such a negative dynamic would hold back economic activity and increase geopolitical tensions.

The cost of inaction would for sure be much higher for advanced economies than what we collectively would have to spend to help vaccinate the whole world.

Therefore, the EU welcomes the $50-billion plan proposed by the International Monetary Fund to vaccinate 40 percent of the world population in 2021, and 60 percent by mid-2022.

‘Vaccine diplomacy, nationalism’

TO achieve this goal, we need closely coordinated multilateral action. We must resist the threats posed by “vaccine diplomacy,” linking the provision of vaccines to political goals, and “vaccine nationalism,” reserving vaccines for oneself.

In contrast to others, the EU has rejected both since the beginning of the pandemic. Until now, we have been the only global actor that is vaccinating its own population while, at the same time, exporting large volumes of vaccines and contributing substantially to the vaccine rollout in low-income countries.

Europeans can be proud of this record.

In 2020 the EU aided the research and development of vaccines on a large scale, as well as contributed significantly to the new generation of mRNA vaccines. It then became a major producer of Covid-19 vaccines with, according to the WHO, around 40 percent of the doses used globally so far. The union has also exported 240 million doses to 90 countries, which is about as much as we have used within.

The EU, with its memberstates and financial institutions—what we call “Team Europe”—is also donating vaccines

BORRELL

to neighbors in need, particularly in the Western Balkans. It aims to donate at least 100 million more doses to low- and middleincome countries before the end of 2021, as agreed at the last European Council.

With €2.8 billion, Team Europe has also been the main contributor to the COVAX facility, which enables poorer countries to access vaccines; around one-third of all COVAX doses delivered so far has been financed by the EU. However, this effort is still far from sufficient to prevent the vaccination gap from widening.

To fill this gap, countries with the required knowledge and means should increase their production capacities, so that they can both vaccinate their own populations and export more vaccines, as the EU is doing. In cooperation with vaccine manufacturers, we are working to increase the EU vaccine-production capacities to more than 3 billion doses a year by the end of 2021.

Our European industrial partners have committed to deliver 1.3 billion doses of vaccines before year’s end to low-income countries at no profit, and to middle-income countries at lower prices. They have also committed themselves to further deliver over 1.3 billion doses for 2022— many of which will be delivered via COVAX.

Health: Global public good

ALL countries must avoid restrictive measures that affect vaccine supply chains. We also need to facilitate the transfer of knowledge and technology, so that more countries can produce vaccines.

For our part, we are strongly encouraging European producers to do so, especially in Africa. I participated at the Paris Summit on financial support for the said continent on May 18, where its leaders stressed that Africa imports 99 percent of its vaccines.

This has to change.

Team Europe is launching an initiative to this end, backed by €1-billion funding from the EU budget and European development financial institutions, with African partners to boost manufacturing capacity in the continent for vaccines, medicines and health technologies.

Voluntary licensing is the privileged way to ensure such transfer of technology and knowhow. If it turns out to be insufficient, the existing agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, or TRIPS, and the 2001 Doha Declaration already foresee the possibility of compulsory licensing.

According to some countries, these flexibilities are however too difficult and too slow to use. To speed up these technology transfers, the EU will come forward with a new proposal in the World Trade Organization framework by early June.

The pandemic has reminded us that health is a global public good. Our common global Covid-19 vaccine action to close the vaccination gap must be the first step toward a genuine global health cooperation, as foreseen by the Rome Declaration recently adopted at the Global Health Summit.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Parentlife BusinessMirror

Editor: Gerard S. Ramos

• Thursday, June 3, 2021

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Families should embrace sustainability AN upcycled classroom chair, a product of P&G and World Vision’s “PagAsa sa Basura.”

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y daughter once told me, “Mom, our children will not have a good earth anymore.” It made me reflect on what I and our generation contributed to this belief. It also made me proud of my sister, Joan, who has been focused on sustainability that one fresh paper used unnecessarily in our office becomes a major red flag. And yet the question still lingers: “Now that we know more about the environmental crises we face, can we really do more?”

According to a new study in the US by consumer goods giant P&G, 72 percent of people want to do more to be sustainable at home. But fewer than half of the people who participated in the study routinely make environmentally conscious choices at home. For most people, “not knowing how” is the biggest barrier to acting sustainably.

It is timely that P&G recently held its Philippines’ Sustainability Summit last month, built on the theme “#ItsOurHome”. Hosted virtually, the event focused on increased awareness about the climate and solid waste landscape, and discussed the actionable solutions stakeholders, its consumers and partners like NGOs, tech companies, and the government could take toward greater sustainability. The summit saw participation from its employees, business leaders, external partners and sustainability advocates from the industry, NGOs and social enterprises.

During the event, P&G declared accelerated commitment to strengthen progress toward its global Ambition 2030 goals which aim to make responsible consumption possible for consumers through holistic, comprehensive interventions in various aspects of its operations, including but not limited to supply chain, customer relations and employee involvement.

TAKING ACTION FOR CLIMATE AND NET ZERO EMISSIONS P&G’s climate goal is to achieve carbon neutrality by the end of the decade. They will do this by cutting greenhouse-gas emissions at P&G sites globally by buying 100 percent renewable electricity and increasing energy efficiency.

To further offset the unrecoverable emissions, the company is supporting natural climate solutions that help conserve, protect and restore forests with global partners such as Conservation International and its recently launched P&G Forests for Good program.

Beyond helping in P&G’s net zero emissions goal, Forests for Good aims to actively protect nature, beginning with 12 pilot programs in 12 months across the Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa (AMA) region, by planting trees that help improve local ecosystems including the Sierra Madre Mountain Range.

ACTIVE WATER CONSERVATION The company is also on track to achieving its global water goals to increase water efficiency at its sites and source at least 5 billion liters from circular sources. The P&G Cabuyao plant tracks its overall water consumption and recycles wastewater inside the plant. P&G’s 2030 goal is to promote and support water conservation and protection for people and nature.

P&G AMA also recently announced acceleration of these goals by developing a water stewardship action plan in accordance with the externally recognized Alliance for Water Stewardship standard for 100 percent of P&G’s manufacturing sites located in high water stress areas by end of 2022.

ENABLING PLANT AND CONSUMER WASTE MANAGEMENT P&G AMA has also certified that 100 percent of its plants as Zero Manufacturing Waste to Landfill,

including its local Cabuyao manufacturing plant.

To help reduce post-consumer waste, P&G is committed to comprehensively work on and invest in packaging design and innovation across brands, as well as collaborating with external stakeholders in piloting waste infrastructure interventions across several of its markets.

In the Philippines, P&G has already eliminated the virgin plastic overwrap packaging on its Safeguard multi-packs and are now using 100 percent recycled paper carton material. The change saves 8,500 kilometers worth of plastic waste every year. Ultimately, P&G will make 100 percent of its packaging recyclable or reusable by 2030 and will also cut the use of virgin plastic in packaging by 50 percent. Raffy Fajardo, P&G president and general manager for Philippines, reiterates: “P&G, our people and our brands will continue to use our expertise, operations and scale to build a better world for all.” He highlighted the culture of sustainability they foster in their workplace, enabling employees to be Green Citizens.

I found the efforts shared by P&G to be encouraging eye-openers for us as consumers, and even more as parents, to educate our kids that “yes, we can all do something today to ensure a good earth for your children.” n

MakatiMed opens satellite MedExpress Drugstore branch

Makati Medical Center (MakatiMed, www.makatimed.net.ph) opens a MedExpress Drugstore satellite branch along Dela Rosa Street, Legaspi Village, Makati City. The opening will remove the need for the public to enter the hospital premises to get a prescription or refill medicines, as the satellite store is open daily from 7 am to 9 pm.

Meanwhile, the main MakatiMed MedExpress remains open 24/7 and has a delivery service for medicine orders.

Consumers can contact 0998-5836987 on Viber to order for delivery or 0998-5836987 to order for pick-up.

ACLU lawsuit challenges Arkansas trans youth treatment ban

By Andrew DeMillo The Associated Press LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas—The American Civil Liberties Union asked a federal judge Tuesday to strike down a new Arkansas law that made the state the first to ban gender confirming treatments or surgery for transgender youth.

The ACLU filed a lawsuit challenging the new prohibition, which is set to take effect on July 28. It prohibits doctors from providing gender confirming hormone treatment, puberty blockers or surgery to anyone under 18 years old, or from referring them to other providers for the treatment.

The ACLU filed the lawsuit on behalf of four transgender youth and their families, as well as two doctors who provide gender confirming treatments.

The lawsuit argues the prohibition will severely harm transgender youth in the state and violate their constitutional rights.

THE Safety Seal Certification is granted by the Mandaluyong City LGU to buildings and establishments that are compliant with the Minimum Public Health Standards and use accredited contact-tracing applications, such as Mandatrack and StaySafe.ph.

“If the health care ban goes into effect, it will have devastating consequences for transgender youth in Arkansas,” the lawsuit said. “These young people will be unable to obtain medical care that their doctors and parents agree they need—and those already receiving care will have their treatment abruptly halted—which could have serious and potentially lifethreatening consequences.”

Republican lawmakers enacted the ban in April, overriding a veto by GOP Gov. Asa Hutchinson.

The governor vetoed the ban following pleas from pediatricians, social workers and the parents of transgender youth who said the measure would harm a community already at risk for depression and suicide. Hutchinson said the law went too far, especially since it wouldn’t exempt youth already receiving the care. Gender confirming surgery is not performed on minors in Arkansas.

Hutchinson on Tuesday said he wasn’t surprised by the lawsuit, but said he had not read the filing and

didn’t have a comment on the case.

Neighboring Tennessee is the only other state to enact a similar ban on gender treatments for youth, though that state’s law is limited to providing genderconfirming hormone treatment to prepubescent minors.

Arkansas’ prohibition has already caused pain and confusion for families in the state whose children are receiving treatments. At least six transgender adolescents in the state attempted suicide in the weeks after the ban was approved, according to the lawsuit.

The ban has also prompted some families to look at moving out of Arkansas to continue care for their children.

“As a parent, it’s been incredibly distressing because my thoughts are constantly on, what am I going to do for my son if this...takes effect and he can no longer receive the gender affirming care that has made him the happy, confident, thriving kid that he’s been?” said Joanna Brandt, who along with

her 15-year-old son Dylan are listed as plaintiffs in the suit. Dylan, who started taking testosterone in August, said he hoped the lawsuit would send a message to the state about the impact the ban will have on him and other transgender youth.

“It’s obviously taken a toll on me not knowing what’s going to happen, seeing that people in my state don’t necessarily want me here and keep trying to run us off,” he said. “That’s why we’re fighting.”

Supporters of the ban have said transgender youth should wait until they’re 18 to make such decisions.

Some compared the prohibition to other ones minors face, such as for smoking or drinking.

But health professionals say that argument is leaving a false impression that these treatments are available on short notice and with little thought.

Multiple medical groups, including the American Medical Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics, oppose the bans and experts say the treatments are safe if properly administered.

SM Megamall receives Mandaluyong’s first Safety Seal THE Local Government of Mandaluyong recently granted its first Safety Seal to SM Megamall, acknowledging the mall’s strict implementation of minimum health standards and safety protocols in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Officials from Mandaluyong City’s Business Processing and Licensing Office and City Health Office conducted the inspection at SM Megamall’s various leading local and international retail and dining establishments.

The Safety Seal Certification is granted to

buildings and establishments that are compliant with the Minimum Public Health Standards such as proper wearing of face shield and face mask, disinfection, and use of accredited contact-tracing app, such as Mandatrack for Mandaluyong City and the StaySafe.ph application.

The certification is an inter-agency safety program by the Department of the Interior and Local Government, Department of Health, Department of Trade and Industry, Department

of Tourism, and Department of Labor and Employment.

SM Megamall continues to prioritize the health and safety of its mallgoers with its compliance with the government’s policies to help stop the spread of the virus.

For a seamless entry in SM Megamall, consumers are encouraged to visit mandatrack. appcase.net, sign up and fill up the online form, take a screenshot or print the Mandatrack QR code and show it before entering the mall.

B6 Thursday, June 3, 2021

Globe Kmmunity: Get ready to binge-watch K-Films through UPSTREAM and GMovies Little Forest, from June 5 to September 10

Hye Won (Kim Tae-Ri) goes on a muchneeded break from the city and goes back to her hometown in the countryside after what seemed like one wrong step after another. On a path to heal emotionally, she gets by with reconnecting to her roots, with old friends, nature, and food.

A Day, from June 20 to September 24

KIM Joon-Young (Kim Myung-Min) wakes up one morning to witness the death of his neglected daughter, Eun-Jung (Jo Eun-Hyung). Since that unfortunate day, he finds himself waking up to the same day over and over again with attempts to save Eun-Jung ends in failure all the time. Will the madness end for Joon-Young?

Secret Zoo, from July 3 to October 8

THIS comedy film based on a webtoon called I Bully You follows attorney-at-law Tae Soo played by An Jae-Hong. He tries to outsmart the law firm he works for that challenged him to rebuild and reopen a failing zoo with no animals by having the zookeepers dress up as animals.

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HETHER you feel like grabbing a bucket of popcorn or going full mukbang with your favorite K-food, sit back, relax, and get ready to binge-watch these K-Films exclusively brought to you by Globe Kmmunity through UPSTREAM in partnership with GMovies!

Which of these K-Films will you stan for at the annual Kmmunity K’tizens’ Choice Awards?

The Battleship Island, until July 21

FOLLOW oppa Song-Joong Ki in this 2017 period action film set in Hashima, Japan where 400 Korean detainees suffer through slavery and eventually attempt an epic escape from the island.

Bring Me Home, from May 9 to August 13

IN this drama-thriller film, Lee Young-Ae (Jewel in the Palace and Gangnam Beauty actress) is a mother on a mission. After relentlessly searching for his son that went missing six years ago, Jung-yeon (Lee) follows a tip she received which brings to an eerie fishing village.

Okay Madam, until August 27

MI Young (Uhm Jung Hwa), kkwabaegi shop owner, devoted wife, and caring mother, is pretty much content with her simple life when her husband Seok Hwan (Park Sung Woong) comes home with an exciting all-expense paid trip for the family. What’s meant to be a fun family vacation takes a turn for the worst when the plane they ride is hijacked by terrorists in this comedy-action film.

Will this family let this setback ruin their family trip?

You Drive Me Crazy, until August 28

BEFORE he made our hearts melt as Good Boy in last year’s phenomenal hit series Start-up, Kim Seon-ho has already been warming our hearts in 2018’s YOU DRIVE ME CRAZY (Michigetda, Neoddaeme!). Allow us to enrich your vocabulary on all things Kim Seon-ho as he stars in this 2-episode series as Kim Rae-wan, an artist who develops feelings for his best friend of 8 years, Han Eunsung (played by Lee Yoo-yung). Who knows, you might have been a Good Boy bias all along.

Beauty Water, from July 17 to October 22

CAN Yae-Ji handle the frightening consequences of being beautiful? The only animated film in this list, this horror-thriller exposes the dark side of resorting and depending on “beauty water” – a magical cosmetic solution that alters one’s overall outside appearance in a quest to be physically perfect.

Check out the K-Films via https:// www.gmovies.ph/stream-now.

Meanwhile, score free UPSTREAM tickets to these K-Films with the ongoing Ultimate Stan Promo! Open to Globe Mobile and Globe At Home customers, every registration to the specified promos earns them raffle entries.

Register to the promos through the GlobeOne, GCash, or Globe At Home apps which are available for download through Google Play Store for Android devices, and App Store for iOS devices.

Follow Globe on Facebook and join Kmmunity PH’s Facebook and Viber group for exciting updates on upcoming events, promos, and the K’tizens’ Choice Awards!

Get amazing discounts and deals when you use Grabpay at SM Supermalls

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M Supermalls and Grab has partnered to make shopping safer for mall goers while getting more savings through exciting and exclusive deals.

Mall goers can enjoy the following benefits while shopping at SM Supermalls and Markets from May 15 to June 30.

Ride safer with GrabCar and enjoy PHP 100 off on your rides with promo code: SHOPSMMALLS. Promo code is valid at SM City North EDSA, SM City Fairview, SM Mall of Asia, SM Megamall, and SM Aura Premier.

Pay cashless for your parking fee with GrabPay and get a PHP 50 cashback voucher that can be used to pay for your next parking. Promo valid at Pay Parking in SM Supermalls and SM Markets nationwide.

Make the most out of your shopping at The SM Store and SM Markets and get PHP 100 off on GrabCar ride or PHP 100 cashback shopping voucher for every *qualified purchase via GrabPay. Promo valid at over 400 participating The SM Store and SM Markets branches nationwide.

WORLD BICYCLE DAY AT SM. In celebration of World Bicycle Day on June 3, bike enthusiasts and advocates got together at the iconic SM Mall of Asia globe to highlight the bicycle as a simple, affordable, reliable, and sustainable means of transportation. These included SM Engineering Design and Development president Hans Sy Jr. (third from right), Delegation of the European Union to the Philippines Ambassador Luc Veron (third from left), Department of Transportation Assistant Secretary for Road Transport and Infrastructure Mark Steven Pastor (second from left), and members of the Firefly Brigade led by trustee Jack Yabut (second from right) and chairperson Roselle Leah Rivera (left).

The event also served as a send-off for Salubungan sa SM: Sama-Sama sa Bike Safety, a 1,300-kilometer bike packing tour across Luzon with safety clinics at select SM malls. The SM Mall of Asia was recently cited as Most Bike-Friendly Commercial Establishment in the 2020 Mobility Awards, together with SM City Marikina.

Sun Life Philippines recognized as most trusted insurance and investment brand

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UN Life Philippines (Sun Life) won the highest honors in the Trusted Brand Awards 2021, where it was bestowed two Platinum Awards in the Insurance and Investment categories.

Organized by international publication Reader’s Digest, the Trusted Brand Awards is based on consumer voting where over 8,000 individuals in the Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Taiwan rated 50 categories of products and services according to trustworthiness and credibility, quality, value, understanding of customer needs, innovation, and social responsibility.

“At Sun Life, we pursue excellence so we can be the best lifetime partner to clients who have entrusted us with their brighter future. This seal of approval from Filipino consumers indicates that we are moving in the right direction,” Sun Life Philippines CEO and Country Head Benedict Sison said. “We are thankful for their trust and support.”

Now on its 126th year in the Philippines, Sun Life is continuously exploring ways to deliver on its purpose of helping Clients achieve lifetime financial security and live healthier lives. The

MERALCO EXPANDS ITS SAN PABLO II SUBSTATION. Meralco personnel attends the commissioning of the new 83 MVA transformer bank no. 2 located at its San Pablo II 115 kV-34.5kV Substation in Cosico Avenue, San Pablo City, Laguna, resolving the critical loading of the existing 83 MVA transformer bank. The project also ensures the continuous power supply of the customers served by the said substation even during contingencies. It prevents possible power outages to many of its customers in the areas of San Pablo and Alaminos in Laguna, as well as in Dolores, Tiaong, Candelaria, and San Antonio in the Quezon Province. Despite the continued implementation of community quarantine measures throughout the country due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Meralco and its subsidiaries are continuously working hard to improve its distribution system in order to provide safe, adequate, and reliable electric service to its customers.

FDCP celebrates Pride Month, goes online for the LGBTQIA+ Film Festival this June

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While in SM Supermalls, don’t forget to cash-in your GrabPay wallet by simply heading over to any SM Business Center or Mall Information Booth for a safe and hassle-free experience. Best of all, it’s instant and free.

Mall goers paying with their GrabPay wallet can earn GrabRewards points for their purchases, which they can use to save more on their GrabFood orders, Grab rides, or on their next visit to SM or choose from a wide catalogue of vouchers to enjoy more savings from.

Paying for your parking and shopping transactions is safer and much more convenient with QR codes available at the payment booths.

Terms and Conditions apply. Visit grb. to/SMxGrab for the complete promo mechanics. Per DTI Fair Trade Permit Nos. FTEB-118800 and FTEB-119276 Series of 2021.

In compliance with safety protocols, mall goers are always advised to wear a face mask and face shield upon riding GrabCar and going to SM Supermalls.

company has been developing and enhancing products and services to meet the needs of its clients, focusing on business owners, overseas Filipino workers, and professionals in a bid to provide them with relevant solutions for their unique financial goals.

“When it comes to one’s finances and health, there is no one size fits all. By digging deeper into these client segments and really understanding their experiences, priorities, and lifestyles, we are in a better position to serve them.” Sison said.

Those eager to learn more about the programs tailor-fit for these client segments may consult a Sun Life advisor or connect with one via bit.ly/advisormatch.

“The pandemic has raised the Filipinos’ awareness of their vulnerabilities when it comes to their finances and their health,” Sison said. “They are eager to take steps to protect themselves, and Sun Life is ready to take this journey with them.”

HE Film Development Council of the Philippines is relaunching PelikuLAYA this year as an annual LGBTQIA+ film festival organized by the national government as our way to express our continued support for gender equality and inclusivity by creating platforms to bring to light the struggles, celebrate the achievements, and champion the causes of the LGBTQIA+ community,” FDCP Chairperson and CEO Liza Diño said. . Launched in 2018 with screenings of award-winning films in selected SM Cinemas, the 2nd PelikuLAYA: LGBTQIA+ Film Festival, this time, will be held online from June 4 to 30. With the theme “Sama-Sama, Lahat Rarampa!”, this year’s PelikuLAYA aims to further empower the members of the LGBTQIA+ community through a lineup of local and international films, film talks and lectures, a drag yoga event, and musical performances.

Beginning June 4, a total of 23 subscription films can be viewed for only PHP 99 on the FDCP Channel (fdcpchannel.ph).

Meanwhile, available for rental starting June 4 is award-winning French film “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” by Céline Sciamma starring Adèle Haenel and Noémie Merlant, which will have its Philippine Online Premiere at PelikuLAYA 2021. The 2019 Cannes Awardee for the Queer Palm Prize and Best Screenplay

will be available for rental for PHP 220 with a 7-day access that will expire 48 hours after the first play.

PelikuLAYA will screen four films for free throughout the festival: Rhadem Morados’ documentary “Budjang” and three shorts from CineSpectra 2019: A Film Festival for HIV/AIDS Awareness — “A” by Rod Modina, “Alex & Aki” by Dexter Paul de Jesus, and “Doon sa Isang Sulok” by Yong Tapang, Jr. The opening program “Thank God, It's Pride Day!” starts at 7 p.m. on June 4 featuring the Sineng Pambansa National Film Festival 2013 entry “Lihis,” a love story during the Marcos regime involving two NPA comrades played by Jake Cuenca and Joem Bascon.

The closing program “Awra!: Mga Awit at Rampa para sa Ating Makulay na Komunidad” on June 30 at 7 p.m. will feature a musical performance, a fashion show from members of the LGBTQIA+ community, and a free one-time screening of the restored version of “T-Bird at Ako” starring Superstar Nora Aunor and Star for All Seasons Vilma Santos, presented by the ABS-CBN Film Restoration Program.

All PelikuLAYA events will be streamed live on the FDCP Channel and on the FDCP’s Facebook pages and YouTube channel. To watch the PelikuLAYA films, visit and register at the FDCP Channel. For more information, visit https://www.facebook.com/fdcpchannel or fdcpchannel.ph.

Editor: Anne Ruth Dela Cruz

Health&Fitness BusinessMirror

Thursday, June 3, 2021 B7

Don’t start smoking to avoid bad effects

By Rory Visco

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Contributor

ow many have been lured into smoking, whatever the age, by taking a short puff?

Some say it happened in college or high school, some say within the community, or because of peer pressure, where smoking is mostly considered a rite of passage from a young age to supposed maturity.

Some who refuse may even be tagged a coward or plain weakling, which is already a form of bullying, or not being able to be one with the barkada as a sign of solidarity.

But what ican one really draw out of smoking? Why is it so alluring and tempting?

A global epidemic

A study called Global Burden of Disease revealed that more than eight million people died prematurely in 2017 because of smoking.

As shown in the site ourworldindata.org, smoking is seen as a risk factor for most of the world’s leading causes of death like lung cancer and other cancer forms, heart

and respiratory diseases, making it the second leading risk factors for death around the world.

Statista.com, a leading provider of consumer and market data, said 19 percent of adults globally smoke. Though that number has decreased over the years and is expected to continue being so, it is estimated that 17 percent of the world’s population will smoke, compared to the earlier projection of 21 percent back in 2015. Awareness of the dangers of smoking, costs and policy changes and anti-smoking campaigns and quitting methods may have contributed to the decline.

The Department of Health (DOH) said the Philippines is one of 15 countries world-

wide with a heavy burden of tobacco-related ill health. The DOH revealed that 87,600 Filipinos die from tobacco-related diseases on a yearly basis.

Based on the results of the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) in 2015, 15.9 million adults (40.3 percent of men and 5.1 percent of women) smoked tobacco.

Quitters are the real winners

While most people may see quitting smoking as a sign of weakness or quitters being tagged as losers, they are actually the real winners because they cared more for their health and well-being than anything else.

Quit Ambassadors Troy Montero and IC Mendoza also shared how they overcame the challenges in quitting smoking. Montero drew inspiration in quitting from his family and from his concern for his health. “I needed to set a good example for my family.”

Being a supposed health buff, Montero also felt he was living a double life and he did not like it. “I was supposed to be an inspiration when it comes to health, yet when everyone’s not looking, I was smoking, and it wasn’t good.”

For Mendoza, he used the power of social media to gain enough strength and will power to quit. He said quitting is not a journey to be spent alone which is why he

used to post significant milestones in his “quitting” journey regularly and was further empowered by the positive messages he gets not just from friends but even those he did not know, but eventually became friends with. “The support of my family, and more so the community, was very important. I didn’t realize I had much support.”

Dr. Joel Santiaguel, a Fellow of the Philippine College of Chest Physicians, echoed the sentiments of Montero and Mendoza, that quitting smoking should not be a lonely journey. “One’s family and friends play an important role in bettering one’s health and well-being.”

Challenges and possible solutions

In terms of the most difficult health challenges or problems that smoking may bring, Dr. Santiaguel said it is the development of cancers in the lungs, esophagus or even the stomach, most of the areas where the smoke passes through, which is where the tumors can develop. “And if you compare lung cancer to all the other cancers, it has the poorest outcomes. Prognosis-wise, you will be lucky if you go beyond two years.

Lung cancer is really aggressive.”

As a possible solution to help in quitting smoking, Dr. Santiaguel mentioned Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT), and that with the use of NRTs, smokers will be able

to manage their withdrawal symptoms better and have higher chances of success in quitting the habit.

“NRTs have been proven effective by several global studies for many years. How it works is that it replaces your supply of nicotine without making yourself vulnerable to the harmful chemicals found in a cigarette.

Over time and regular use, it will ease you out of your nicotine dependence and eventually stop the craving for another stick.”

In celebration of World No Tobacco Day last May 31 and June as National No Smoking Month, Nicorette Philippines, a Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) conducted several activities with the hope of inspiring and encouraging Filipino smokers to commit to quit for good.

Nicorette Philippines Senior Brand Manager Jason Khu shared that in bringing Nicorette to the Philippines, they recognized that not everyone has the same experience when it comes to quitting smoking. “With that in mind, our goal was to empower and complement their quitting journeys so that they may be able to make quitting possible for themselves with the help of our smoking cessation product.”

Both Montero and Mendoza were also one in saying how to make quitting smoking a true commitment. “Quitting can be easy. To make it easy, don’t start smoking.”

Patients with diabetes should get Covid-19 jab Warm up to wellness and self-care with these tips

By Mary Queen Villegas Florencio

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MD, FPCP, FPSEDM

ow does Covid-19 impact people with diabetes? What important measures do these patients have to observe to prevent the disease?

Diabetes is a complex disease characterized by elevated blood sugar because of abnormal insulin secretion and/ or insulin action. Insulin is a hormone secreted by the pancreas that regulates the blood sugar in the body.

Uncontrolled diabetes leads to different complications such as heart attack, stroke, leg amputation, blindness, and kidney failure.

Data from the Department of Science and Technology-Food and Nutrition Research Institute (DOST-FNRI) showed that the prevalence of diabetes in the Philippines increased from 5.6 percent in 2013 to 8.2 percent in 2019.

Around 14.2 percent of the population already have prediabetes. Combining the prevalence of diabetes and prediabetes, one out of every five Filipinos have abnormal glucose levels.

Covid-19 is a novel disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus strain. The majority of the people infected with the virus will experience mild to moderate respiratory illness and recover without requiring special treatment.

However, vulnerable groups such as the elderly and those with underlying medical conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, lung disease, obesity, and cancer are more likely to develop serious illness.

The invasion of the virus to the different cells of the body such as the heart and the lungs results in inflammatory changes which causes injury and multi-organ damage. Diabetes is associated with systemic inflammation. Studies show that patients with diabetes have more virus entry, weakened immune response, less viral elimination, and dysregulated inflam-

matory markers.

Patients with diabetes may have a similar risk of contracting Covid-19 as those people without diabetes. However, because of the inherent feature of the disease, patients with diabetes have a higher risk of hospitalization, ICU admissions, severe complications, and death once they have contracted Covid-19 compared to those without diabetes.

So what must a patient with diabetes do to remain healthy and prevent Covid-19?

Follow the minimum health standards such as frequent handwashing, wearing of face masks and face shields, physical distancing, ensuring proper ventilation, and reducing time of interaction if any. Clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces daily. Stay home if sick and call the doctor for advice.

Make sure to have several weeks supply of maintenance medications, blood sugar monitoring device, batteries, and needles for those on insulin and other medical supplies to minimize trips to the pharmacy and decrease risk of exposure. Keep simple carbs such as regular soda, honey or candies ready to be taken only when the blood sugars are very low and too ill to eat.

Maintain good blood sugar control. Strive to eat healthy and be well—hydrated, exercise and do physical activities at home, have adequate sleep and learn how to manage stress.

Know the individualized blood sugar target set by your doctor and monitor blood sugars regularly. Be vigilant for signs of unstable blood sugar.

Collect the contact numbers of your doctors and diabetes team, pharmacy and insurance provider. At the Endocrine Diabetes and Thyroid Center of The Medical City, a healthcare team composed of doctors, diabetes nurse educators and dietitians can be reached via telemedicine. Have your laboratory tests and

procedures done as scheduled and get in touch with the healthcare team for proper guidance.

Do not delay scheduled appointments with other specialists for specific treatment of diabetes complications such as eye procedures for retinopathy or immediate management of infected wounds to prevent worsening of the condition.

Get vaccinated!

In a position statement by the Philippine Society of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism on Covid-19 vaccination for adult individuals with diabetes, the society recommends that all adult individuals with Diabetes Mellitus Type 1 and Type 2 should consider vaccination against Covid-19 infection after thorough evaluation and discussion with their physicians. Individuals who may be immunosuppressed due to poor glycemic control can still be vaccinated with precaution, since potential benefits outweigh the known potential risks. Hence, patients with diabetes should be encouraged to have themselves vaccinated against Covid-19. They should also be reminded to continue practicing the minimum health standards even after vaccination.

Dr. Mary Queen Villegas-Florencio is a Fellow of the Philippine College of Physicians and Philippine Society of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism. She is an Endocrinologist and Consultant Director of the Endocrine, Diabetes and Thyroid Center of The Medical City. She is an advocate of healthy lifestyle for the prevention and management of chronic diseases. For inquiries, you may call the Endocrine, Diabetes and Thyroid Center of The Medical City at 8-9881000 or 8-9887000 ext. 6611, and like The Medical City, Section of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism FB page (https://www.facebook. com/TMCendo).

National Kidney Transplant Institute brings home 2 wins at Healthcare Asia Awards ‘21

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hilippines’ National Kidney and Transplant Institute (NKTI) received both the Service Innovation of the YearPhilippines and Specialty Hospital of the YearPhilippines trophies at the recently concluded Healthcare Asia Awards 2021.

The awards program recognized NKTI’s endurance as it strategized its human resources, logistics, and infrastructure to attend and assist Covid-19 patients.

The institute created a Covid Crisis Management Team, which handles the growing concerns because of the pandemic such as daily updates/census, adherence to safety protocols, supplies, transportation, support, and quarters for the healthcare workers. NKTI, a specialty government center for renal health and transplantation excels in service, training, and research. Initially, the institute manifested that it would not accept Covid patients because of confined immunocompromised patients.

However, as the pandemic ensued, critical moribund Covid patients, both renal and non-renal, went to the NKTI. Because of this,

NKTI released new advisories. The institute only accepted renal emergency admissions while elective admissions and surgeries, including transplantation and organ procurement were suspended. Meanwhile, medical and allied support were reassigned to critical areas and a Covid Manual was published. Trimedia was also tapped to assist in information dissemination.

NKTI used to perform more than half of the country’s kidney transplants. However, renal admissions dropped by 44 percent yearon-year in 2020 compared to 2019, including urologic surgeries, organ retrieval and renal transplantation. Renal transplants decreased from 300 in 2019 to 129 cases in 2020.

As a result, some training programs were extended due to the lack of cases. The situation worsened with the implementation of lockdowns resulting in patients missing hemodialysis sessions or unclaimed peritoneal dialysis solutions. Other dialysis centers closed down due to the pandemic.

Because of this, NKTI harnessed the art and science of engineering to build the Covid

Tent Field Hospital, a “mini hospital,” providing tents housing dialysis, radiologic equipment and even a satellite operating room for vascular access insertion, peritoneal dialysis catheter insertion and other surgeries on Covid patients.

These also housed 15 hemodialysis stations, peritoneal dialysis, post-kidney transplant patients, pediatric patients, watchers, ICU, radiology and satellite operating room.

A “HOTZONE” with improved ventilation was designated at the hospital’s second floor to move Covid patients from the tents, and still maintain cohorting of patients. NKTI also managed to integrate and transform all efforts towards quality patient care and sustain its operations during the pandemic.

NKTI aims to live up to their mantra: “Nobody should be left behind and unprotected,” which was shown in their projects as they engaged their employees, and institutionalization of values, discipline and coordination.

All efforts considered, NKTI believes that they became a stronger renal institution especially amidst the fight against Covid-19.

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ith the hot weather at its peak now, the rise in temperatures can bring a loss in motivation to stay active. While it’s always good to take a break, doing things to improve your fitness and wellness always goes a long way towards keeping your overall health in tip-top shape.

Good health goes way beyond having a fit body. Eating right, sleeping well, and properly managing stress all are just as important. With restrictions on travel and movement affecting the ways we normally go about our lives, we have to deal with the reality of not being able to do most of things we used to – which can definitely leave us feeling overwhelmed. By not being able to exercise the way we used to, travel to all the places we want to go, or to see our friends and loved ones as often as we’d like—when put together, all those things can affect our physical, mental, and emotional health.

By understanding the connections between physical activity, nutrition, sleep, and stress relief, Fitbit is committed to helping Filipinos achieve better overall health. Through groundbreaking technology geared for not only for fitness, but also for life, Fitbit aims to bring the Future of Fit to the wrists of all Filipinos looking to get and stay healthy.

With most of us spending our summers indoors, here are Fitbit’s exercise and self-care tips to help you make the most of the season:

HIIT those workout sessions hard

High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) is defined as training methods that involve repeated bouts of high intensity effort followed by varied recovery times. The benefits of HIIT can include maximizing calories burned in a short amount of time, a higher metabolic rate, fat loss, lower heart rate, and reduced blood sugar.

Shake up a slow-and-steady workout by mixing up heart-pumping movements like squats, push-ups, and jumping jacks – all of which you can do in the safety of your own homes. With Fitbit’s 24/7 heart rate tracking technology and Active Zone Minutes to inform you when you’re in target heart rate, you can help get the most out of every minute you spend training.

Be an early riser

The sun’s rays are at their strongest from 10 am to 4 pm. Despite being indoors, the rise in heat combined with strenuous physical activity can bring about heat exhaustion – a condition where the body can no longer get rid of the heat made during exercise. While exercise should be about pushing yourself, it’s also important to know your

limits and respect Mother Nature.

If the heat keeps you from getting a good home workout in, try exercising in the early morning when temperatures are generally cooler.

Sweat it out, but take care of your skin

It’s always good to work up a sweat, but don’t forget to look after your skin in the process. While sweating helps the body cool down, the impurities that sweating flushes out can stay on your skin, which can lead to irritations when the skin begins to reabsorb them.

Consider taking the time to pamper yourself by working a cooling mask into your skincare routine to help reduce any skin inflammation brought on by the heat. They are also really soothing, too!

Cool down while you chow down

While a trip to the beach right now may seem unlikely for many of us, there’s a way to bring a welcome set of tropical vibes into your home. When you’re feeling the heat a little too much, chill out with shakes or popsicles made with fresh fruit and yogurt, or bite into some frozen berries or grapes to help maintain healthy hair and skin, promote heart health, and weight loss – all things that can do your body good.

Don’t forget to take breaks

With most of our time being spent at home, going through the same motions every day can do a number on our mental health and stress levels. When you’re feeling stressed out in some way, taking some time out to meditate can do wonders when you feel a little offcenter, or even when you just need some time to relax. Fitbit’s stress management tools can help you understand the relations between your mood and stress, as well as provide you access to guided mindfulness sessions whenever you need them.

Sleep well

Getting proper sleep brings a host of benefits such as better alertness, improved memory, and reduced inflammation. Proper sleep however, isn’t just measured in the hours you spend sleeping, but in the quality of sleep you get as well. To help understand your sleep quality each night, Fitbit’s Sleep Stages and Sleep Score technology helps you understand just what you need to get a good night’s sleep.

T his summer, stay ing indoors should not be an excuse to keep ourselves from pursuing our health and wellness goals. By helping you new ways to stay active, relax, and beat stress, Fitbit aims to keep Filipinos on course towards living healthier lives, not only for this summer, but all-year round.

Eala No. 2 seed at French Open juniors tourney

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ILIPINO tennis sensation Alex Eala is seeded No. 2 in the juniors competition of the French Open at Roland Garros in Paris, France.

The 16-year-old Globe ambassador is coming off to a rousing performance in the women’s doubles event of the W25 Platja D’Aro in Spain where she finished second with Russian partner Oksana Selekhmeteva.

Eala is currently the third best junior player in the world and ranked a career best 624th in the Women’s Tennis Association Tour.

Eala, however, will be the International Tennis Federation’s No. 2 seed in the juniors tournament of the third Grand Slam event of the year.

Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva of Andorra is the tournament top seed while Russians Polina Kuedemetova is third and Diana Shnaider is No. 4. American Robin Montgomery is the fifth seed.

Eala is looking forward to surpassing her performance last year when she reached the semifinals at Roland Garros. She partnered with Priska Nugroho of Indonesia to win the girls’ doubles tournament at the Australian Open.

Eala, a Rafa Nadal Academy scholar, bagged her first women’s singles professional title in January at the Rafa Nadal Academy World Tour in Manacor, Spain, coming back from an opening-set loss to beat home favorite Yvonne Cavalle-Reimers, 5-7, 6-1, 6-2 in the final.

She then reached the quarterfinals of her next three tournaments and had decent showing in her singles campaign in Bellinzona, Switzerland; Grenoble, France; and Manacor, Spain.

Eala also had a stint in the qualifying tournament of the Miami Open last March.

The French Open Juniors Championships start on Saturday.

Sports

THE Australian softball team players wait for the antigen test after arriving at the Narita International Airport on Tuesday. AP

BusinessMirror

B8

| Thursday, June 3, 2021

mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

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BARRING ARMAGEDDON,

TOKYO OLYMPICS A GO

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OKYO—Will the postponed Tokyo Olympics open despite rising opposition and the pandemic?

The answer is almost certainly “yes.”

Senior International Olympic Committee (IOC) member Richard Pound was emphatic in an interview with a British newspaper.

“Barring Armageddon that we can’t see or anticipate, these things are a go,” Pound told the Evening Standard.

Tokyo is under a Covid-19 state of emergency, but IOC Vice President John Coates has said the games will open on July 23— state of emergency, or no state of emergency.

As an exclamation point, Australia’s softball team—the first major group of athletes from abroad to set up an Olympic base in Japan—arrived in Tokyo on Tuesday.

PSC Chairman William “Butch” Ramirez said. “This will boost the morale of our national team members as they prepare for the SEA Games.”

The bubble-type trainings will be implemented under strict supervision and monitoring of the PSC Medical Scientific Athletes Services (MSAS) Unit and JAOdesignated Health and Safety Officers who will continuously monitor the health status of all individuals involved during and after the activity.

Only areas placed under moderate and low-risk community quarantine classifications can host bubble trainings with a maximum number of individuals allowed—based on the risk assessment of the PSC, POC, PPC and respective NSAs. Plans and activities must be coordinated with the host local government unit and Regional IATF. The PSC is also studying the possibility of hosting the bubble training for athletics, boxing and karate in its Baguio City facility.

Louie Sangalang, Pinoy Survivor TESSA JAZMINES | tessa4347@gmail.com

PART OF THE GAME AFTER 11 episodes of the 13-episode reality series called The Apprentice: ONE Championship Edition, behold, the Filipino flag is waving high.

The reason? Filipino candidate Louie Sangalang—an entrepreneur who has been an MMA champion in the Universal Reality Combat Championship (URCC) promotion, the first Filipino cancer survivor to conquer the FWD North Pole Marathon, an Alveo Iron Man Davao finisher who has laughed in the face of The Big C that afflicted him when he was only in his 20s—is still in the thick of the fight.

He is in fact in the finals of what has been called “the toughest The Apprentice in history.” Louie, 43, is the only male and Asian candidate still standing in the highly challenging competition that tests not just the aspirants’ business savvy,

Not so fast KIEFER

So the Olympics are barreling ahead. But why?

Start with billions of dollars at stake, a contract that overwhelmingly favors the IOC, and a decision by the Japanese government to stay the course, which might help Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga keep his job.

These factors have overridden scathing criticism from medical bodies that fear the Olympics may spread Covid-19 variants, and a call for cancellation from Asahi Shimbun, a games’ sponsor and the country’s second-largest selling newspaper. The United States Department of State has issued a Level-4 “Do not travel” warning for Japan with Tokyo and other areas under a state of emergency that expires on June 20.

And there’s saving face. Japan has officially spent $15.4 billion on the Olympics, but several government audits suggest it’s

much more. All but $6.7 billion is public money. Geopolitical rival China is to hold the 2022 Winter Olympics just six months after Tokyo ends, and could claim centerstage should Tokyo fail.

A not-for-profit based in Switzerland, the IOC has ironclad control under terms of the socalled Host City Contract, and it’s unlikely to cancel on its own since it would lose billions in broadcast rights and sponsorship income.

Though it portrays itself as a sporting league of nations, the IOC is a multibillion dollar sports business that derives almost 75 percent of its income from selling broadcast rights.

Another 18 perent comes from 15 top sponsors.

Andrew Zimbalist, an economist at Smith College in Massachusetts who has written extensively about the Olympics, estimates the IOC could lose about $3.5 billion-$4

billion in broadcast revenue if the Tokyo Games were canceled. He suggested a small portion of this, between $400 million and $800 million, might be made up by cancellation insurance.

US broadcaster NBCUniversal is the IOC’s largest single source of income.

“The IOC also feels a commitment by the momentum of history to do this,” Zimbalist said in an interview with The Associated Press.

“Their whole DNA is saying: ‘do it, do it, do it.’ The Japanese government really does not have the right to cancel the games. They can go to the IOC and plead with them, and maybe they are doing that.”

Of course, the Japanese government could stop the Olympics.

It would be a public-relations disaster for the IOC to get into a legal battle with Tokyo, so any such deal would be worked out in private. AP

Guidelines for training bubble of SEA Games-bound teams set HE government, through Joint Administrative Order (JAO) No. 2020-0001 on Sports, issued supplemental guidelines for the conduct of bubble training of Hanoi 31st Southeast Asian Games-bound teams.

The Philippine Sports Commission (PSC), Games and Amusements Board (GAB) and the Department of Health (DOH) made the joint order which applies only to the members of the national team—both for contact and noncontact sports.

The joint order involves the national sports associations in close coordination and endorsement by the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) and Philippine Paralympic Committee (PPC) to the PSC. National athletes and personnel below 18 years old are required to have written parental consent.

“We would like to thank the government through the InterAgency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases [IATF-EID] for approving the JAO guidelines,”

Marcial to Kiefer:

but their physical skills and endurance, and their very souls as well.

Originally a batch of 16 candidates culled from different parts of the world, those still competing for the ultimate prize has been narrowed down to two. The ultimate prize—S250,000 job offer from ONE Championship founder and CEO Chatri Sityodtong to be his protégé and chief of staff in the ONE office in Singapore—is being disputed only by Louie and Venezuelan Jessica Ramella. Jessica is known in The Apprentice circles as “Lady McGyver” for her ability to be a problem solver.

Gone too soon are 14 other aspirants from the United States, Russia, Germany, New Zealand, Thailand, Singapore, Japan, India and Indonesia. One other Filipino candidate, Lara Alvarez, was one of those who were eliminated early in

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THIRDY

By Josef Ramos

HE Land of the Rising Sun seem to have a tremendous appeal to brothers Kiefer and Thirdy after the elder of the Ravenas who plays for NLEX in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) signed a one-year contract with the the Shiga Lakestars in the Japan B.League as Asian import.

“He [Kiefer] already signed up for a one season contract,” Thirdy, the younger Ravena at 24, said.

“It’s one of his dreams to play international basketball.”

A group of agents headed by Marvin Espiritu reportedly arranged the 27-year-old Kiefer’s contracts with the Japanese team.

He is contracted to play later this year in Japan.

But not so fast, Kiefer, according to PBA Commissioner Willie Marcial.

“He [Kiefer] has a UPC [Uniform Player’s Contract] and he has a contract with the PBA. So it’s not going to happen and it won’t be allowed,” Marcial said. “That’s what all I can say for now. I cannot comment further about it.”

Kiefer Ravena signed a threeyear contract with the Road Warriors September last year.

Thirdy Ravena was earlier embroiled in the PBA’s “draft-dodging” rule but managed to ease himself out of the mess. The rule prohibits local players from plying their trade abroad immediately after finishing their collegiate career at home.

Ravena plays for NeoPhoenix in the same Japanese league and is currently in town for a vacation.

He is completing his quarantine in a hotel in Libis, Quezon City.

“I’m happy for him. I’m looking forward to playing against him in Japan,” said the former Ateneo 6-foot-2 swingman Thirdy.

PASIG City Mayor Vico Sotto (third from left), Department of the Interior and Local Government Undersecretary Nestor Quinsay (right) pose with the donated bikes. With them are (from left) Gretchen Ho and Deputy Philippine National Police Chief for Administration Lt. Gen. Joselito Vera.

MVP Group donates bicycles to Pasig City, contract tracers

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N a bid to help people commute to work safely or make a living in a pandemic, the foundations of the companies led by Manuel V Pangilinan initially awarded 70 bicycles to indigents in Pasig City and 50 to government contract tracers.

The donations under its Bike for Livelihood initiative were conducted in celebration of the World Bicycle Day that falls on Wednesday, June 3, as declared by the United Nations.

Partnering with TV5 anchor

Gretchen Ho, who founded the Donate a Bike, Save a Job project in 2020, PLDT-Smart Foundation (PSF), One Meralco Foundation, Metro Pacific Investments Foundation and First Pacific Company Limited recently turned over bicycles and digital tools to the recipients of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps), bike lane enforcers of Pasig City, as well as contact tracers of the Philippine National Police (PNP).

Pangilinan, who initiated Bike for Livelihood, said the initia-

tive could help support livelihood and transportation needs in their respective jobs.

“The best solution to poverty is livelihood. If you could provide [people] with a means of making themselves a livelihood, whether by delivering food or medicine or water, I think that’s something we should support,” Pangilinan said.

“I do hope they would use it for their families, so they can uplift their way of living. At the end of day, that’s what we’re all here for. Social orientation is embedded in our

Group’s DNA,” Pangilinan added.

Smart Communications President and CEO and PLDT Chief Revenue Officer Alfredo Panlilio, a biking enthusiast himself, said Bike for Livelihood enables a sustainable future.

“You help those in need of assistance on mobility, so that they may still be able to go to their workplaces in the absence of sufficient and reliable public transport,” Panlilio said. “Biking also promotes health and wellness, while providing livelihood.”

the competition.

But Louie hung tough at every turn, showing his smarts, experience, coolness, discernment and strategic thinking, particularly in the boardroom challenges. He breezed through the physical challenges as well, pooh-poohing acrophobic heights, claustrophobic spaces that were submerged in water, muscle fatigue and exhaustion in a dragon race, among other punishing ordeals.

In the boardroom challenges, Louie was alternately take-charge and laidback cool, making decisions and presentations that the judges described as solid. He was placed on the chopping block only once, unlike his fellow candidates.

No less than Chatri Sityodtong took notice of Louie’s strong points.

“Louie has that grit, that resilience, and that calmness about him, and clearly he’s very, very competent if you look at everything he does,” noted Chatri. “He’s very good at problem solving, very good with numbers, very analytical,” chimed in co-judge Niharika Singh, ONE Championship senior vice president.

It seemed that the stars aligned for Louie in Episode 11 when the

boardroom challenge required him and partner Jessica to work on concepts that would improve the way the NGO assigned to them, could connect cancer patients and their families with each other and prospective donors and volunteers.

LOVE, NILS is an international organization that supports children with cancer and their caregivers.

The cause of the NGO resonated with Louie, who besides dealing with the disease also lost friends and colleagues to the dreaded illness. “Towards my last year in the university, that’s when they found out I had cancer. After surgeries, chemotherapy and radiotherapy, I started getting better. So this particular business challenge is quite close to my heart because it’s about helping all these cancer patients and cancer survivors. I just want to give back,” he said.

Louie and Jessica created an AI chatbot using a cloud communication platform to provide emotional and social support to the sick kids and their families and let them connect directly with prospective donors.

As successful as Louie was in his quest in The Apprentice, he also met with tough opposition and suffered

through the nasty comments of some of his co-candidates. He was called “a strategist,” “inauthentic,” “the weakest link” and “ruthless” by those who felt he could be duplicitous in his tactics.

But Louie, who is an avowed follower of stoicism, just lets those comments drip like water off a duck’s back. “Nothing can really hurt me. I’ve had many frustrations and failures. But frustration can be inspiration. You can move from frustration to action. The key is to be resilient, grateful, appreciative of every little thing. Always look at things from the bigger perspective,” he says philosophically.

“I came into this competition with an all or nothing mindset. If I have to start from nothing again, I know my wife will be there for me. At a point in my life, I made a very huge mistake against my wife.

But we saved our marriage. Our relationship is what inspires me to be The Apprentice. There’s so many things that I’ve done wrong in my life and I just want to fix it. I just want to be a much better person.

That’s the reason why I am so driven by this. I just want to be able to give back,” he said.

Louie has always been special and has a mind of his own, says his mother Annabelle Sangalang, a colleague of mine at the University of the Philippines. “He was inquisitive, observant, makulit.”

He has always had a competitive nature, bringing home the top prize at inter-school competitions and excelled in his classes without really trying. He also taught arnis and taekwondo to his schoolmates at La Salle Greenhills.

Annabelle thinks Louie’s source of strength is that he knows exactly who he is. “He is highly aware of his strengths, weaknesses, skills, values and shortcomings. After having a child at an early age and [surviving cancer], he was transformed into a better person. His belief is to be authentic, self-reliant, avoid being judgmental, recognize your uniqueness. He has a special soft spot for children with special needs and cancer survivors like himself.

Will Louie Sangalang wave the Filipino flag right through to the grand finish of The Apprentice?

You can still catch the last two episodes on Thursdays, 8:50 p.m. on AXN and on Mondays 9 p.m. on One Sports.