BusinessDaily (July 26, 2013)

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Briefly Old PUJs phaseout STARTING end of October this year, old passenger jitneys, taxis, vans and buses used for public transport in Northern Mindanao would be phased out, the Land Transportation and Franchising Regulatory Board said Thursday.

LTFRB Regional Director Mandangan Darimbang said the franchises of public utility vehicles that are more than 15 years old would no longer be renewed as the LFTRB started to phase out the old taxis, buses, and vans.

H e s a i d t h e LT F R B has star ted checking the franchises and models of public utility transport, especially if these vehicles were acquired more than 15 years ago.

National budget BUDGET Secretary Florencio “ B u t c h ” A b a d y e s t e r d ay submitted to Congress the National Expenditure Program for FY 2014—a blueprint of the Aquino Administration’s development agenda to sustain the country’s economic expansion and advance rapid, inclusive growth.

The 16th Congress opened Monday with a State of the Nation Address (SONA) by President Benigno Aquino III. The proposed P2.268trillion National Budget for 2014 is 13.1 percent higher than this year’s P2.006-trillion program, a statement from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) said. “ We intend to channel more investments into infrastructure development and other public services that are pivotal to our pursuit of rapid, sustained and inclusive growth,” Abad said.

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Friday

P15.00

Normin posts 7.4% growth

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July 26, 2013

By MIKE BANOS, Editor-at-Large and BUTCH D. ENERIO, Correspondent

ORTHERN Mindanao’s economy remains resilient amid persisting brownouts that paralyze major businesses in many parts of the region.

Based on official data released yesterday by t he Nat iona l Stat ist ica l Coordination Board –Region

10 (NSCB-10), northern Mindanao’s regional gross domestic product (RGDP) acc eler ated la st ye a r -

showing increased economic performance that contributed to the better-than-expected national growth of 6.6 % in 2012.

Data showed the region posted a 7.4% growth in 2012, higher than the 5.8% registered in the previous normin/PAGE 11

EMERGING ECONOMY. The emergence of several highend residential projects such as posh condominiums, luxury hotels and subdivisions in Cagayan de Oro City indicates a strong economy. The latest of which is Vista Residences’ “The Loop”, a twin-tower 25-storey condominium project that will rise within the Limketkai Complex .

Vista Residences’ ‘The Loop’ rising in to Cagayan de Oro V ISTA Residences , t he condominium development a rm of Vista La nd a nd Lifescapes, is expanding it s re ach i n M i nd a nao with its newest high-rise condominium project called The Loop.

The twin tower, 25-storey condominium development will rise within the Lim Ket Kai Complex, the central business and commercial districts of Cagayan de Oro City, to offer Kagay-anons vista/PAGE 11

M’nao to sustain national growth MINDANAO’S distinctive s t a n d p o i nt a n d hu g e potentials of its industries are considered significant contributors to the country’s exports and should help s u s t a i n t he c ou nt r y ’s economic growth.

“Mindanao is in a special

position to provide solid support system to export g row t h a nd e c onom ic d e v e l o pm e nt ,” D T I Undersecretary Ponciano C. Manalo Jr. said during t he re c ent i nve s t ment conference organized by sustain/PAGE 11

Northern Mindanao’s economy registered a 7.4% growth in 2012, higher than its 5.8% posted the previous year. (SOURCE: NSCB-10)

Pilipinas Go4Health Movement advocacy drive set for launch

By IRENE JOY B. DAYO, Reporter

THE Department of Health Regional Office 10 (DOH-10) is set to launch its advocacy campaign Pilipinas Go4Health on August 16, 2013, which will kick-off the continuous programs of the department.

With the tagline “We’re bringing Pinoys together to take action for health,” Pilipinas Go4Health is an advocacy and health promotion campaign of DOH and its partners that aims to inform and encourage Filipinos to practice a healthy lifestyle by making a personal commitment to physical activity, proper nutrition, and the prevention or cessation of smoking and launch/PAGE 11

HEALTHY LIFESTYLE. Department of Health (DOH) 10 Publ ic In fo rmat ion O f f ice r Jun Galban explained to quadmedia of Cagayan de Oro City the department’s Pilipinas GO4 Health Movement. GO4 stands for GO Smoke-Free, GO Sustansiya, GO Sigla, GO Slow to Tagay, an advocacy for good lifestyle. photo by rolando sudaria

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Economy

P3-B investments to boost Butuan’s economy BUTUAN CITY—The influx of multi-billionpeso investments, including the booming construction here, are expected to boost further the economic condition of this city.

Local officials said the actua l investments t hat

boosted the city’s economic development came from

t he f ie ld s of b a n k i ng , c on s t r uc t ion of m a l l s , government infrastructure, eco-growers, car dealers. and agriculture.

It w a s le a r ne d t h at close to P3 billion worth of investments have been noted in this city, aside from the construction of housing units in various subdivisions, construction of roads, and the small enterprises.

“The rising confidence of the people, and the business community contribute to these big investments now seen in the city,” said Mayor Ferdinand M. Amante Jr. boost/PAGE 2

PNoy explains P2.2-T budget M A N I L A—President Benigno S. Aquino III laid down the principles and reforms that shaped the proposed P2.268-trillion National Budget for 2014.

In his 2014 Budget Message, t he Chief Executive said the 2014 Nat ion a l Bud ge t w i l l support his administration’s a g e n d a f o r I n c lu s i v e Development.

The key reforms include the Performance-Informed Budgeting, Tighter Budget

Prioritization for Inclusive Development, Bet ter Collaboration as the New Standard in Government, Enabling the Private Sector as Engine of Economic Growth,Transparency at the Core of Effective Public Financial Management and Empowering the Citizenry Through the Budget.

“For t h is Proposed Budget for 2014, we embark on a bold move to change the way the Budget is presented.

Pnoy/PAGE 11

ARMM institutes fiscal prudence DTI partners with DepEd C O TA BATO C I T Y—R e g ion a l the performance of every agency or to push consumer rights Governor Mujiv Hataman of the office.

Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao on Thursday has started instituting fiscal prudence among agencies and offices in the regional bureaucracy as means to advance necessary reforms.

“The memorandum has been issued by the ARMM governor that sets up a system on procedural flowchart to safeguard financial transactions of the regional government and its attached line agencies,” ARMM Executive Secretary Laisa Alamia said during a news conference here.

Alamia said the streamlined scheme will help curb anomalies and dubious transactions while, at the same time, provide means to gauge

As env isioned by Hata ma n himself, Alamia said the scheme adheres and refines existing rules on accountability, procurement procedures, salary and honorarium disbursement, issuance of authority to t ravel a nd ot her f i na ncia l transactions.

Besides, heads of offices have been required to submit complete inventory of government equipment and property under their care, personnel and report on the disbursement of capital outlay in adherence to the policy of transparency and open governance.

Said officials had also been ARMM/PAGE 2

TAGUM CITY— In a bid to intensify its advocacy on consumer rights and protection, the Department of Trade and Industry Davao del Norte Provincial Office (DTI-DN) has seek the help of schools.

D u r i n g t h e r e c e nt l y- c o n c lu d e d Kadagayaan Festival in the province, DTI-DN turned over to the Department of Education (DepEd) through Gov. Rodolfo del Rosario the Consumer Rights and Responsibilities Advocacy Posters.

DTI-DN Provincial Director Engr. Edwin O. Banquerigo said the project, which is a component of his office’s “Ramdam Ka Ba Ni Juan Project”, aims to increase the awareness of schoolchildren about their rights and responsibilities as consumers.

DTI/PAGE 2

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on product availability and af fordabilit y across t he country, it allowed us to achieve remarkable volume growth for the quarter -- the sixth consecutive quarter of strong, double-digit growth

for the company,” Pepsi-Cola Philippines president Partho Chakrabarti said, adding that the firm has outperformed the industry for another quarter.

Record volumes across all pepsi/PAGE 11

South Cotabato electric coop signs up Alcantara Group for power supply

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Pepsi-Cola grows 2Q earnings by a tenth EARNINGS of Pepsi-Cola Produc ts Ph i l ippi nes, Inc. rose by a tenth in the second qua r ter, buoyed by record volumes across m aj or c a r b on at e d a nd non-carbonated beverage segments.

In a regulatory filing, Pepsi-Cola Philippines said its net income rose to P387.73 million in the April to June period from P352.65 million in the same period last year.

This pushed the beverage f irm’s prof it to P657.95 million in the first half, an improvement of 14 percent from P577.50 million a year ago.

“By sustaining our drive

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Cebu Pacific leases 2 brand-new aircraft for long-haul flights

THE operator of Cebu Pacific on Wednesday will operate six brand-new said it has signed operating lease agreements A330-300 aircraft.

THE Alcantara Group and South Cotabato’s 210-megawatt coal-fired power project in for two brand-new Airbus A330-300 aircraft. The budget airline said electric cooperative have signed an agreement Maasim, Sarangani. it will launch its long-haul for the supply of electricity to the province.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock E xcha nge, A lc a nt a ra-ow ned A lsons Consolidated Resources Inc (ACR) said its subsidiary Sarangani Energy Corp signed a power sales agreement with South Cotabato I Electric Cooperative Inc (Socoteco I).

Under the agreement, Sarangani Energy will provide the cooperative 10 megawatts of generating capacity from the former’s

Sarangani Energy is putting up the plant in two phases of 105 megawatts each.

Socoteco I’s allocation will come from the second phase of the coal project, which is expected to be operational by 2016.

The full 105-megawatt capacity of the power plant’s first phase has been sold, with the bulk of the output cornered by Socoteco II, which has signed up 70 megawatts.

Signs/PAGE 11

In a statement, Cebu Air Inc (CEB) said US-based Intrepid Aviation will deliver the A330-300 aircraft from 2014 to 2015. The planes are powered by Rolls-Royce Trent 772B engines.

CEB vice president for marketing and distribution Candice Iyog said the lease

would involve no upfront payment. “ Si nc e it i s not a n acquisition but an operating lease, there is no significant capex upfront. Monthly rental payments will be financed by internally generated cash,” she told InterAksyon.com By 2015, Cebu Pacific

MEDIA PARTNERS:

operations with daily direct Manila-Dubai f lights on October 7.

The A330-300 aircraft can fly beyond the range of Cebu Pacific’s existing A320 fleet.

“With our A330 f leet strengthened by this lease

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CDO to host 4th ASEAN Heritage Parks Conference

THE Cit y of Golden Friendship will host the 4th ASEAN Heritage Parks Conference on October.

Reg iona l Execut ive Director Ruth M. Ta w a n t a w a n o f t h e Environment department said that Cagayan de Oro City has been chosen by the Los Baños-based ASEAN Center for Biodiversity (ACB) to host the conference because it is the capital of Northern Mindanao, which is home to two ASEAN Heritage Parks — Mt. Kitanglad Range Natural Park in Bukidnon and Mt. Malindang Range Natural Park in Misamis Occidental.

There are 30 declared heritage parks in the entire ASEAN region, 4 of which are in the Philippines, including Mt. Apo National Park in Southern Mindanao and Iglit-Baco in Region 4.

The conference, to be held on October 1 to 4, is part of the ASEAN Heritage Prog ra mme to promote greater collaboration among ASEAN member-states in the management of these parks.

With a theme “Integrating G lo b a l C h a l le n ge s for Sustainable Development and Effective Management of ASEAN Heritage Parks”, the conference will discuss, a mong ot hers, t he best practices and lessons on the management of ASEAN Heritage Parks and other protected areas. host/PAGE 10

EcoBusiness

Green tech to reduce energy consumption

By Judy Quiros

DAVAO CITY—To reduce the use of energy, it’s high time for real estate developers in the Philippines to go into green technology, said Architect Romulo Valentino Nati, chair of Italpinas Euroasian design and Eco Development Corporation.

Speaking at a press conference Tuesday at the sidelines of the 1st Mindanao Energy Efficiency Forum, Nati said that 60 percent of the country’s buildings is utilized on air conditioning units.

“We can reduce this with green building technology,” Nati said.

He confirmed that most of the developers in the country are hesitant to engage in green building technology in real estate because of the high cost.

Nati, however, said to avoid high cost, developers should not implement “too much

technology because it would cost too much.

If conceptualized, we can avoid high cost.”

When asked if low-cost houses in the country could be retrofitted to save energy, he said, “yes” adding that there is really a need to control the inside temperature of buildings in the country.

He said the cost of energy consumption for every household or establishment could be minimized with the use of green technology in the construction of buildings.

Though the Philippines has yet to fully reduce/PAGE 10

RE dev’t needs enabling environment — study AN enabling environment is needed to upscale the world’s renewable energy (RE) projects and reach the global goal of 100-percent renewable power by 2050,the World Wide Fund for Nature said.

Samantha Smith, WWF Global Climate and Energy Initiative leader, said that while setting targets represents a clear commitment to renewable energy, simply setting these targets is not enough.

“The real job is to create an enabling environment, including financing, assured access for the poor, infrastructure and capacity-building. This is what will ensure these targets are achieved,” she said in a statement.

Smith noted that 138 countries have set renewable energy targets but enabling/PAGE 10

Cebu to host UN eco-tourism conference ABOUT 400 delegates from 150 member countries and 400 affiliate organisations of the United Nations World Tou r i s m O r g a n i z at ion (UNWTO) will visit Cebu for the 5th World Eco-Tourism Conference this November.

“We will learn a lot from them and they from us. We are looking at first week of November for the event,” Tourism Asst. Secretary Rolando Canizal said in a press briefing yesterday at the Radisson Blu Hotel Cebu.

Lee Choon Loong, U N W TO reg iona l v ice

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president for Asia and the Pacific cited Cebu’s role as a key tourism destination as a factor in deciding to hold the conference here.

“Cebu being a key tourism destination we t hink is the best place to hold the event with Bohol, a truly ecotourism site, also very near Cebu,” Lee said.

C a n i z a l s a id B o hol tops the list of the four most popular eco-tourism de st i nat ions . T he y a re fol lowed by Pa lawa n, Cagayan Valley and Davao.

Lee said Bohol is one

key eco-tourism destination in the country that can be developed and promoted f ur t her to attract more visitors.

Before the Philippines, the conference was first held in Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia and South Korea last year.

“On t he average, we get 400 to 700 people and we are confident that the Philippines particularly Cebu can more participants to the conference because of its accessibility,” Lee said.

The three-day conference w i l l consist of plena r y

sessions, business-tobusiness meetings, research symposia and a whole day technical tour in eco-tourism destinations like Bohol.

“We have no definite venue yet as to where the conference will take place he re i n C e bu . We a re finalising the hosting details with UNWTO,” Canizal said. The theme for this year’s conference is Marine Eco-Tourism.

“The conference w ill highlight the different best practices in other countries conference/PAGE 10

World’s first bio-resin bike set to roll soon in the Netherlands FOLLOWING news of the country’s nationwide solar charging stations, the latest innovation in Dutch mobility is the most sustainable scooter yet - an electric scooter made from flax and natural fibre-reinforced composites.

Dutch eco-mobility firm Van.Eko recently launched the world’s first bio-based electric scooter in the Netherlands and this will soon be available through a rental scheme on its website.

Called Be.e, the Vespa-like e-scooter is constructed from Dutch flax and natural resins, a groundbreaking materials application for the transport industry. Usually, a conventional scooter is composed mainly of metal and plastic.

NPSP Composites, a Dutch company focused on developing sustainable and fibre-reinforced plastics, supplied the bio-based materials. It created the biocomposites with the help of a number of partners including flax supplier Van De Bilt Seeds, resin supplier Euroresins and hemp supplier HempFlax.

NPSP Composites tested the unique flax, resin and hemp combination for two years, determining the mix that would be most suitable for production and customer use. Ordinarily, flax, a type of food and fibre crop, is used for the nutritional value of its oil and its fibres for linen fabrics.

With Be.e, what NPSP Composites did was to create a sustainable solution for the production of transportation.

The mixture of f lax and other resins resulted in the scooter’s bio-composite monocoque or bike frame, which is extremely strong and lightweight, making it the most durable scooter in the world, according to the materials developer.

Declaring in Dutch, NPSP Composites said: “The Be.e is innovative within three themes of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climcate Change (IPCC), a leading institution that evaluates the risks of climate change. First, the scooter has an improved and sustainable technological design thanks to the bio-composite monocoque. Second, the electric motor uses an alternative source of energy and not fuel. Finally, the Be.e is an efficient vehicle for commuting.”

Manufacturer Van.Eko also collaborated with similarly sustainability-oriented company Waarmakers for the design of the monocoque and the entire e-scooter. Maarten Heijltjes and Simon Akkaya, the socially responsible Dutch designers behind Waarmakers, envisioned the elegant look of Be.e and engineered its structure.

Akkaya, speaking to design blog Dezeen, said, “The monocoque structure means there is no internal frame.

The smooth outside surface is what gives the scooter its strength.”

The duo also explained that the bio-based design greatly lessens the number of parts needed in producing a motorbike. A traditional steel-framed motorbike, according to NPSP Composites, has more than 1,400 parts and plastic caps. The Be.e has a run-ready weight of 95 kilograms (including battery pack) and it can bike/PAGE 10

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Mr. Nice Guy

T

THINK

hink a minute…Bram Stoker was a successful A Minute theatre manager in England By Jhan Tiafau Hurst during Queen Victoria’s time.

Everybody who knew him said he was the most easygoing, kindest man they knew.

Bram’s wife, Florence, was a beautiful woman who had been courted by wealthy men of high social status, including the famous Oscar Wilde.

But she chose to marry this exceptionally kind gentleman, Bram Stoker.

The Stokers were seen at all the high-society parties and important events.

Later, when their child was born people said their marriage and family was perfect.

Bram Stoker continued to be known as Mr. Nice Guy. He often gave money to his friends without even asking for anything in return.

Bram and his wife had many famous friends like Mark Twain, Walt Whitman, and the President of the United States, Teddy Roosevelt.

No one ever suspected that this nice, kind man actually lived a double life.

They didn’t know that at night after work and all his proper, social appearances, Bram Stoker became someone else.

In fact, he was also a writer.

You see, he wrote the famous story, Dracula, based on his own real life at night, and all the evil things he did with prostitutes.

Bram Stoker, this nice man by day and immoral monster by night, eventually died from the sexually transmitted disease of syphilis.

You know, Jesus Christ said that there are many nice, religious people who live double lives.

They do all the good, right things on the outside for hurst/PAGE 7

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HONOR: “I am thankful, akampi not only for the privilege of Mo A ng Batas leading a club that has been

By Atty. Batas Mauricio blessed with the recognition of Rotarians not only from District 3810, not only from the nine (9) other Rotary Districts in the Philippines, but more importantly, from Rotary International leaders worldwide.

“And this, largely as a consequence of the fact that the Rotary Club of Intramuros has produced not only an outstanding district governor, but a superb and savvy officer of Rotary International, engaged in the tricky work of projecting Rotary internationally, and making known its brand of `service above self; everywhere in this planet, in the person no less of PDG Lyne Abanilla.

“Indeed, being the Peacebuilder President of the Rotary Club of Intramuros, whose other members are recognized as undisputed leaders in Philippine society, has conferred me an honor that my family and I will cherish for the rest of my life.

-ooo ROTA R I A NS , W I T H A H E A RT TO SE RV E: batas/PAGE 7

K

Two sectors watched by BSP

wo sectors very closely watched by the Bangko Sentral, as it performs its price stability mandate, are the equities market and the real estate sector.

For good reason.

Historically, these two sectors have experienced major swings in prices, causing economic and financial imbalance.

For this purpose, the BSP periodically holds Environmental Scanning Exercises (ESE) with key players from the public and private sectors to discuss trends in these important areas.

One such ESE was conducted early this month with Atty. Roel Refran of the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), David Young of Colliers International Philippines, and Prof. Enrique Soriano III of the Ateneo Graduate School of Business, as resource speakers.

Invited as reactors were Mr. Claro G. Cordero, Head of Research, Consulting, and Valuation Advisory Services Department, Jones Lang LaSalle; Ms. Ma. Theresa M. Javier, Head of BPI’s Asset Management and Trust Group, and Mr. Justino Juan R. Ocampo, SVP of the Investment Banking Group of First Metro Investment Corporation.

The forum was held against a backdrop of rapidly rising stock prices, fueled mainly by foreign portfolio investments, and higher value rates for land, capital, and rent during the first quarter. These developments were beginning to be a source of concern.

Crystaline pino ATTY. MARIO T. JUNI

Serving men, serving God: Rotary’s life

IFE’S INSPIRATIONS: “… `Love your neighbor as yourself ’…” (Jesus Christ, our God and Savior, in Matthew 22:39, the Holy Bible).

-ooo SERVING MEN, SERVING GOD, ROTARY’S LIFE: Just what drives some 1.5 million Rotarians, old and young alike, men and women, from countries and nations across the world, to tirelessly render what is now famously known all over the planet as “service above self ”, a monicker that fully recognizes Rotary International as the organization of choice for charitable and socio-civic work anywhere in the globe?

It is serving the poor and the needy, as if God Himself is the one being served, according to Born Again Pastor Consolador “Ador” Parong, the outgoing Peacebuilder President of the Rotary Club of Intramuros, in his valedictory speech marking the end of his term last Thursday, July 25, 2013, and the ushering in of a new set of officers for the 32 year old club.

Here are excerpts from Parong’s speech: “As I stand before you today, my heart is filled with gratitude to God, in the name of Jesus Christ, that the Rotary Club of Intramuros and its members allowed me to become its president for Rotary Year 2012-2013, Rotary International’s Peacebuilder Year, under President Sakuji Tanaka’s `Building Peace Through Rotary’.

-ooo SERVING THROUGH ROTARY IS A LIFETIME

T

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SPEAKING

Why worry, one may ask, if all seems to be going well.

O ut The short answer is that By Ignacio Bunye t hese ma rkets a re rea l ly unpredictable. Gains now may become losses tomorrow.

The transitory nature of the foreign portfolio investments made in the stock market, for instance, makes the equity market vulnerable to reversal of flows as what is happening now as we write. It is not without good reason that such investments are also referred to as “hot money.”

Lessons should also be learned from the 2007 US property market meltdown.

Here are some of the insights shared during the recent ESE, which was attended by BSP Gov. Amando M. Tetangco Jr., Monetary Board Members (MBM) Alfredo C. Antonio, Peter B. Favila, Dr. Felipe M. Medalla, and Atty. Armando L. Suratos, BSP Deputy Gov. Diwa C. Guinigundo, and former MBM Dr. Vicente B. Valdepeñas.

Atty. Refran of the Philippine Stock Exchange talked bunye/PAGE 7

Tweaking

T’S a practice done usually by IT practitioners. They like to tweak on their gadgets, since many of these items, given the rapidity of the innovations taking place now, plus the delicateness into which many of them get, need to be given little adjustments here and there.

But it’s a practice that should also be done on our most important aspect of life. And that is our spiritual life, our life of relation with God and others, which we should try to fill with love and all the goodness that we can put into it.

We should never consider our spiritual life as too private or too personal as to keep it always away from some public discussion meant for the good of all. There certainly confidential matters involved, but there also are many elements that need public ventilation. And one of them is the art of tweaking.

More than the gadgets, our spiritual life, whose seat is our mind and heart, is subject to constant multiple factors. It was St. Augustine who once said that the thoughts and motions that pass through our mind and heart in an instant can exceed the number of our hair. When I read that line, I immediately agreed.

Not only do we have to contend with our own ideas, intentions and plans that just come and go, we also have to cope with the many challenges, pressures, goals, not to mention, temptations and other crazy things that can come to mind. We cannot help but really take care of our spiritual life if only to keep our sanity.

Our usual problem in this department is that many of us seek comfort and relief through some inadequate if

not dangerous means. Some just ignore the conditions of and Traces their mind and heart.

By Fr. Roy Cimagala Others resort to artificial means—a tonic drink, a massage, psychological conditioning, Still others do worse as they indulge in drugs, sex and other forms of deadly escapism.

Spiritual tweaking can take the form of a daily examination of conscience, done usually just before going to bed. It’s an effort to review how our day went, to see if love or something else was the main motive of our thoughts, words and deeds.

Truth is there will always be some adjustments to be made, usually small but from time to time big. We need to fine tune the purity of our intentions, for example, or we need to polish a particular virtue that did not work quite well that day.

Or we need to be more guarded against certain weaknesses and bad tendencies we have, like rash judgment, gossiping, cheating, sensuality, pride, greed, laziness, etc.

Given our spiritual nature, there is always room for improvement in our virtues and need for struggle, since our heart will always be an arena between the forces of good and evil. This will be our lifelong condition. cimagala/PAGE 7

HINTS

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Klarex to partner with City Hall in making CDO climate-resilient NOTING the threats the city is facing from a changing cl i m ate, R e p. R ol an d o “Klarex” Uy yesterday said he will partner with City Hall in the implementation of “green” policies and programs that will make Cagayan de Oro client-resilient.

Uy said that since hotter summer and wetter rainy seasons brought about by the changing climate are now the “new normal,” there is a need to prepare communities, especially coastal and riverine barangays — like his very own Barangay Carmen — against

the impact of climate change.

“Programs on disaster/ climate change mitigation and adaptation must go together with programs that will make our communities resilient to the impacts of climate change and environmental degradation,” he said.

Uy said he is willing to learn how he can best help his constituents in the first congressional district, especially his own Barangay Carmen — where he served as a longtime chairman before becoming a congressman Klarex/PAGE 11

levels, market capitalization, capital raised, alternative investments, etc.).

Atty. Refran’s message: The current economic and market situation are not the same as in those years leading to t he proper t y bubble burst in 2007. Atty.

Refran then presented the efforts of the PSE to improve the market, including new projects (e.g., offering an online trading platform for retail brokers, having its own depository, establishment of a new issuer disclosure system to improve provision of data to investors, as well as implementing short selling locally) as well as offering new products to expand the menu of investment choices for investors (e.g. exchange traded funds or ETFs, PERA accounts, and having index options and futures contracts similar to that in Singapore).

In his presentation, Mr. Young of Colliers gave the participants a view on the recent developments in the property market.

Generally, Mr. Young thinks there is no property bubble yet. For him, asset price bubble is characterized by rapid price increase. The market is unsupported by affordability; hence demand is increasingly speculative.

Clearly, there is no office supply bubble. There is low vacancy rates which is driven

by supply shortfalls. As far as prices are concerned, rental rates are seen to grow by 5-10% in 2014. Lastly, office rental rate in Manila is still the cheapest in Asia, signifying that we have not been re-rated yet by market players, which is an indication of the absence of a bubble.

Also, Mr. Young said it is not accurate to say that foreigners are to blame in the perceived build up of the property bubble, since foreigners play a very small pa r t i n t he Phi l ippi nes commercial property market.

In the latter part of his presentation, Mr. Young shared how other countries intervened to prevent bubble build up. Most interventions, he said, were in the form of taxation of properties and transfers of properties to discourage speculative purchases.

Prof. Enrique Soriano III of the Ateneo Graduate School of Business a lso said there is no cause for panic at the moment in the property sector. However, supply of m id-r ise a nd high-rise building should be monitored.

He said the challenge now is in sustaining the momentum, and this can be done by extending the development beyond Metro Ma ni la, ensu ri ng t hose who borrow from banks

f u l ly comply w it h rea l estate requirements, and monitoring of new borrowing by inexperienced property builders/developers.

True to its ma ndate, the BSP will continue to conduct similar exercises with concerned sectors and stakeholders. Maintaining price stability is – and should be – a group effort.

Note: My book, Central Bank ing for Ever y Juan and Maria is now available in main branches of Fully B o ok e d , Power B o ok s , National Book Store, and University of the Philippines Press.

be no problem, and besides, we can cause immense joy in heaven if we return to God, as the gospel tells us.

So, this kind of spiritual tweaking is not an exercise in obsession. It is done in the context of love between God and us, between father and child. If done in this way, we will avoid the pitfalls of irritation, nervousness, shame, fear and the like.

We will also avoid being too fussy with things and fastidious with people.

On the contrary, we will exude an aura of goodness around. We will manage to maintain confidence and dominion over our faculties and powers. We will have good relations with others, as we would become more simple and humble, more transparent, and therefore, more approachable and friendly.

We have to cultivate this practice of spiritual tweaking, and work to make it a living part of our culture. We can be certain that it will only produce good results in our lives, helping us to be more charitable with each other, and more important, to be truly holy.

Mayor Moreno named as cities’ league chairman Cagayan de Oro City is now bestowed with pride and honor after Mayor Oscar ‘Oca’ Moreno was named as Chairman of the Board of the League of Cities of the Philippines.

Mayor Oca Moreno’s assumption of t he league’s chairmanship only shows the utmost respect and confidence of the members on the remarkable leadership, unscathed reputation and dignity of Mayor Moreno, City Administrator Atty.

Roy Hilario P. Raagas said.

As the league chairman,

Cagayan de Oro City is now in a prime position to lead developmental ef forts and initiatives in pushing the growth and progress of cities all over Mindanao. It was learned that the league is composed of 130 city mayors nationwide, of w h ic h , Q u e z on C it y Mayor Herbert Bautista is the current President.

Mayor Oscar Moreno is also the Chairman of the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) and Vice Chairman of the Amateur Boxing Association of the Philippines (ABAP).

Hurst...

gratitude. To all of us I say, may God continue to allow us to be of service to all who may need our help, in one way or another, through the Rotary way.

“For indeed, what is a Rotarian if he has no heart to serve? The very motto alone of Rotary clearly defines what we should do as Rotarians--to give `service above self ’ all the time, everywhere, to everyone, whether or not our own organization or our own fellow Rotarians are looking, or would even want to recognize what we have done.

“Ser v ing, through the Rotary way, is loving ou r fe l low me n a s we love ourselves… Serving, the Rotary way, is doing ever y t hing wit hin one’s power to help someone because that is pleasing to God, and not really because one is expecting an award from men whose judgment are anyway too often tainted with bias and prejudice, for purely selfish reasons…”

-ooo REACTIONS? Please call me at 0917 984 24 68, 0918 574 0193, 0922 833 43 96. Email: batasmauricio@yahoo.com, mmauriciojr111@gmail.com.

from page 6

to see, but inside they’re proud and live their own way for their own immoral pleasures.

But even if we fool people, we can never fool God. Jesus said every human being needs His gif t of forgiveness, because we’ve all done many things wrong.

Jesus also said that we all, including nice, religious people, need His power to change our proud, wrong hearts and character.

That’s why God the Son had to become a human being: being: to die and pay the penalty for all our wrongs.

It was the only way we could be forgiven by our perfect Maker and start a new life living His way.

So won’t you ask Jesus to forgive you and help you start changing today?

Jesus will give you real satisfaction and peace, and the power to live His right way both in public and in private, night and day every day.

Just Think a Minute!

Batas... from page 6

“Consequently, to the Rotary Club of Intramuros and its Ilustres, please accept my felicitations and my lifelong

Bunye... from page 6

the stock market, recent developments (e.g. PSEi

Cimagala... from page 6

But all this tweaking is done in the presence of God, confident of his fatherly care and love for us. And so it is moment that can give us great peace and reassurance. God always forgives and understands. It is his delight to do so. We should strengthen this conviction in ourselves, because this is crucial in our spiritual life.

We should never feel alienated from our father God, no matter how bad or sinful we may be. It would be good to keep in mind the parable of the prodigal son whenever we have problems in this area. Whenever we decide to say sorry, there will

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TimeFree Innovations, one of the first schoolto-market tech startup companies under the Smart Wireless Engineering Education Program (SWEEP), will be sharing its experience as a startup in the upcoming Microsoft BizSpark Activation Day. The star tup of fers Ti meFre e , a v i r t u a l enter pr ise queu i ng solution that sends SMS alerts to users if their turn is approaching, thus allowing users to do other things instead of waiting in line for their turn.

TimeFree Innovations CEO Adrian Atilano was inv ited by Microsof t Philippines to give a talk about the company’s experiences as a startup a nd how M ic r o s of t BizSpark has helped in its bid to become one of the most successful startups not just in the Philippines but in the region as well. The event is slated on August 3, 2013.

Microsoft’s BizSpark program prov ides technolog y, suppor t, visibility, and community to promising startups and entrepreneurs at no

charge.

"We're excited to be part of the upcoming M i c r o s of t B i z S p a r k Ac t ivat ion Day. T he prog ra m has been very supportive to the startup ecosystem in the Philippines by providing free software to startups.

It’s an honor to be invited to talk in one of their m aj or e ve nt s ," s a id Atilano.

The company is one of the three startups from SWEEP, the industryacademe engineering education program of Smart Communications, Inc. (Smart). TimeFree Innovations has received additional support from Smart and is also among the 10 winners in the 1st IdeaSpace National Competition held last April.

The compa ny was co-founded by Atilano,

Tagum Tourism Office beefsup1stGaySummit

The City Government of Tagum, through the Tagum C i t y To u r i s m O f f i c e , in partnership with the Tagum City Gay Association Incor porated (TCGA I), presents the latest colorful, fun and grand festival of the city, the "Tagum City Gay Summit" which will commence on July 29, 2013.

The City of Tagum under the leadership of Mayor Allan L. Rellon continues its empowerment of the different societies of Tagum, including the Gay Community led

by the TCGAI; with the supervision of the Tagum City Tourism Office, led

by Geraldine B. Abella, the Tagum City Gay Summit becomes its representation.

The festival will run for three days and will feature pageants, variety shows, ga mes a nd com mu n it y service activities.

This year's Tagum City Gay Summit anchors the theme "Embrace, Encourage, Empower.”

[City of Tagum Infor mation Office/Tourism Office]

READ! www.businessweekmindanao.com

TimeFree Innovations is one of the 10 winners at the 1st IdeaSpace National Competition held last April. TimeFree’s Philip Adrian Atilano (5th from left) and Joselle Macrohon are joined by the top executives of companies under Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC) and the PLDT Group led by PLDT and MPIC Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan (3rd from left).

Joselle Macrohon, Sharief Kayer Alsree, and Ken Marvin Wee. All are graduates of Ateneo de Zamboanga University, a SWEEP

partner school.

"With the support of SWEEP, IdeaSpace, and partners like Microsoft, we expect our company to achieve good traction

and become the leading virtual queuing solutions provider in Southeast Asia," he added.

TimeFree Innovations has raised $25,000 in seed

funding and is the first startup in the IdeaSpace incubation program to have generated over US$100K revenues in less than six months.

Cebu Pacific launches bigger Juan for Fun Backpacker Challenge for university students Bigger prizes and more exciting adventures await you ng ex plo r e r s i n t h e Cebu Pacific Juan for Fun Backpacker Challenge, now on its second year. Once again, the Philippines’ leading lowcost carrier will bring daring students with an insatiable thirst for adventure and a knack for budget travel on the ultimate all-expenses paid backpacking trip around the country.

Cebu Pacif ic representatives will tou r d if ferent colleges a nd u n iversit ies all over the Philippines this July in search of fun-loving students who want to join the Juan for Fun Backpacker Challenge.

The contest is open to college and university students who are 17 to 23 years old and residing in the Philippines. To join, interested participants must form a team with three members and upload a short video to www.juanforfun.com.

The audition video should answer the question “Why should we send your team to a fun adventure?” Deadline of application is July 29, 2013.

The five teams with the best and most creative audition videos will be chosen to explore six of the best destinations in the country from August 27 to September 2. During the week-long backpacking challenge, the teams will be tasked to have as many fun and adventurous experiences and discoveries within a given

travel allowance. They should also complete the special fun challenges prepared by Cebu Pacific in each destination to earn extra points and win additional prizes.

At the end of the challenge, the team with the most number of experiences and the least amount of total expenses will win the competition, based on these criteria: Fun Activities (50%) and Budget Friendliness (50%). The team will win 12 round-trip tickets to any shorthaul international or domestic destination, plus a three-day, two-night Philippine tour package for three, courtesy of the Department of Tourism.

Each member of the team will also receive Samsung G a la x y t a ble t s , We nge r watches, Sun Cellular pocket wifi and broadband wireless kits.

The Juan for Fun Backpacker Challenge 2013 i s c o - p r e s e nt e d by Su n Broadband Wireless and the Department of Tourism, with the support of Wenger, the official travel gear of the Juan for Fun backpackers, and Canon.

“This will be a bigger Juan for Fun Backpacker Challenge, so we encourage student teams to send in their most creative and fun audition videos, for the opportunity to travel all over the country, and represent their schools. It will be a celebration of travel and adventure, so if you’re up for it, go to www.juanforfun.

com now,” said CEB VP for Marketing and Distribution Candice Iyog.

L a st ye a r, Te a m Big Explorers, composed of Iris Patricia Ang and Benj Tuason of De La Salle University, and Godfrey Medina of the Philippine State College of Aeronautics, won the firstever Cebu Pacific Juan for Fun Backpacker Challenge.

“The challenge taught us that we didn’t really have to spend a lot to have fun in the Philippines. From the people we met to the bucket list activities we got to do, the experience was definitely worth it,” said Iris. “Cebu Pacific is giving so many students the chance to travel around the country with their affordable fares. We’re very excited for the next batch of Juan for Fun backpacker teams,” she added.

Among the daring tasks that the trio had to overcome were eating exotic Kapampangan delicacies such as kuhol (snail), batute (fried

frog) and kamaro (crickets) in Clark and learning the art of making puso (cooked rice wrapped in a woven palm leaf pouch) in Cebu. In Iloilo, they were given the mission to put on a Dinagyang costume and have their photos taken with 10 locals in Iloilo, while in Davao, they were tasked to complete a durian-eating and pomelo-peeling race. The challenge concluded in a stilts race in Cagayan de Oro and a trivia game in Intramuros, Manila.

Do you have what it takes to be named the ultimate backpacker team? Then join the Cebu Pacific Juan for Fun Backpacker Challenge Year 2. Visit its official website, www.juanforfun.com, for the complete contest mechanics, plus backpacking adventure stories and tips from popular travel bloggers.

To stay up to date on their exciting promos and events, follow Cebu Pacific’s official Facebook and Twitter pages.

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Host... from page 4

Issues on biodiversity loss, ecosystems degradation, ecotourism and business are also up for discussion in the conference.

ASEAN Heritage parks are protected areas of high conservation importance, preserving in total a complete spectrum of representative ecosystems of the ASEAN region.

Expected participants are park managers, policymakers, conservationists, scient ists a nd ot her s t a k e hold e r s f rom t he ASEAN region.

There will be a field visit to Mt. Kitanglad Range Natural Park for participants to be able to see first-hand the protection, conservation and management initiatives undertaken by the DENR, loca l government units, civil society organizations, commu nit ies a nd ot her stakeholders in the area.

(BDF)

Reduce... from page 4

adopt energy efficiency in constructions through green technology, it managed to start for a few projects, he said.

He said countries that have fully adopted green technology in real estate include Malaysia, Singapore,

Hong Kong and Vietnam.

He also look at Mindanao a s a p otent ia l a re a for t he s h i f t to rene w a ble energ y specif ica l ly in constructions because of its fast urbanization.

Nati said their company h a s s t a r te d to de velop green building (mixed-use condominium project) in Cagayan de Oro City.

Noel Verdote, sustainable energy finance operations of f icer of Internat iona l Finance Corporation Ph i l ip pi ne s , s a id w it h the trust of Bank of the Philippine Islands one of its partners in promoting energ y ef f iciency in t he cou nt y, t he prac t ice of renewable energ y would benefit small-scale businesses which is a growing market.

He a lso cited t he importance of regulation i n use of energ y i n t he real estate business in the country.

To maximize the adoption of energy efficiency in the said sector, the investment climate sector of IFC is cu r rent ly work i ng w it h the loca l government of Ma nda luyong Cit y i n relation to updating the building code.

“The code is very specific on safety and nothing on energy, buildings have to be adoptive to energy efficiency system,” he said. (PNA)

Enabling... from page 4

implementation challenges remain, noting t hat t he current power harnessed from the sun, water, wind, thermal vents and biomass currently supplies a mere 16.7 percent of the world’s power.

The new report “Meeting Renewable Energy Targets: Global Lessons From The Road To Implementation” showed major challenges i n hibit i ng R E projec t implementation in seven countries—the Philippines, China, India, Germany, Morocco, South Africa and Spain—were identified.

The report showed that the said countries remained burdened by issues, including balancing policy flexibility and stability, implementing policies that promote cost competitiveness, identifying appropriate funding and investment securit y frameworks.

Also, these countries are facing problems with regard to transparency and accountability of decisions; achieving wide-scale political a nd s o c ia l ac c e pt a nc e ; mapping institutional and stakeholders discrepancies and diverging interests and overcoming infrastructural lock-in to convent iona l energ y s ou rc e s , p ol ic y reliability with long-term planning and suf f icient human capacity building.

The report is a c o l l a b or a t i on b e t we e n the WWF and the World Resources Institute (WRI) to highlight key findings and understand which factors are crucial to reach national RE targets, based on the learnings from the seven countries.

“Financing is a pa r t icu la rly sig ni f ica nt c h a l l e n g e a n d W W F ’s recent ly-lau nched Seize Your Power! campaign urges governments and financial institutions worldwide to increase investments in RE,” Smith said.

D r. Ste pa h n Si nger, WWF Global Energy Policy director, said upscaling the implementation of RE is possible if countries avoid the mistakes and learn from the successes of countries w h i c h h av e pi on e e r e d implementation.

“Today, 138 countries across the globe have set RE targets—most to be met by 2020. But RE targets, important as they are, serve merely as icing on the cake,” Singer said.

He said that local and

national participation by stakeholders, sound national technolog y assessments, schemes to provide affordable and clean energy to the poor, financing the needed cost of capital and infrastructure, grid integration, monitoring success and bottlenecks as well as a good compliance system are all crucial parts of a sound implementation plan to make renewables the key energy supply source in the coming decades.

The report, a collaboration between WWF and WRI, prov ides clear ev idence that numerous factors are required to reach national RE targets, he noted.

“If addressed appropriately a nd consistent ly, t hese barriers can become opportunities for creating f u nd a ment a l a nd sol id conditions for successful RE implementation,” he said.

(MT)

Conference... from page 4

in marine eco-tourism which we can learn from like how to better manage and protect our marine wildlife,” Canizal said.

After the conference, the group will propose a Cebu Declaration on Eco-Tourism to be created and submitted to UNWTO. Canizal said eco-tourism is now considered a growing trend in the global tourism industry which the country should pursue to achieve its 10 million foreign visitors target by 2016.

As of last year, there were already 4.3 million that visited the country.

This year the target is 5.5 million and as of April, arriva ls showed a 10.12 percent growth compared to 2012 figures. (Eco-Business)

Bike... from page 4

handle two passengers with a total permissible load of 180 kilograms, Van.Eko added.

Aside from the monocoque feature, the e-scooter also boasts of LED front and rear indicators, USB charging sockets for smartphones, cruise-control and boost function buttons, and a nanocoated windshield that is water- and dirt-resistant.

The Be.e uses a fourkilowatt electric motor and can take a maximum speed of 55 kilometres per hour on its 48-volt battery. An optional second battery is also available, stated Van. Eko. T here is a 6 0 0 -wat t charger on the eco-friendly scooter as well. It provides

20 kilometres of range for every hour spent charging.

While Van.Eko has not fully specified the distribution details of the Be.e, it has set a rental scheme for the use of Be.e. (Eco-Business)

DTI... from page 2

“We want to have the C on s u m e r R i g ht s a n d Responsibilities Advocacy Posters in every classroom in the province of Davao del Norte because we believe that the students, especially those who are still in elementary, are one of the best vehicles for consumer advocacy,” he said.

Moreover, Banquerigo said such strategy is to enhance the level of consumer awareness and for everyone to feel the presence of DTI services. We intend to start this campaign at the grade level.

“Teaching them when t hey a re st i l l you ng is most effective in moulding someone’s mindset,” he said.

By employing the publicprivate partnership (PPP) mechanism, DTI-DN was able to get the support and c om m it ment of NC C C Supermarket and NCCC Department Store wherein the said home-grown chain of stores participated by sponsoring the printing of 450 Tarpaulin Posters.

The advocacy posters were given to Emilyn Saladores of DepEd-Davao del Norte, Darwin Suyat of DepEdTagum City, and Elsa S. Liyag of DepEd-Island Garden City of Samal. (PIA)

0

Boost... from page 2

Amante stressed that this inclusive growth will actually trickle down to the marginalized people.

More than 9,000 business establishments are already in place in this city since the 2010’s, he added. (MB)

ARMM... from page 2

required to submit work and financial plan as benchmark of their accomplishment which will then be assessed to conform to the pillars of refor m espou sed by t he present AR MM administration.

“We are now set ting the standards by which the secretaries will be evaluated,” Alamia, adding that Hataman wanted to lay down the foundation of an honest regional government ahead of the possible creation of a new political entity that will replace ARMM once the government peace process w it h t he Moro Isla m ic Liberation Front (MILF) is in place, possible on 2016.

(PNA)

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Budget is presented. With the Per formance-Informed Budget Structure (PIB), each peso is now presented alongside the results that we want to achieve,” the President said.

Before, the annual Budget presented an incomprehensible mix of financial numbers. With the PIB, the Budget has a new face which presents each peso together with the outcomes, outputs and performance targets that government agencies commit to achieve with their respective budgets.

In preparing the 2014 Budget, the President said the government issued a Budget Priorities Framework that enjoins all agencies to design their respective proposals along program priorities with the Key Result Areas of the Aquino Social Contract.

“This Budget Priorities Framework also identifies geographic focus areas where our poorest people are and where great potential lies. We have directed these departments to not only prioritize their resources for these programs and areas but also tighten their collaboration in these areas for greater impact,” the President stressed.

The President said Budget was designed not in the usual way, where agencies competed against each other for a share of scarce national resources. With the Program Budgeting Approach, government agencies moved out of their silos to converge their efforts and resources along priority programs.

He acknowledged that government spending alone is not enough to push growth upwards.

Thus, he underscored the need for the administration to create the right environment for the private sector to flourish.

“As we do our part in establishing the right environment for growth, the private sector must likewise fulfill its role as engine of economic growth,” he said.

This Budget seeks to sustain macroeconomic stability, promote the streamlining of business processes and invest in the needed public goods like infrastructure.

In line with the Public Financial Management Reform Roadmap, the government will move towards a Budget-as-Release Document regime in 2014. “ Last year, we announced the move toward a Budget-asRelease-Document Regime through the 2014 Budget. This regime promotes predictability and speed in budgetary releases, as well as in implementation, as the budgets of agencies—except for those that need prior clearance, to be contained in a negative list—are considered as released as soon as the Budget is enacted,” he said.

In crafting the 2014 Budget, the government expanded mechanisms for citizen’s meaningful participation in the budget process.

“We introduced the process of Budget Partnership Agreements between government agencies, corporations, and civil society organizations and piloted it in crafting the 2012 Budget. In this process, government agencies and civil society organizations partners enter into a formal partnership in the review of the budgets, programs, and projects of the agencies, as well as in the crafting of their budget proposals for the following fiscal year,” he said.

(PCOO)

Klarex... from page 7

— become disaster/climate change resilient since many parts of the district are vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and environmental degradation.

He said Tropical Storm Sendong (Washi) was “a great learning experience” for him, which “made me more eager to run [for congressman] because I don’t want to bring my people suffering since serving the people is my passion.”

He vowed the pursue in the 16th Congress policies that will ensure that non-government organizations (NGOs), non-governmental agencies (NGAs)and institutions with the expertise in disaster/climate-change adaptation, mitigation and building

resilient communities are supported by the government to pursue their programs for the good of everyone.

Uy said Cagayan de Oro can no longer afford a repeat of Sendong and Pablo, which devastated the city on December 16, 2011 and December 4, 2012, respectively.

He said he plans to work with Barangay Carmen’s partner NGO in the implementation of climate-change adaptation/disaster-risk reduction (CCA/DRR) programs, especially in making the first district communities disaster-resilient.

Signs... from page 3

Apar t from the t wo South Cotabato cooperatives, other offtakers for the power plant include the Agusan Del Norte Electric Cooperative Inc, Agusan Del Sur Electric Cooperative Inc, and the Davao Del Norte Elctric Cooprative Inc. The first phase of the power plant commenced construction last year, and is expected to begin operating in 2015. The plant is part of a longterm solution to Mindanao’s power crisis.

Socoteco I serves Koronadal City and seven municipalities in South Cotabato, while Socoteco II covers the entire province of Sarngani, General Santos City and two South Cotabato municipalities.

ACR, through subsidiary San Ramon Power Inc, is also in the advanced stages of building a 105-megawatt coal-fired power plant in Sitio San Ramon, Talisayan, Zamboanga City.

Pepsi... from page 3

major carbonated a nd nonca rbonated d r i n k seg ments fuelled the increase in sales.

Volumes rose by a fourth in the second quarter and 22 percent during the six-month period with flagship brand Pepsi leading the growth driven by the carbonated softdrinks segment.

Net sales rose 17 percent to P11.44 billion in the first semester from P9.74 billion last year, after the second quarter figure jumped 21 percent to P6.34 billion from P5.25 billion.

“The company is optimistic i n pre s e r v i n g g row t h a nd profitability through continued efforts to drive top-line growth, s u s t a i n c o s t m a n a ge me nt , implement capital expenditures, and increase marketing efforts,” said Jika Dalupan, Pepsi-Cola Ph i l ippi ne s v ic e pre sid ent for cor porate a f fa irs a nd communications.

A licensed bottler of PepsiCo Inc, the company manufactures and sells Pepsi-Cola, Mountain Dew, 7-Up, M i r i nd a , Mu g , Gatorade, Tropicana, Lipton, Sting, and Premier.

Pepsi Philippines recently made its foray into the powdered juice segment with Mirinda Powder Fun Mix.

Normin... from page 1

year.

NSCB-10 chief Brenda Lynn M. Castro said the regional economic growth spurred in 2012 as industry and services posted a higher growth as compared to the previous year.

Growth was led by the services sector which contributed 41.8%, doubling growth to 9.0% compared to 4.6% in 2011. Industry accounted for 33.4%, expanding 9.2% in 2012 from 6.7% the previous year.

“Northern Mindanao was the seventh biggest regional economy in the Philippines in 2012 with a 3.8 percent,” Ms. Castro said.

The services sector of the region accounted for the biggest share of the region’s economy at 41.8 percentage share. It grew at a faster pace in 2012 by 9.0% as compared to its growth in the previous year of 4.6% and the industry sector, which accounted 33.4% of the region’s economy, expanded by 9.2% in 2012 from 6.7% in 2011.

Agriculture Hunting Forestry and Fisheries (AHFF), which comprised 24.8% of the region’s economy experienced a slowdown in 2012 posting 2.5% growth from 6.5% growth in 2011.

The services sector provided the biggest contribution to the region’s economic growth at 3.7 percentage points, followed by the industry and AHFF contributing 3.0 and 0.6 percentage point, respectively.

Castro said that of the 14 regions of the country, northern Mindanao included, showed improved economic performance in 2012; two decelerated growth, while one region showed a negative growth.

However, for the second year in a row, Ms. Castro said Region 10 led all regions in Mindanao with a per capita GRDP of P53,632 and per capita index of 81.4, outperforming all regions including Davao (per capita GRDP P52,201 and 79.2 per capita index) and Soccsksargen (per capita GRDP P40,043 and 60.8 per capita index).

In addition, the region’s per capita GRDP grew 5.5% in 2012, which was higher than the 3.9% growth registered in 2011. Nationwide, Region X ranked sixth in terms of per capita GRDP. “This is a ver y impressive per for man c e c o nsi d er ing t he relatively good performance of the economy in 2011,” said Engr.

Clark Y. Clarete, chief, Knowledge Management Division of NEDA-10 during the news conference hosted by the NSCB. The substantial growth of 8.16% in Mindanao’s economy was driven by the improved economic performance of the six regions that comprise the island.

The largest bulk of Mindanao’s economy in 2012 was attributed to Davao’s share of 26.6 % followed closely by northern Mindanao’s share of 26.3%. SOCCSKSARGEN, Zamboanga Peninsula and Caraga accounted for 18.9%, 14.5%, and 8.5% of the Island’s economy, respectively, while the Autonomous of Region of Muslim Mindanao had the lowest share of only 5.4% of the island’s GDP. “ T h e i m p r ove d e c o n o m i c performance of northern Mindanao in 2012 was fueled by the acceleration in the region’s industry and services where it grew a faster pace in 2012 by 9.0% as compared to its growth in the previous year of 4.6%. All the subsectors in the services sector except other services posted accelerated growths. Trade showed a remarkable growth of 11.1% from 3.5%,” Castro said.

On the other hand, mining and quarrying had the least share of only 0.4% of the total economy of northern Mindanao.

The services sector provided the biggest contribution to the region’s economic growth at 3.7% points, followed by the industry and AHFF sectors contributing 3.0% and 0.6%, respectively.

Among the subsectors, manufacturing had the largest contribution to grow th at 2.1 percentage points followed by trade, which contributed 1.6 percentage points to the region’s economic growth. On the other hand, mining and quarrying had the least contribution to the growth with 0.03 percentage point.

Vista... from page 1

and those from nearby cities and municipalities the best city living experience.

Vista Residences caters to almost all income segments, serving the needs of mid to upper middle and high-end income markets, making it the only clear choice for vertical residences.

Vista Residences carries Vista Land’s expertise in residential development that spans over 38 years, as well as its reputation for space-planning, thoughtful design, and ability to select the most attractive locations for its projects.

Vista Land is the country’s largest homebuilder, building 250,000 homes in 33 provinces and 65 cities and municipalities across the country.

It is the only real estate company that operates nationwide, catering to every sector of the homebuyers’ market.

Soon after Vista Land introduced Vista Residences as its high-rise residential marketing arm in 2006, the latter has created a powerful presence and a compelling portfolio of 23 condominium projects across

the country, setting a new standard for urban living.

Vista Residences has become a major player in the country’s multi-level, mixed-use property development industr y, with a prestigious line-up of ver tical projects namely KL Mosaic, Salcedo Square, and Laureano Di Trevi (Makati), The Currency (Ortigas), The Symphony Towers, Wil Tower Mall, Vista Residences Katipunan, Madison Place Pine Crest, Brescia Residences (Quezon City).

It also includes 515 Shaw (Mandaluyong), Cerritos Residences (Pasig), Marfori and Presidio (Sucat), Vista Residences Taft, 878 Espana, and Crown Towers U-Belt (Manila), Pacific Residences, Avant at the Fort, and The Hudson (Taguig).

In Mindanao, Vista Residences’ vertical developments are the British colonial themed mid-rise condo community called Northpoint in Davao City, and the soon to be launched The Loop in Cagayan de Oro, its first high-rise outside Manila.

Inquiries on The Loop can be made at 0917- 81024 45 or Communities Cagayan Inc., 2nd Floor Pelaez Arcade, RN Abejuela corner JP Rizal St., Cagayan de Oro City, and at www.vistaresidences. com.ph.

Sustain... from page 1

the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) through its Regional Operations Development Group (RODG) and in par tnership with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

D u b b e d a s “ I nve s t i n g i n Priority Industry Clusters for SMEs: A Conference,” this conference aims to promote awareness on the Philippines’ cluster-based industrial development strategy and to improve investments in the countryside, mainly in Mindanao.

“The opportunities in Mindanao are so meaningful in this administration which government sectors work together and support priority in agriculture, agro-industrial food processing, manufacturing and even tourism,” Manalo said.

He also said Mindanao is the country’s second largest land-locked area that accounts for 34 percent of the Philippines’ total land area.

It is on top of the list of investment opportunities given incentives by the Board of Investments (BOI).

“Tropical fruits like coconut, mangosteen, banana, pineapple and papaya are global favorites. Since 2006, the Philippines ranked number three among all the biggest coconut producing countries,” Manalo said.

He noted eight of the top 10 provinces producing coconut are in Mindanao and the Philippines ranks number one in the global share copra production.

“Coco coir and peat are traditional export favorites. Today, beyond traditional coconut exports, value added products like desiccated coconut, virgin coconut oil, and now coconut water,” Manalo said.

He also said global trends and perception on the use coconut have changed dramatically in the last five years. Positive assurances on coconut as enabler dietary and nutritional health has given rise to consumer demand for coconut based food ingredients. Coconut derivatives have now been sought after ingredients even in high-end cosmetics. Coconut milk and coconut water are now beverages of choice by the young, mobile, trendy and health-conscious men and women all over the world.

M o r e o v e r, h e n o t e d t h e coconut industry is a huge investment opportunity but there are other industries to consider like carrageenan, which is compound extracted from a variety of seaweeds only commonly found or farmable in the clear waters of Southern Mindanao, Indonesia and Malaysia.

“Carageenan has many uses and its main application is on food products where it is used primarily for its gellying and thickening properties.

Seaweed production is an integral part of the Mindanao industry cluster,” Manalo said.

In 2001, the Philippines ranked as number one producer of carrageenan and accounted for 40.7 percent of total world production capacity. The country is the world’s largest exporter

of processed carrageenan, which is a US$ 5 billion global market.

Manalo said DTI will continue to develop industry clusters and harness potentials of local produce.

In 2013, it plans to launch 800 Shared Service Facilities (SSF) to enable farmers sell products at prices above commodity prices locally or for export consumption. “ Though the SSF, farmers will have the capability to convert raw farm produce to value-added marketable products through capital equipment or process interventions.

These (SSF) are commonly shared by the community and monitored by a local DTI officer,” Manalo added.

He also urged businesses to take advantage of DTI programs for trade and investment promotion in the countryside such as the Regional Interactive Platform for Philippine Exporters (RIPPLES), which provides knowledge assistance from business start-up to top level engagement; and Doing Business in Free Trade Area (DBFTA), which crates awareness of th ebenefits of Free Trade Agreements.

In addition, the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Philippines, Inc. President Takashi Ishigami presented the big potential for palm oil industries in Mindanao.

Ishigami said that there is big potential for the palm oil industry in Mindanao considering the world’s current palm oil production and increasing population.

In his presentation, Ishigami noted that Indonesia and Malaysia have been major players of palm oil production. In 2012,Indonesia and Malaysia produced 28.5 and 19 million metric tons of palm oil, respectively. The Philippines has only been producing only 0.1 million metric tons of palm oil per year from 1995 to 2012.

He also noted this industry could help create jobs and prosperity for the Philippines, just like Malaysia and Indonesia.

Launch... from page 1

and alcohol consumption. Go4Health stands for their four health campaigns n a m e l y, G o S m o ke - fr e e, G o Sustansya, Go Sigla and Go Slow sa Tagay.

Go Smoke-free is due to the concern of the department on a survey that 10 Filipinos die every hour from smoking and second-hand smoking. According to Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS), 28% or 17.3 million Filipino adults aged 15 years and older are current tobacco smokers. Further, there are 1.1 billion smokers in the world and if current trend continues, the number

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of smokers will reach 1.6 billion in the year 2025.

G o Sust ansya i s to fig ht overweight and obese problems among Filipinos. According to World Health Organization, the trend towards foods higher in sugar and fat in the Philippines underscores double burden of under and overnutrition. In a study done by Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI), 20% of adult Filipinos are obese, 22.5% are hypertensive and the obesity rate among the younger age group aged 9-11 doubled from 2.4% in 1993 to 4.8% in 2005.

In another report from Philippine Nutrition Facts and Figures, it was shown that the number of overweight children aged 6 to 10 more than doubled from 0.08% in 2001 to 1.6% in 2005.

Go Sigla, on the other hand, is an advocacy to promote physical activities among Filipinos. In a report given by National Center for Biotechnology Information, most Filipino children are not physically active during school days, except in physical education classes.

“Go Sigla will not only be promoted to Filipino kids but also to 12-39 individuals who are in the reproductive stage of their lives,” said DOH-10 spokesperson Jun G. Galban, in a press conference held recently.

Go Slow sa Tagay is a DOH advocacy in reminding Filipinos that the effect on alcohol on health is complex. DOH reported that 11% of the population of Filipino 15- to 74-year-olds are regular drinkers at an average rate of four or more days in a week. Further, 24% of 15 to 19 years old are teen drinkers.

According to Galban, DOH is not promoting “moderate drinking” to individuals aged 15 years old and below since moderate to an adult might not be moderate to young people. The latter can be easily affected with alcohol.

DOH also made information campaigns for Pilipinas Go4Health through their collaterals and internet sites. Their main website can be accessed through the portal http:// www.go4health.ph/.

T h e Pi l i p i n a s G o 4 H e a l t h Movement was nationally launched last June 6 at Ramada Hotel. Region 10’s launching will kick-off with a parade from at Rodelsa Circle to Pelaez Sports Center. DOH Assistant Health Secretary Eric Tayag will be also there to grace the event and dance the Hataw part of the program.

DOH-10 will also try to invite Pilipinas Go4Health champions namely Senator Pia Cayetano, Shamcey Supsup, Daniel Matsunaga, Louise delos Reyes, San Beda Red Lions, and Alden Richards.

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friday - July 26, 2013

to rise in CDO’s central business district

V

ista Residences Inc., the condominium development arm of Vista Land, the country’s largest homebuilder, is now building its first high-rise condominium property outside of Metro Manila – right in the heart of Cagayan de Oro’s central business district.

The Loop, strategically located within the bustling Lim Ket Kai Complex, will soon tower over the central business district of Cagayan de Oro. The new high-rise condominium is set to become an icon and one of the most valuable real estate developments in the city.

The landmark condo development will have two 25-storey buildings called the north and the south towers, efficiently connected by a walkway.

Each tower will house 522 unique units, from studio to one-bedroom, twobedroom, and three-bedroom units.

Floor area varies according to type of unit. Studio comes at 20.1 to 21.60 sq. m., one-bedroom units are at 29.55 to 38.03 sq. m., and two-bedroom units are at 50 to 59 sq. m. The Loop’s threebedroom units at the Penthouse floor have ample space at 86 sq. m., while Garden Units at the 4th floor have spacious balcony with a floor area of 60 to 80 sq. m. Down payment for a unit at The Loop Down can start as low as P5,285 monthly.

The Loop’s masterplanned towers welcome unit owners and guests with an opulent and spacious lobby. Upscale amenity offerings on the ground level such as the adult and kiddie pools, fitness gym, multi-purpose hall, and commercial spaces will be on hand.

The second and third levels will be the parking pods while the 4th floor will have garden residential units.

Residential condo units will continue from the 5th to the 24thlevel,

with exclusive penthouse units at the 25th floor, and the “Canopy”at the topmost level. The towers’ East side will enjoy the mountainview while the West side will have the compelling view of the vibrant cityscape. Both towers will have 24-hour concierge services and advanced security system for residents’ convenience and peace of mind.

The Loop by Vista Residences allows the people of Cagayan and its neighboring cities to enjoy the modern comforts and conveniences of living, working, and doing business within the city’s central business, recreation and commercial district.

The comfort comes from living within the luxurious condo units of The Loop with its world-class features and amenities. The units are carefully designed to allow homeowners to live comfortably and in style.

The convenience comes from living close to workplaces, schools and universities, supermarkets, retail and shopping, business centers and a whole range of amenities that make all daily living essentials within close reach. It is a few strides away from stores and shops at the Lim Ket Kai center and right across the transport hub, giving you access to neighboring towns and cities, near and far.

The Loop’s “walkability” factor is a definite plus to many -- especially to those who want to live sustainably.

Living within walking distance entails less time and travel to go to desired locations, translating to less car use,

saving fuel and money, and getting more time for family and other personal pursuits.

As the focal point of the city, the central business district has a high concentration of job opportunities, business and commercial activities, as well as cultural, recreational and social events. These make The Loop a bastion of the modern lifestyle in Cagayan, where live, work, and play can be easily achieved.

This most anticipated condominium development in the northern Mindanao region belongs to the prestigious portfolio of Vista Residences, a major player in the country’s multi-level, mixed-use property development

industry.

To date, Vista Residences has 23 low- to high-rise condominiums in select prime locations in Metro Manila, Davao City -- which hosts Vista Residences first mid-rise vertical residence outside of Mega Manila -- and now in Cagayan de Oro City, making it a top choice for condo homes that provide the best city living experience.

It entered the market in 2006 to offer Filipinos the convenience of condo living.

Combining the space planning savvy of the country’s top architects, an innate knack for selecting accessible and attractive locations to fit a wide range of needs, budgets and lifestyles, Vista Residences has set

new standards for mid to high-rise living.

Vista Residences’ roster of elegant condo buildings include KL Mosaic, Salcedo Square, and Laureano Di Trevi (Makati), The Currency (Ortigas), The Symphony Towers, Wil Tower Mall, Vista Residences Katipunan, Madison Place Pine Crest, Brescia Residences (Quezon City), 515 Shaw (Mandaluyong), Cerritos Residences (Pasig).

It also includes Marfori and Presidio (Sucat), Vista Residences Taft, 878 Espana, and Crown Towers U-Belt (Manila), Pacific Residences, Avant at the Fort, and The Hudson (Taguig), Northpoint (Davao), and now, The Loop in Cagayan de Oro. Vista Residences draws from 38 years of property development expertise of Vista Land which has created over 250,000 homes in 33 provinces and 65 cities and municipalities across the country.

Catering to all income segments, Vista Land has been building homes where families can live a better quality of life.

More information on The Loop is available at 0917-8102445 and Communities Cagayan Inc., 2nd Floor Pelaez Arcade, RN Abejuela corner JP Rizal St., Cagayan de Oro City, and at http://www.vistaresidences.com.ph/