The PH world rank in financial promo

Philippines ranks 2nd in Asia, 8th worldwide for financial inclusion promotion

By TED CORDERO
GMA News
December 18, 2020

The Philippines remains among the top leaders in financial inclusion, according to the 2020 Global Microscope on Financial Inclusion of the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), the research arm of The Economist Group.

The country ranks second in Asia, next to India; and eight worldwide, tied with Brazil, in the EIU study, which assessed the financial inclusion environment in 55 countries.

The EIU study rated countries across five dimensions, namely Government and Policy; Stability and Integrity; Products and Outlets; Consumer Protection; and Infrastructure.

Together with Thailand and Russia, the Philippines posted the highest improvement in Asia and Eastern Europe, in view of the government’s push to promote digital channels as part of its responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the study.

The Philippines got a perfect score of 100 points in Products and Outlets dimension, which covers Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) regulations on e-money, simplified accounts like the Basic Deposit Account (BDA), and financial outlets such as cash agents.

Focusing on the role of financial inclusion in the COVID-19 response, the EIU study recognized the initiatives of the Philippines to mitigate the adverse economic impact of the pandemic.

The report cited the regulatory relief measures of the BSP to ease liquidity constraints in the financial system, restore business confidence, and sustain the flow of credit amid the unprecedented health crisis.

These include the temporary relaxation of compliance to reporting requirements, easier access to rediscounting facility, and waiver of licensing fees and charges for financial institutions setting up their electronic payment and financial services.

It also cited the initiative of financial service providers to suspend fees for electronic fund transfers during the community quarantine period.

In addition, the EIU report highlighted measures to promote MSME financing such as allowing banks to include loans granted to MSMEs as alternative compliance with reserve requirements, reducing the credit risk weight of MSME loans that are current in status to 50% from 75%, and reducing the minimum liquidity ratio (MLR) for stand-alone thrift banks, rural banks and cooperative banks to 16% from 20% until end-December 2020.

While the Philippines scored lowest in the Infrastructure dimension with 69 points, there is noted improvement from last year’s level owing to ongoing initiatives on digital connectivity, digital identification, and digital payments infrastructure.

The report emphasized the importance of digital infrastructure that includes access to identification, mobile phones, and financial accounts to facilitate efficient delivery of cash assistance to vulnerable segments.

It also noted that better data integration is needed for proper targeting of cash aid program beneficiaries.

The Global Microscope is an annual cross-country assessment of the enabling environment for financial inclusion. Since 2009, the Philippines consistently belongs to the top-ranked countries in terms of having a supportive framework for inclusive finance.

Latin American countries namely Colombia, Peru, Uruguay, Argentina, and Mexico dominated the top five spots of 2020 Global Microscope. —KBK, GMA News

...the Orchid Awardee

Philippines bags ‘Orchid Award’ from WHO for cutting ties to tobacco lobby

By Philip C. Tubeza
Philippine Daily Inquirer

Wednesday, November 14th, 2012

 

MANILA, Philippines—Talk about “quitting cold turkey.”

Two years after getting the dubious “Dirty Ashtray Award,” the Philippines was recognized on Tuesday, at a World Health Organization (WHO) conference in Seoul, South Korea, for excluding representatives of the tobacco industry from its official delegation.

The country was given the “Orchid Award” for excluding the National Tobacco Administration (NTA) from its delegation to the 5th Conference of Parties (COP5) of the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO-FCTC), the group HealthJustice said on Tuesday.

The award was given by the Framework Convention Alliance, which groups 350 civil society organizations from 100 countries that work for the development, ratification, and implementation of the international convention against tobacco.

“This is a remarkable moment in the history of public health. We salute the President, the Department of Health and Civil Service Commission for upholding our obligations to WHO FCTC,” said lawyer Irene Reyes, HealthJustice managing director.

Reyes noted that the Philippines was bestowed the “shameful” Dirty Ashtray Award in 2010 when its delegation “mouthed pro-tobacco industry interests at the COP4 in Uruguay.”

Earlier this year, Corporate Accountability International also gave the country’s Inter-agency Committee on Tobacco (IAC-T) its infamous “Marlboro Man Award” for giving the Philippine Tobacco Institute a seat in the committee, Reyes said.

Corporate Accountability International said this compromised the committee’s “obligation” to protect the public against the harmful effects of tobacco, she added.

Reyes noted that the Conference of Parties was firm in ensuring that tobacco industry representatives “are kept at a safe distance.”

She noted that Interpol, the world’s largest police organization, was refused observer status at this year’s conference due to reports that it received US$15 million from Philip Morris International.

“These are necessary steps to ensure that the Illicit Trade Protocol which has just been adopted is safeguarded against tobacco industry interference,” Reyes said.

HealthJustice said the Bureau of Customs had also refused to renew its partnership agreement with Philip Morris in accordance with a 2010 joint memorandum circular issued by the Civil Service Commission and the Department of Health “to protect the bureaucracy from (tobacco) industry interference.”

“We are hopeful to see the Philippines making great strides towards advancing public health as a priority. This is a true win for the Filipino people and for civil society who can look to a government that now recognizes that the preservation of health far outweighs any profit that the tobacco industry could provide,” says John Stewart, Challenge Big Tobacco Campaign Director at Corporate Accountability International.

While congratulating the Philippine delegation for ensuring a tobacco industry-free team to the Seoul conference, Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance director Bungon Ritthipakdee stressed that this should serve as a good practice for other Philippine officials and policymakers to emulate.

“Government officials and policymakers have the power to stop tobacco industry interference in their hands,” Ritthipakdee said.

“As long as government consistently rejects the tobacco industry in activities and events such as attendance to the COP, this sends a a very strong signal that we are serious in halting their interference and manipulative tactics,” Ritthipakdee added. With a report from Dechen Tshering

...the PH diplomat to WTO board

PHL envoy appointed to WTO management board

 

 

 

November 10, 2012

GMA News

 

 

A Philippine diplomat has been appointed to the Management Board of the Advisory Center on World Trade Organization Law (ACWL), the Department of Foreign Affairs said Friday.

 

 

The DFA said Philippine permanent representative to the WTO Esteban Conejos Jr. will have a two-year term and may be reappointed for another two years.

"Conejos succeeded Ambassador Bozkurt Aran of Turkey. His term will be for two years, and he will be eligible for reappointment for a further two years," the DFA said.

ACWL aims to provide developing countries and Least Developed Countries (LDCs) with the legal capability necessary to enable them to take full advantage of the opportunities offered by the WTO.

Conejos was unanimously nominated by the ACWL's Category B member countries to be their representative to the board, the DFA said.

These countries include Colombia, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Mauritius, Oman, Pakistan, Philippines, Thailand, Turkey, Uruguay, Venezuela and Vietnam.

The Philippines has been a member of ACWL since its establishment in 2001.

It has benefited from services such as legal assistance in dispute settlement cases, legal opinions, training courses, and a secondment program for government trade lawyers.

During the past 10 years, ACWL had been involved in 21 percent of all new WTO dispute settlement proceedings.

WTO Director-General Pascal Lamy earlier said the ACWL helps make sure the legal benefits of the WTO are shared among all members.

Lamy added the ACWL contributes to the effectiveness of the WTO's dispute settlement procedures, and to the realization of the WTO's development objectives.

Management board

The Management Board makes decisions to ensure the efficient and effective operation of the ACWL and reports to the General Assembly.

It has six persons serving in their personal capacities who have been selected on the basis of their professional qualifications in the field of WTO law or international trade relations and development.

Three Board members are nominated by the developing country members, two by the developed country members and one by the LDCs. The Executive Director serves ex officio on the Board.

The DFA said Conejos attended his first Management Board meeting on Nov. 7, and was welcomed by other board members, including ACWL Executive Director Niall Meagher.

At the meeting, they discussed the operational and financial standing of ACWL, as well as the accession of Cuba.

G-33 meet

On behalf of Indonesia, the Philippines through Conejos chaired the G-33 Heads of Delegation meeting on November 7 – a tradition being observed every time the coordinator of the group is not available.

The G-33, previously known as the Alliance for Special Products and Special Safeguard Mechanism, is a coalition of 46 developing countries pressing for S&DT flexibility for developing countries in the agriculture Doha Round of talks for ensuring food security, livelihood security and rural development.

Its key members include Barbados, China, Dominican Republic, India, Indonesia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Kenya, Korea, the Philippines, Turkey and Zimbabwe.

The G-33 discussed the Indian proposal entitled "Some Elements... for Early Agreement to Address Food Security Issues," which India and the Philippines are seeking for G-33 sponsorship.

The proposal under "Green Box" of the WTO Agreement of Agriculture aims to exempt developing countries from factoring in government support payments for public stock-holding for food security purposes.

It particularly focuses on the procurement from "low-income or resource poor producers" and provision of subsidized food prices for urban and rural poor in their AMS ("trade-distorting subsidy") monetary limits.

The proposal is part of the considered "80 percent agreed and stabilized areas" in the 2008 Chair's agriculture modalities text which India and the Philippines hope to be harvested early during the 9th WTO Ministerial Conference in Bali in December 2012, in advance of the full conclusion of the Doha Round.

The proposal may be submitted to the COA-SS Chair John Adank and circulated to all WTO members before the agriculture talks resume on 16 November 2012 in Geneva. — LBG, GMA News

...the FIFA ranking

Azkals improve in latest FIFA rankings

 

abs-cbnNEWS.com

10/19/2011

 

 

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Azkals improved in the latest FIFA rankings after a busy October wherein they played 5 matches.

 

 

 

The Azkals are now ranked 158, up 8 places from their ranking last September.

The Azkals participated in the Long Teng Cup this October, where they finished in 2nd place after ending up in draws with Hong Kong and Taipei, and defeating Macau 2-0.

They also lost to Singapore in a friendly, 0-2, but bounced back against Nepal, 4-0.

The Azkals' Under-23 team will participate in the South East Asian Games (SEAG) in November, while the senior team is now on a break with most players going back to their clubs.

Spain remains number 1 in the rankings, followed by Netherlands, Germany and Uruguay.

...the Filipino movies for Spain

Spanish envoy wants to bring PHL films to Spain ‘soon’

By IBARRA C. MATEO

10/03/2011

GMA News

Even as they are busy preparing for this week’s Pelicula: 10th Spanish Film Festival, Spanish and Filipino officials are also discussing the possibility of staging a Philippine film festival in Spain.

Describing cinema as “a vibrant reflection of culture," Spanish Ambassador to the Philippines Jorge Domecq said, “We hope that soon the Philippines will take its movies to our country, whose audience is wishing to see the works of Filipino filmmakers."

At a press conference last Sept. 29 to announce the 10th edition of Pelicula, Domecq said, “Spain has taken the initiative to promote Philippine cinema, not only in Spain, but also in the Philippines as demonstrated by the recent publication by Instituto Cervantes de Manila of the book: 44 Cineastas Filipinos/44 Filipino Filmmakers."

The embassy describes Pelicula as “one of the biggest showcases of Spanish and Latin American films in Asia."

“We are aspiring for a genuine partnership with the Philippines in terms of cinema. For that reason, we have initiated this year a partnership with the Film Development Council of the Philippines, which we hope will be most fruitful," Domecq added.

24 films

Pelicula begins on Oct. 4, with the invitational screening of “La Verguenza" (The Shame, 2009), winner of the Best Film and Best Screenplay awards at the 2009 Malaga Spanish Film Festival. Its scriptwriter-director, David Planell, will grace the Philippine premiere of his directorial debut, which tackles the decision of a rich couple to return an adopted child who was found to have behavioral disorders.

“On this 10th year, Pelicula will once again showcase a collection of more than 20 awarded films carefully selected from Spain, as well as from Argentina, Chile, Mexico, and Uruguay, all presenting a wide range of perspectives and styles," said Eduardo Calvo, the newdirector of Instituto Cervantes de Manila.

“I guarantee that Instituto Cervantes will always choose the best quality, the most attractive, and the most interesting sights of all Spanish cultures from Spain and other Spanish-speaking countries,’ he added.

Among the 24 films to be shown are the Javier Bardem starrer “Biutiful," for which he won the Best Actor award at the 2010 Cannes International Film Festival and at the 2011 Goya Awards. Directed by Alejandro Gonzales Iñarritu, “Biutiful" tells the story of Uxbal, who is engaged in the trafficking of illegal migrants and struggles to reconnect with his children when he discovers he has terminal cancer.

Calvo said a special cycle of screening of all the winners of the “Audience Choice Award" from 2002 to 2011 will be mounted during the festival, along with a photo exhibit documenting the history of Pelicula since it started.

The Asian premiere of Filipino director Raya Martin’s “Buenas Noches, España" (Good Evening, Spain) will be held on Oct. 10, he added.

Jose Maria Fons, cultural officer of the Instituto Cervantes de Manila, told reporters that Filipinos will have a chance to dialogue with “La Verguenza" scriptwriter-director David Planell on Oct. 5 and “Yo, Tambien" (Me, Too) scriptwriter-director Alvaro Pastor on Oct. 11, after the screening of their films. Planell and Pastor will also hold filmmaking workshops for Filipinos, he added.

Fons said one of this year’s highlights is the “Mexican Night" that will screen three Mexican films: “La Zona," a story about two divergent worlds that live in hatred and in fear of each other; Bardem’s “Biutiful"; and “Morirse esta en Hebreo," a comedy about relationships and life after death.

Noting that Filipinos often see some elements of local culture when they watch Spanish films, Ambassador Domecq said the success of Pelicula lies in its ability to “bring over to the Philippines a very accurate picture of what the main concerns and dilemmas of the Spanish people are these days, which these very good directors are making into films."

Beyond film

Calvo said the Instituto Cervantes is looking into the possibility of going beyond films and reaching out more closely to very young Filipinos through other art genres such as flamenco for dance and jazz for music. “We would like to offer the young Filipinos the best of Spanish culture," he said.

Side by side with Pelicula, Domecq said an international conference on the Galleon Trade will be held at the University of the Philippines in Diliman on Oct. 8 to be participated in by Spanish, Mexican, and Filipino experts.

“Foto," an exhibit of photographs by Spain’s top 15 photographers, will be launched at the Metropolitan Museum this month while the National Archives will exhibit historical documents from the Ilocos region in November, he said.

As part of the 150th anniversary of Jose Rizal’s birth, the ambassador said the Spanish Embassy and the Instituto Cervantes are launching an annotated version of “Noli Me Tangere" on Nov. 22 in connection with their “Philhispanic Classics." Historian Ambeth Ocampo wrote the introduction for the latest edition of “Noli" while philologist Isaac Donoso wrote the annotations.

The original “Noli" was published in 1886 in Berlin by the Berliner Buchdruckerei Actien Geseellschaft, while the 2011 “Noli" is published by the Biblioteca Clasicos Hispanofilipinos.

In Madrid, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs opens an exhibit on Rizal on Nov. 28 at the Spanish National Library, Domecq added. - YA, GMA News

...the Madz in Argentina

UP Madrigal Singers make triumphant debut in Argentina

 

 

08/20/2011

GMA News

The world-famous Philippine Madrigal Singers made a triumphant debut at the iconic Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires, one of the world’s leading opera houses, earning a standing ovation and bravos from some 2,000 spectators.

According to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), the University of the Philippines’ Madrigal Singers or “Madz" performed in a joint concert with the Coro Universitario de Mendoza – UN Cuyo (CdM) last Aug. 13.

“Dubbed as the concert of two champions of choral singing from Asia and Latin America, the evening event was attended by over 2,000 invitees from the Argentine government, the diplomatic corps, the academe and business sectors, the small Filipino community in Argentina, as well as a large number of Argentine music enthusiasts," the DFA said in a news release.

The DFA said the audience was greatly impressed by the two champion choirs’ exceptional performances of their individual repertories of sacred, avant-garde, folk, and popular songs.

Both choirs, which were past winners of the prestigious European Grand Prix for Choral Singing, were directed respectively by Silvana Vallesi of the CdM and Mark Anthony Carpio of the Madz, it added.

The Madz was the first and only Asian choir to win the European Grand Prix for Choral Singing in 1997, while the CdM was the first and only Latin American choir to bag the coveted award in 2009.

Following its successful participation in the 9th World Symposium for Choral Singing in Puerto Madryn in southern Argentina last Aug. 7 to 10, the Madz is the only Filipino chorale to have performed in the world-renowned theater.

Among the organizers of the Aug. 13 event included the National University of Cuyo of the Argentine province of Mendoza and TecPlata of the ICTSI Group of Companies.

Tributes

The two choirs also paid tribute to each other’s countries, with the CdM performing Veni Creator Spiritus by Alejandro Consolación II of the Philippines, while the Madz singing the tango Oblivion by Astor Piazzolla of Argentina.

As a finale, both choirs rendered a joint rendition of Tangata, another Piazzolla composition.

The DFA noted the event was a celebration of the fraternal ties of friendship between Argentina and the Philippines.

As a gesture of appreciation, Philippine Ambassador to Argentina Rey Carandang hosted a dinner at the embassy for the members of both choirs at the end of the concert.

Teatro Colon

The DFA noted Teatro Colón is considered one of the world’s top five opera houses in terms of acoustics.

Since its inauguration in 1908, the architectural landmark hosted the performances of the world’s greatest musicians, orchestras, opera singers, composers, as well as orchestra conductors including Argentine-born Daniel Barenboim.

“After several years of extensive renovation, the theater had a grand reopening last year on the anniversary of Argentina’s Bicentennial of Independence," it said.

Surprising revelation

The DFA said the Teatro Colón audience was “awed" by the “extraordinary technique, varied colors and engaging warmth of the Madz’s a cappella singing" and its “uncommon style of rendering songs while seated in a semicircle without a conductor."

“Each of the songs was generously applauded by the audience who, at the end of the Madz’s individual repertory, spontaneously rose to its feet to enthusiastically cheer the Madz in an atmosphere of heart-warming rapport between the performers and the spectators," the DFA said.

It added many in the audience, including the members of the Filipino community, approached the embassy officials to convey their appreciation for such a memorable concert.

“The Madz has once again shown that it is indeed among the best ambassadors of goodwill of the Philippines," it said.

More concerts

Several other concerts organized by the embassy are in store for the Madz in Buenos Aires and La Plata, the capital of Buenos Aires province, from August until early September.

The embassy also organized the Madz’s concerts in Paraguay and Uruguay, countries under its jurisdiction.

“It is most fitting that the first performance in Latin America by the country’s premier choral group takes place in Argentina, a leading country in culture and in the arts in the region," the DFA said. – JE, GMA News