Day: July 9, 2023

At least 50 families were forcibly taken Sunday from their residences located within the 6-kilometer permanent danger zone of Mayon volcano, according to the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD). DSWD Assistant Secretary and spokesperson Romel Lopez said the Bicol Regional Office initiated the forced evacuation following verified reports that several families refused to leave Barangay Anoling, one of the geographically isolated areas in Camalig town, Albay province. The immediate evacuation was jointly conducted by the Camalig Municipal Police Station, Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office, and Municipal Disaster Response and Management Office, DSWD regional director Norman Laurio said in a statement. ‘The 50 families from Barangay Anoling will be given temporary shelter at the Baligang Elementary School. Validation is still ongoing to account for the exact number of families,’ Laurio said in his report to DSWD’s Disaster Response and Management Group. Last month, more than 13,000 residents around Mayon’s 6-kilometer permanent danger zone were evacuated as the volcano had been spewing lava and sulfuric gas. The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said on Sunday the volcano has registered 26 volcanic earthquakes and 303 rockfall events over the past 24 hours.

Source: Philippines News Agency

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has directed the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) to explore the possibility of making the application for Overseas Employment Certificate (OEC) free of charge. In a statement on Sunday, the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said the President issued the directive during a meeting with the DMW, Bureau of Immigration (BI), and Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) in Malacañang Palace. During the said meeting, the DMW also presented the DMW Mobile App which aims to ‘make an overseas Filipino worker’s (OFW) journey easier.’ The app contains the OFW Pass, a digital and secure version of the OEC which serves as the digital identity of workers. After a two- to three-month transition period upon activation, the OFW Pass will completely replace the OEC. The OFW Pass and OEC have significant differences. The OFW Pass is QR-code generated and can be acquired only through the app, while the OEC requires onsite processing with a PHP100 charge. The OFW Pass is valid until the expiration of the OFW’s work contract, while the OEC lasts for only 60 days. Those who can avail of the OFW Pass are first-time OFWs; returning OFWs or those vacationing in the Philippines but will go back to same employer; and OFWs who have transferred to a different employer or whose contracts need to be registered and verified by the Office of the Labor Attaché. In his inaugural State of the Nation Address in 2022, President Marcos directed the DMW and the DICT to automate the verification of contracts and issue OECs that can be stored on smartphones. DMW Secretary Susan Ople said Marcos welcomed the development of the mobile application as it is a simple yet effective digital solution to the OEC problems encountered by OFWs when seeking jobs abroad. She said the mobile application is for free as the government’s way of honoring the country’s ‘modern-day heroes.’ ‘His mandate was to make sure that our OFWs will not pay when using the app and when they download the OFW Pass,” said Ople. DMW is currently waiting for the approval of the DICT, maybe within the week, for the official launch of the DMW Mobile App to ensure its cybersecurity features. To disseminate the app, the DMW established the OFW Pass Teacher, a volunteer system where registered OFWs will be given relevant materials to teach other OFWs how to utilize it. The agency is also expected to integrate its mobile app with the BI’s eTravel and e-Gate systems and eventually link it to DICT’s eGov PH Super App. Google Play and Apple App Store both approved the app for downloading.

Source: Philippines News Agency

A merchant marine industry insider said efforts are underway to upgrade the curriculum of local maritime academies amid fears that tens of thousands of Filipino seafarers will lose their jobs if they fall short of certain international standards. In an interview on Sunday, Julius Magpantay, a faculty member at the Maritime Academy of Asia and the Pacific (MAAP) in Mariveles, Bataan, said the Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) and the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) are jointly working to address perceived weaknesses in the curriculum of Philippine maritime schools, especially in the area of safety. He noted that MAAP and other maritime academies expect to receive new teaching guidelines as soon as the two regulatory agencies release the improved syllabus. Magpantay, himself a deck officer, added that the publication by the MARINA and CHED of course upgrades are imminent, and they ‘will be implemented immediately” without waiting for the next school year. ‘The (Philippine maritime) industry recently got a reprieve when the European Commission (EC) decided to continue recognizing safety certifications issued by the MARINA. We owe this to the intervention of the Philippine government. About 30 percent (of) Filipino seafarers, including both officers and ordinary seamen, were at risk (of job loss),’ said Magpantay. The ones who were in most danger were those working for European Union-based shipping companies because it was the European Maritime Safety Agency that pointed out the deficiencies In April, Adina Vaean, the EC’s commissioner for transport, announced that the 27-nation bloc decided to consider the safety certifications issued by MARINA after ‘constructive cooperation’ with Philippine authorities, recognizing their ‘efforts to improve the system for training and certifying seafarers.’ The EC’s move staved off what could have meant unemployment for up to 50,000 Filipino sailors. Meanwhile, the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP), through its affiliate, the Associated Philippine Seafarers’ Union, proposed that ‘ship owners, employers, and the government provide the appropriate policy and program support for the continuing education and upskilling of Filipino seafarers, that they may retain their jobs or transition to suitable positions, amidst disruptions brought about by the 4th industrial revolution (Industry 4.0).’ In a statement, the labor union said seafarers’ jobs will be affected by the coming fourth industrial revolution in maritime fuels and networked digital information systems, which will happen as an inevitable result of the international maritime industry’s commitment to de-carbonization in response to the threat of climate change. TUCP urged the government to take the necessary steps to improve the competency of Filipino sailors to ‘ensure that they remain the preferred international hire

Source: Philippines News Agency

All local government units (LGUs) must prioritize the procurement of public automated external defibrillator (AED), urged Philippine Heart Association (PHA) incoming Central Luzon Chapter president Dr. Rayzen Lim. An AED is a portable, life-saving device which, when used along with CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation), increases the survival rate of a cardiac arrest patient by 30 percent. In a media interview during the induction of new PHA-Central Luzon officers here over the weekend, Lim said LGUs, through an ordinance, could also require all establishments to have their own AEDs. LGUs could also start their local registry on hypertension, diabetes and other kinds of diseases leading to heart problems to easily monitor the patients and reduce the mortality rate, she added. The PHA is open to partnering with the government and private companies in their CPR training, Lim said. Members of the PHA have been pushing for the enactment of the Automated External Defibrillator bill seeking public deployment of AEDs to step up emergency response to cardiac arrest emergencies. PHA national president Dr. Ronald Cuyco said the bill will enable the community to save a cardiac arrest patient by using the AED gadget. He said that once the bill is signed into law, AED deployment in strategic places for public access would be mandatory. ‘We are calling on the lawmakers to pass the AED bill as we are keen on giving the CPR-ReadyPh 2023 a major push,’ Cuyco said. Between 2016 and 2022, lawmakers have filed similar versions of the AED bill. In 2022, Senator Lito Lapid filed Senate Bill No. 2474 seeking the placement of AEDs in public spaces like government buildings, offices, courts, schools, public parks and markets. An AED is easy to use and can analyze the heart’s rhythm and, if needed, deliver an electrical shock or defibrillation to help the heart reestablish an effective rhythm. Sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) is the sudden loss of all heart activities due to an irregular heart rhythm. Breathing stops. The person becomes unconscious. Without immediate treatment, SCA can lead to death. Emergency treatment includes CPR and shocks to the heart with an AED device. Survival is possible with fast (within four to six minutes) appropriate CPR and/or use of an AED and medical care

Source: Philippines News Agency

Russia’s war against Ukraine, which hit 500 days, caused a huge economic effect on both and other countries due to fluctuating commodity prices. During the 500 days, Russia increased military expenses and saw difficulties especially related to embargoes and trade bans from Western countries. Russian Central Bank reserves, worth 300 billion euros (US$326.6 billion), was blocked since the beginning of the war by the EU, G7 countries and Australia. In addition, 70 percent of the assets of the Russian banking system and around 20 billion euros of assets of more than 1,500 people and entities are under Western sanctions, according to a European Council’s recent report in May. Although increasing energy prices were positive for Russia in the first half of 2022, sanctions targeting oil imports have resulted in limiting Russia’s revenues, said the Council. Russia’s oil revenues fell by more than one quarter in January 2023 on a yearly basis, and the decline in February was more, over 40 percent, International Energy Agency’s data showed. Data from international institutions, such as the World Bank, the Organization of Economic Co-operation and Development and the IMF, indicated that the Russian economy has narrowed 2.1 percent in 2022 and the contraction may continue in 2023. For 2023, imports are forecasted to increase while exports to the world are expected to see a decline. Exports totaled US$588.3 billion in 2022, while it is expected to drop to US$465.9 billion in 2023, US$484 billion in 2024 and US$496.2 billion in 2025. Imports were at US$280.4 billion last year, and are forecasted to increase to US$313.8 billion in 2023, US$332.8 billion next year and US$347.4 billion in 2025. After Russia started its “special military operation” against its neighbor on Feb. 24, 2022, many sectors and countries announced sanctions or suspensions, trying to exert pressure on the Russian economy. Some companies stopped operations and deliveries in Russia, while others ended investments or withdrew partnerships in Russia, and Belarus. Industrial production narrowed 0.6 percent in 2022, while retail trade turnover declined 6.7 percent on a yearly basis. Military expenses According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) data in June, the national defense budget’s share in the total government budget was up 23 percent from 21 percent in 2022 and 20 percent in 2021. The national defense budget’s share in GDP also increased to 4.4 percent in 2023 from 3.6 percent in 2021. The national defense budget for 2023 was announced as 4.98 trillion rubles (US$54.7 billion). Other costs Besides military spending, Russia had to assume other major expenses such as rebuilding investments in ‘new territories,’ according to the SIPRI report. Russia occupied the Donetsk and Luhansk regions and parts of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia oblasts in September 2022. It has announced a plan to spend 1.88 trillion rubles from 2024-2026 on state organs for the newly annexed regions. From infrastructure to health and educational mechanism, Russia will have to spend billions of rubles for the regions in the coming years. Ukraine The Ukrainian economy shrank 29.1 percent in 2022, on a yearly basis, after an increase of 3.4 percent in 2021. Poverty increased from 5.5 percent to 24.2 percent in 2022, pushing 7.1 million more people into poverty. The country saw difficulties in its economy due to the war, which hit several sectors including tourism, production, agriculture, energy and transportation. Damage to essential health, education and social protection services amounted to US$83 billion and reconstruction and recovery needs in those three sectors were estimated at almost US$69 billion, according to World Bank figures. The bank previously estimated that the country needs more than US$400 billion for overall recovery and reconstruction. The Center for Disaster Philanthropy said that this year, around 40 percent of the population, or 17.6 million people, require humanitarian assistance, 45 percent of whom are women and 23 percent children. The UN estimates more than 4 million Ukrainian refugees may need protection and assistance in neighboring countries in the coming months. From February 25 to the end of May, all recorded commitments to Ukraine amounted to 165 billion euros, including military, financial and humanitarian aid, Kiel Institute stressed previously. Ukraine’s military spending was up 7.4 times to US$44 billion in 2022, which was 34 percent of the country’s GDP, according to SIPRI

Source: Philippines News Agency