...the expanding PH ties

Duterte seeks deeper ties with latin America, Africa, Central Asia


GMA NEWS
04 October 2019

President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday said he would seek deeper ties with countries in Latin America, Africa, and Central Asia in the last three years of his term.

Russia's President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with Philippine counterpart Rodrigo Duterte during their meeting in Sochi, Russia on October 3, 2019. Sputnik/Mikhail Klimentyev/Kremlin via Reuters

Duterte made the pledge in a speech at the forum of the Valdai Discussion Club in Sochi, Russia.

“In the remaining three years of my term, we will likewise expand the horizon of Philippine diplomacy by deepening our engagement in Latin America, Africa and Central Asia,” Duterte said.

“We will strengthen our economic ties with these regions, opening new markets and with it the free exchange of ideas, technology, and innovation.”

Duterte added: “For I want the Filipino people to broaden their worldwide view, to be enriched by the cultures and intellectual traditions of the old civilizations of the Americas, Africa, Central Asia, and the Middle East.”

Duterte has yet to embark on an official or state visit to a country in Latin America, Africa, and Central Asia. The President, however, went to Peru, a Latin American nation, to attend the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit in 2016.

This year’s APEC Summit will be held in Chile, a neighboring country of Peru, in November.

The President also said that it was “high time that the Philippines look at the Middle East with fresh eyes going beyond oil and overseas Filipino workers.”

“As one of the fastest growing economies in the world, the Philippines will assume our twin responsibility of sustaining the growth of our people, while helping other developing countries in their own [journey] to progress,” he said.

He mentioned that for years, the foreign policy of the Philippines was tailored to that of the United States.

Duterte added that while he was not against the US or the Western world, he opted to embark on an independent foreign policy by reaching out to all nations that extend their hand of friendship to the Philippines with mutual respect and without preconditions.

“The principles of respect for state sovereignty, non-intervention, and peaceful resolution of disputes must be upheld at all times, otherwise the order unravels,” he said.

Duterte is set to leave Malacañang in June 2022. His foreign policy has so far been marked with increased engagements with Russia and China, two nations with economic and military rivalries with the Philippines’ treaty ally, the US.

He had also made historic visits to Israel and Jordan.

US President Donald Trump has a standing invitation for Duterte to visit Washington but the Filipino leader said in July last year that his packed schedule and dislike for long flights were the ones preventing him from accepting the invite. — MDM, GMA News

...the Fashion show at the House of Lords

A Filipino first: A fashion show at the House of Lords

Miss Charlize
Business Mirror 
23 September 2019

LONDON—For the first time in fashion history, a Filipino designer was able to showcase the finest of the Philippines at the Palace of Westminster.

Parkfleet Consultancy & Services and Topline International, the producers of the exclusive event, called “Creative Economy Through Fashion,” enlisted Cebu-based designer Philipp Piezas Tampus to display the ingenious uses of indigenous materials, such as hablon and piña cocoon. 

Philipp Piezas Tampus and Marie Fairbank; Bianca Lopez Salimbangon;  Kacey Coleen, and Kimmie Famero

The grand neo-Gothic architecture and ornate Augustus Pugin-designed interiors of the House of Lords served as the backdrop for the sampaguita-inspired pieces that Tampus presented.

The sampaguita flowers, painstakingly attached and embroidered to long gowns and tea-length dresses, are made of piña cocoon while the hablon was made by weavers in Argao, Cebu. Tampus also showed sharp menswear suits and charming children’s wear.

It was Mike Acebedo Lopez, commisioner of the Cebu Ports Authority and managing director of Topline, that suggested Tampus to be the featured designer at the economic forum-cum-fashion show.

“When I saw my sister Bianca’s wedding dress designed by Philipp, I sent a photo to Savita Kaye [CEO and founder of the House of iKons, a show during London Fashion Week] and Marie Fairbank [Parkfleet founder] who immediately wanted to see more,” Lopez shared. “When Savita saw his portfolio, which includes Cebu Gov. Gwen Garcia’s inauguration dress, it was decided that Philipp would be one of the featured designers at the House of iKons show and the lone designer at the House of Lords.”

It was Fairbank who conceptualized “Creative Economy Through Fashion,” which aims to empower the farming sector that is the main source of materials for the fashion industry.

“When I realized that our designers who come to the UK spend thousands or millions and go home without ROI because they have no access to business people for collaborations and business sustainability, I wanted to help in my own way,” said Fairbank, a doyenne in the Fil-Brit community in London.

“I believed that to do a forum at the House of Lords, I’d be the first-ever Filipina to organize an event in such a prestigious place. The venue was chosen so we could attract high-profile business people, potential investors and government officials that we could link them to the designers,” she added.

Among the attendees were lords and ladies, a diamond dealer, Dr. Vanessa Brady, OBE; Prof. Mark Watson-Gandy, barrister/CEO; Deputy Chief of Missions Ambassador Frank Cimafranca and wife Lu Calunsag; Deputy Mayor of Elstree and Borehamwood Cynthia Alcantara-Barker; hotelier Julie Aquino, businesswoman Eme Echavez, CareHands Ltd. Director Elsa Binas and Consul Stacy Alcantara Garcia.

“I wanted to promote the Philippines but starting first with Cebu, because that’s where I’m from. In my next event, I will include anyone that will support my cause,” Fairbank said. “I will also invite fashion designers from Africa, the Mediterranean and the Caribbean.”

...the most powerful man in Asian MMA

Victor Cui The most powerful man in Asian MMA is a Filipino

By Randy Caluag
October 27, 2013

With barely two years old in existence, the One Fighting Championship is now widely regarded as the best and largest mixed martial arts organization in Asia.

So why has ONE FC become a byword in the Asian mixed martial arts community?

Khim Dima of Cambodia pummels Filipino Rene Catalan on the back of his head in the recent ONE FC Total Domination in Singapore. Their flyweight bout was ruled a no-contest due to illegal blows.

This is simply because One FC has brought together the best fighters in Asia and the world, pit them against each other in well-balanced cards to come up with high-octane, colorful fight promotions to the delight of the fans in the Asian continent.

The result is a 90% percent market share in terms of fan following in Asia—one billion plus viewership in the first three quarters of the year and an unprecedented ten-year TV deal with Fox and Star Sports for a coverage that spans 70 countries around world.

There is no doubt that ONE FC is MMA’s real deal in this part of the world.

And behind the powerful brand is a young visionary in Victor Cui, who was recently recognized by USA Today as the most powerful man in Asian MMA.

Filipino CEO

The 42-year-old Victor, ONE FC’s chief executive officer, is a pure-blooded Filipino but who has made himself a citizen of the world.

Victor’s father is a Cebuano and his mother is from Camiguin Island, but , Victor was born in Canada and spent part of his childhood in Africa because of his father’s work as an engineer diplomat.

After finishing his degrees in Business and Politics, he took up executive masters in Luxury Branding.

Cui ( center) with the Philippine contingents in ONE FC Asia Summit held in Singapore last May

His educational background led him to the exciting world of sports marketing, where he handled various executive positions at ESPN Star Sports, PGA Tour, X Games Asia, the Commonwealth Games and the Olympics for 15 years. He has traveled extensively and has made Singapore his home where ONE FC is based.

The rich experience has served him in good stead in founding ONE FC and making it the fastest growing promotion in MMA history.

One FC has so far staged live competitions in Indonesia, Philippines,Singapore and Malaysia and had attracted television audiences not only in Southeast Asia, but to as far as China, India, Russia and the Middle East because its promotions feature top fighters from various Asian countries.

And with still three months to go before the year ends, ONE FC has already breached the one-billion barrier in TV viewership.

Fastest-growing sport

Of all sports, why MMA?

 

“MMA is the fastest growing sport. Its skyrocketing popularity is phenomenal. It’s hard to resist such kind of business opportunity,” Victor told the Manila Standard in a one-on-one interview.

 

“While other sports struggle to fight decline, MMA is exploding.”

 

Repucom.com, a sports-dedicated website, verifies Victor’s claim.

According to its study, MMA is now ranked third behind football and Formula One among the sports which drew the fans’ highest level of interest, surpassing more established sports events such as golf, rugby and Moto GP.

As a testament to MMA’s powerful presence in Asia, Fox and Star Sports recently signed a 10-year coverage deal with ONE FC. Even big sponsors like oil giant Petron and Japan’s Sony, have recognized the marketing viability of the sport that was once held underground.

Mainstream media such as CNN and BBC have also featured fighters from ONE FC. “My success principle is about going for the best. I work with the best people and treat them well—the best gym partners, best fighters, best staff and all.”

Best in the world

 

ONE FC CEO Victor Cui announces the year-end promotion in December

Victor however thinks of ONE FC as not just a fight organization.

“We’re not just a foreign company that goes to one country and take all the fans’ money. We want to be the platform for growth of the sport and the athletes. One FC is a media company. But first,we are creating the brand. We’re building heroes, superstars. Our dream is to become the best media company in the world.”

Despite the lofty goals that he has set for ONE FC, Victor does not forget his Filipino lineage. He takes pride in the Filipino warrior’s heritage, and this is why in every ONE FC event, there are always Filipino fighters seeing action. He has so much faith in the Filipino fighters even as they keep on losing in the circular cage of ONE FC tournaments.

“I do not just look on winning or losing. It’s about how they fight in the cage. How they excite the fans. Most Filipino MMA fighters like to fight the way Manny Pacquiao fights. That’s why fans love them. That’s what make ONE FC exciting,” explained Victor.

“But Filipinos fighters have to train harder and continue to learn. Everybody is learning fast. The level of competition is rising along with the popularity of the sport.”

Baguio City-based Team Lakay, for instance, is one of the mainstays in ONE FC. In fact, former featherweight champon Honorio Banario and veteran Eduard Folayang, both coming off disappointing losses, are coming back to the cage on Dec. 6 for the ONE FC Moment of Truth at the Mall of Asia.

Banario, a multi-title wushu athlete, wants to take back the title from Japanese Koji Oishi who knocked him out in their previous title duel last May, also held at the MOA Arena.

It’s the ONE FC’s year-ending event that Victor wants to end with a bang. For Victor, the Philippines remains the fight capital of Asia. And no one seems to argue.

After all, he just happens to be the most powerful man in Asian MMA, bar none.

 

...the Asia-Pacific best performer in gender equality

PH best performer in Asia-Pacific in gender equality–WEF

By Doris C. Dumlao
Philippine Daily Inquirer

Friday, October 25th, 2013

INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines–The Philippines is the best performer within the Asia-Pacific region when it comes to gender equality and the country has likewise improved its global ranking to 5th place from 8th in the 2013 Global Gender Gap Report.

This latest annual gender equality-focused report of the World Economic Forum ranked 136 countries on their ability to close the gender gap in four key areas: economic equality, political participation, health and survival and educational attainment.

“The Philippines remains the most advanced country in the (Asia-Pacific) region in terms of gender equality, ranking 5th in the global index. It improves as a result of advances in economic participation and opportunity, a subindex of the report, as well as having a strong score in terms of political participation,” WEF said in a statement issued on Friday.

The report said the Asia Pacific region had now closed 67 percent of its gender gap but still lagged every region in the world except the Middle East and North Africa when it comes to economic equality between the sexes having closed only 56 percent, the report said.

The eighth annual edition of the Report ranked Iceland closest to equality for the fifth year running.

It, along with Finland (2nd), Norway (3rd) and Sweden (4th), has now closed over 80 percent of its gender gap.

“Countries will need to start thinking of human capital very differently – including how they integrate women into leadership roles. This shift in mindset and practice is not a goalpost for the future, it is an imperative today,” said Klaus Schwab, WEF founder and executive chair.

“Both within countries and between countries are two distinct tracks to economic gender equality, with education serving as the accelerator. For countries that provide this basic investment, women’s integration in the workforce is the next frontier of change. For those that haven’t invested in women’s education, addressing this obstacle is critical to women’s lives as well as the strength of economies,” said Saadia Zahidi, co-author of the report and head of the Women Leaders and Gender Parity Programme.

Elsewhere in Asia, China continues to hold 69th position after improving its overall score. Japan loses four places to 105, mainly because of a decrease in the number of women in parliament which overshadows a rise in its economic participation and opportunity score. Korea, on 111, slips three places largely on account of a decrease in labor force participation and perceived wage equality.
Germany, in 14th place, is the highest-placed individual G20 economy, although it fell by one notch from 2012.

The best performer among BRICS (the grouping of fast-growing emerging markets coined to refer to Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) is South Africa at 17th place, followed by Russia (61th), Brazil (62nd), while the two Asian BRICS ranked lowest, with China at 69th and India at 101st.

At the global level, the report found that in 2013, 96 percent of the health and survival gender gap had now been closed. It is the only one of the four pillars that has widened since the report was first compiled in 2006.
In terms of education, the global gender gap stood at 93 percent, with 25 countries having closed their gaps completely. The gender gaps for economic equality and political participation are only 60 percent and 21 percent closed respectively, although progress is being made in these areas, with political participation narrowing by almost 2 percent in the past year.

In both emerging and developed countries alike, relative to the numbers of women in tertiary education and in the workforce overall, women’s presence in economic leadership positions is limited.

Europe’s progress towards eliminating its gender gap is polarized, with countries from Northern and Western Europe presenting a stark contrast to those from the South and East. Spain came in 30th, having closed 72 percent of its gender gap. France ranked 45th (70 percent closed) while Italy ranked 71st.

Latin America’s leading nation when it comes to closing the gender gap is Nicaragua. At 10th place, it has now ranked in the top 10 for two years, largely on the back of a strong performance in terms of political empowerment. Cuba is next (15th), followed by Ecuador (25th). Mexico climbed 16 places to 68, due to increases in the number of female parliamentarians and the number of women in professional roles. Brazil held firm at 62nd despite a slight improvement in its overall score.

 

...the Investment "Sweet Spot"

Editorial

Philippines 'Sweet Spot' for Investment

Manila Bulletin

February 18, 2013

 

 

The Philippines edged its Asian neighbors in providing an environment that attracts big foreign companies. Besides traditional investment sources such as United States of America, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan, potential investors from Europe, the Middle East, and Africa now look at the country as investment site.

The Board of Investments (BOI) reported that R75 billion worth of investments poured in the first month of 2013 the biggest of which was the R40-billion Subic power project. BOI-registered investments come with tax holiday packages and incentives to attract more big companies. The growing investor confidence is fueled by the robust 6.6% growth in the economy in 2012, a competitive labor force, and a stable government.

The International Finance Corp. (IFC), the private sector financing arm of the World Bank, plans to invest up to $400 million in the Philippines in 2013 in Public-Private Partnership (PPP) projects, transport, tollroads, water, and power, particularly renewable.

The United Kingdom (UK) has increased trade and investment in the Philippines, particularly in information and communications technology, PPP, retail, education, energy, and health care.

Investments from Taiwan rose over 30 percent to $400 million in 2012 from $300 million in 2011, according to the Taipei-based Manila Economic and Cultural Office. Some $400 million in investments were infused by 16 companies in various Philippine industries, of which about $100 million went to Clark and the rest to economic zones in Batangas, Laguna, and Cavite. Some 800,000 Filipinos are employed today by foreign investors in 275 special economic zones nationwide.

We congratulate the Department of Trade and Industry, headed by Secretary Gregory L. Domingo, and other Officers, in their collective efforts to push for long-term and sustainable investments to ensure a strong economy in the Republic of the Philippines. CONGRATULATIONS AND MABUHAY!

...the next potential popes

Cardinal Tagle in Reuters list of potential popes

 

By Tom Heneghan, Religion Editor

published in abs-cbnnews.com

02/11/2013  

 

 

 

PARIS - With Pope Benedict's stunning announcement that he will resign later this month, the time may be coming for the Roman Catholic Church to elect its first non-European leader and it could be a Latin American.

The region already represents 42 percent of the world's 1.2 billion-strong Catholic population, the largest single block in the Church, compared to 25 percent in its European heartland.

After the Pole John Paul and German-born Benedict, the post once reserved for Italians is now open to all. Who gets the nod depends on the profile of the new pope that the cardinals who elect him at the next conclave think will guide the Church best.

Two senior Vatican officials recently dropped surprisingly clear hints about possible successors. The upshot of their remarks is that the next pope could well be from Latin America.

"I know a lot of bishops and cardinals from Latin America who could take responsibility for the universal Church," said Archbishop Gerhard Mueller, who now holds the pope's old post as head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

"The universal Church teaches that Christianity isn't centred on Europe," the German-born archbishop told Duesseldorf's Rheinische Post newspaper just before Christmas.

Swiss Cardinal Kurt Koch, head of the Vatican department for Christian unity, told the Tagesanzeiger daily in Zurich at the same time that the Church's future was not in Europe.

"It would be good if there were candidates from Africa or South America at the next conclave," he said, referring to the closed-door election in the Vatican's Sistine Chapel.

Asked if he would vote for a non-European over a European candidate if they were equally qualified, he responded: "Yes."

If the next conclave really is Latin America's turn, the leading candidates there seem to be Odilo Scherer, archbishop of the huge diocese of Sao Paolo, or the Italian-Argentine Leonardo Sandri, now heading the Vatican department for Eastern Churches.

Peter Turkson from Ghana, now head of the Vatican's justice and peace department, is often tipped as Africa's frontrunner.

About half the cardinals who can vote are from Europe, even though only a quarter of the world's Catholics live there. If the conclave tilts to the Old Continent, Vatican watchers say Angelo Scola of Milan is in pole position.

Vienna Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn, a former student and close ally of Benedict, is also considered a strong candidate.

FRONTRUNNERS FOR NOW

While there are no official candidates, here are "papabili" (potential popes) the most frequently mentioned recently. The list is in alphabetical, not in order of their chances, and will probably change between now and when the conclave is held, most likely in March.


- Joao Braz de Aviz (Brazil, 65) brought fresh air to the Vatican department for religious congregations when he took over in 2011. He supports the preference for the poor in Latin America's liberation theology, but not the excesses of its advocates. Possible drawbacks include his low profile.

- Timothy Dolan, (USA, 62) became the voice of U.S. Catholicism after being named archbishop of New York in 2009. His humour and dynamism have impressed the Vatican, where both are often missing. But cardinals are wary of a "superpower pope" and his back-slapping style may be too American for some.

- Marc Ouellet (Canada, 68) is effectively the Vatican's top staff director as head of the Congregation for Bishops. He once said becoming pope "would be a nightmare." Though well connected within the Curia, the widespread secularism of his native Quebec could work against him.

- Gianfranco Ravasi (Italy, 70) has been Vatican culture minister since 2007 and represents the Church to the worlds of art, science, culture and even to atheists. This profile could hurt him if cardinals decide they need an experienced pastor rather than another professor as pope.

 

- Leonardo Sandri (Argentina, 69) is a "transatlantic" figure born in Buenos Aires to Italian parents. He held the third-highest Vatican post as its chief of staff in 2000-2007. But he has no pastoral experience and his job overseeing eastern churches is not a power position in Rome.

- Odilo Pedro Scherer (Brazilia, 63) ranks as Latin America's strongest candidate. Archbishop of Sao Paolo, largest diocese in the largest Catholic country, he is conservative in his country but would rank as a moderate elsewhere. The rapid growth of Protestant churches in Brazil could count against him.

- Christoph Schoenborn (Austria, 67) is a former student of Pope Benedict with a pastoral touch the pontiff lacks. The Vienna archbishop has ranked as papal material since editing the Church catechism in the 1990s. But some cautious reform stands and strong dissent by some Austrian priests could hurt him.

- Angelo Scola (Italy, 71) is archbishop of Milan, a springboard to the papacy, and is many Italians' bet to win. An expert on bioethics, he also knows Islam as head of a foundation to promote Muslim-Christian understanding. His dense oratory could put off cardinals seeking a charismatic communicator.

- Luis Tagle (Philippines, 55) has a charisma often compared to that of the late Pope John Paul. He is also close to Pope Benedict after working with him at the International Theological Commission. While he has many fans, he only became a cardinal in 2012 and conclaves are wary of young candidates.

- Peter Turkson (Ghana, 64) is the top African candidate. Head of the Vatican justice and peace bureau, he is spokesman for the Church's social conscience and backs world financial reform. He showed a video criticising Muslims at a recent Vatican synod, raising doubts about how he sees Islam. (Additional reporting by Philip Pullella; Editing by Giles Elgood)

 

...the world's Best Letting Agency

CBRE Philippines named ‘World’s Best Lettings Agency’

 

The Philippine Star

January 14, 2013

 

 

Rick Santos (left), chairman and CEO of CBRE Philippines, holds the award from the IPA with Estela Cancio, marketing and sales director for global corporate services of CBRE Philippines.

 

 

MANILA, Philippines - Leading real estate services and advisory firm CBRE Philippines was awarded “World’s Best Lettings/Leasing Agency” at the recently concluded 2012 International Property Awards (IPA) in London. Earlier, the company also won at the national and Asia Pacific level, besting other lettings firm in the world.

 

CBRE represented both the Philippines and the Asia Pacific region at the world awards, where it was pitted against top-scoring champions from other regions like Aidan J Reed for the United Kingdom, Global Investment Properties for Africa, Smith & Ken for Arabia, as well as the other winners from Europe, Canada, Caribbean, Middle East, Central & South America, and the US.

 

“We are proud to have represented the country for this prestigious awards-giving body. Our success is an indication that the Philippine property market is thriving. This has been the best market I have experienced in my 20 years in the industry,” beamed Mr. Rick Santos after the win.

 

CBRE is the only company from the Philippines to have joined the awards and successfully made it to both the Asia Pacific and the World categories.

 

Established some 18 years ago, the IPA is the world’s most prestigious property competition that covers both residential as well as commercial categories. Premier developers, architects, interior designers and real estate agents from around the globe await the announcement of the winners of the awards to find out which companies have shown the highest levels of achievement by operating in all sectors of the property and real estate industry.

...the Crystal Clear

Philippine water brand hits Africa

Philippine Daily Inquirer

Saturday, January 12th, 2013

 

 

While water is scarce in many regions around the world, it is refreshing to note that Filipino purified water brand Crystal Clear, one of the more popular bottled drinking water brands in the Philippines, is now serving the water-challenged African region, starting with a thriving market such as Sierra Leone.

The brand now operates a water station there, thanks to a joint venture between local firm Peninsular Innovative Group and Solerex Water Technologies Inc., the company that operates Crystal Clear.

 

Together, they created Solerex Peninsular Ventures (SPV), and the first Crystal Clear water station in the West African region, located at Kissy Road along the eastern end of Freetown, was born.

The company will provide water supply, treatment, desalination, and storage solutions for both commercial and industrial projects in Freetown, Sierra Leone’s capital city, acknowledged as the country’s urban, economic, financial, cultural, educational and political hub.

Jose Antonio “Che” Soler, President and Chief Executive Officer of Solerex Water Technologies Inc., says it succinctly: “We are proud to be in Sierra Leone, a first for a Filipino company, and a water firm at that. We all know that many African countries lack potable drinking water, which is really bad since they have a very hot climate and also contributes to the prevalence of many ailments. With this new venture, we hope to be able to provide Africans, at least in Sierra Leone, access to safe and quality drinking water.”

Soler says they are here to help the people of Sierra Leone in terms of providing them water that is safe for their families to protect them from water scarcity-related diseases.

Peninsular Innovative Group CEO Yakama Jones expresses delight that now, more Sierra Leonians will have readily available water that is not only pure and safe to drink but also affordable. “We are happy that Solerex partnered with us in our objective of eradicating water-borne diseases and bring to our country cleaner water and thus save more lives.”

She adds that Solerex’s advanced water treatment technology enables them to treat water collected from rain, wells, streams and other potential water sources and make it more potable and safe to drink. This comprehensive and world-class water filtration process includes mechanical pre-filtration, multimedia filtration, activate carbon, water softener, 5-, 10- and 20-micro cartridge depth filtration, reverse osmosis membrane hyper-filtration, ozonation and post-carbon activated filtration.

Solerex is no stranger to the water purification business, having been involved in it for more than 25 years already and an established presence in major countries in Asia, including Indonesia and Malaysia and of course, the Philippines.

Their leading brand of purified drinking water, Crystal Clear, which surpasses US-Grade Quality standards of water with their state-of-the-art Reverse Osmosis SLX Systems that eliminate inorganic minerals and chemicals, is now found in most homes and offices nationwide.

...the cost-efficient program

ADB cites PHL conditional cash transfer program as cost-efficent

 

November 27, 2012

GMA News

 

 

A new study by the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) Independent Evaluation department cited the Philippines’ conditional cash transfer program as an exemption to most social protection systems in Asia which “fall far short of meeting the needs of the poor and vulnerable even though better safety nets can be affordable for poorer countries.”

 

 

According to the bank’s Social Protection Strategy study, “In the Philippines… the government’s conditional cash transfer program to uproot extreme poverty costs less than 0.5 percent of the country’s gross domestic product, yet reaches 15 million people.”

 

 

It described the Philippine process as “regular cash payments to mothers conditional on their children attending school and public health clinics.
 

“After just three years of implementation, evaluation findings show positive results on elementary education school enrollment and beneficiary households spending more on the health and education of their children,” the Manila-based multilateral lender noted in a statement Tuesday.
 

“Governments around the world tend to scramble to adopt social protection programs in times of crisis,” said Independent Evaluation director general Vinod Thomas. “But comprehensive systems built in stable years are much more effective in coping with the human impact of future economic or political crises or natural disasters,” Thomas added.
 

The banks said that “despite high economic growth in much of the region, public spending on social protection in Asia and the Pacific is lower than in any part of the world except for sub-Saharan Africa.”

 

 

This was because of “recent economic and financial crises, food and fuel emergencies, and the rapidly increasing frequency of natural disasters [which] have starkly exposed the inadequacy of the region’s national social protection systems to guarantee a minimum level of subsistence and meet people’s basic needs.”

 

 

The ADB study found convincing evidence that social protection programs, especially well designed safety nets that transfer resources to the poor, can reduce the depth and severity of poverty and inequality.

 

 

Widening wealth gaps are also drawing attention to the need for greater social protection in Asia, where income disparities over the past two decades have widened in 11 countries that account for more than four-fifths of the region’s population, the bank said.

 

 

However, in India, the government distributes food, fuel, and fertilizer instead of cash, and these subsidies are vulnerable to misuse and leakage, the bank noted. In addition, such subsidies generally cost more, benefit the better off than the poor, and are politically difficult to unwind.

 

 

Rapid social and demographic changes are highlighting the need for affordable pensions, health insurance, and childcare. As such, social protection needs to be higher on their development agenda, according to the study.

 

 

Its main author Joanne Asquith said that “social protection systems are not best built by providing a one-off response to a crisis, but that’s when political support for social protection is usually highest.

 

 

“Development partners need to step up their engagement with governments to sustain political support for social protection in stable years,” she added. — EST/VS, GMA News

...the UK outlook

UK paints bright outlook on trade with Philippines

By Tarra Quismundo
Philippine Daily Inquirer

Sunday, November 11th, 2012

CEO Nick Baird of UK Trade and Investment PHOTO FROM UKTI.GOV.UK

LONDON—The Philippines is a “hugely exciting” market where the United Kingdom is keen on boosting reciprocal investment.

Key trade officials here bared this bright outlook, noting that the UK has been setting its sights on Southeast Asia as a priority growth area amid the continuing dim prospects in Western economies.

They said the UK hoped to step up trade with growing markets to combat a general sense of pessimism over economic numbers here and in the eurozone.

Nick Baird, chief executive of the UK Trade and Investment (UKTI), the state body that links UK firms to the global market, said that British firms were looking at ways to tap the Philippines’ robust economy and invest in major infrastructure, health care and retail-related projects.

“I think that for us, the huge opportunities there are certainly around big infrastructure projects, health… We’re also very interested in areas I would describe as building on and working with countries’ growing middle classes, so [it’s about] providing better education, health services, accessing the consumption of these middle classes through the retail sector,” Baird told Asean reporters on a visit here.

Baird said the Philippines enjoyed the confidence of the UK business community, particularly of Richard Lambert, former head of the UK employers group, the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), and now chancellor of the University of Warwick, a top British university.

“We have a lot of very strong champions for the Philippine market. I was talking recently to Mr. Lambert, former head of CBI, which is our biggest business organization and he’s saying the Philippines is a hugely exciting market,” said Baird.

The Philippines is currently regarded among the world’s booming markets and is expected to retain in the second semester the 6.1-percent growth rate it posted in the first half of the year.

International credit ratings agencies Moody’s Investors Service, Fitch Ratings, and Standard and Poor’s upgraded the country’s rating to a notch just below investment grade, citing the Philippines’ steady growth pace.

The UK is sending a trade mission to the Philippines this week to touch base with the government and business sector and discuss possible partnerships in social infrastructure and transport.

Participating UK companies include Arup, Tata Steel International, Kier Construction, Tony Gee & Partners, GE Healthcare, Ryder Architecture, IMC Worldwide, SKM Colin Buchanan and KM&T, top firms in construction, design and architecture, project management and consultancy, services and supply chain management, according to the UK Embassy in Manila.

Total bilateral trade between the Philippines from January to August this year was placed at 512.9 million British pounds (P33.8 billion), a 5-percent growth over the same period in 2011.

Such an economic glow in the Philippines, also mirrored across the region, is a bright spot amid continuing economic troubles in the eurozone and the slow recovery in the United States. The latest UK growth rate was placed at 1 percent and the struggle to raise this is expected in the next few years.

“The Asean is really very important to us not just because this is such, collectively, a huge economy, comparable in size to China and Japan, bigger than India, but also because in many of the countries, we have good strong positive relationships,” Baird said.

He said the UK hoped to establish greater two-way trade with Asean firms, stepping up both export and inward investments. Currently, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand are among the UK’s major trade and investment partners.

More than half of UK exports go to the developed but currently struggling markets and it has only a 1.2-percent share of imports in major growth markets, including the whole of Asean.

“Britain wants to hugely expand its export capacity, with particular focus on the growth markets and, in that, the Asean markets have a special place for us. And second, this is a country that is massively open to foreign investors and companies of all kinds. It’s very easy to set up business here,” he said.

He said the UK aimed to double its trade with each of the Asean countries by 2015. And while concerns about political stability, corruption and business ease might remain, the UK has seen “far less risk to trade with Asean than there is to trade with China, Africa or India,” he said.

“We have been trading successfully in the last few years in our European backyard and with the United States, but of course those markets are still weak and we need to get much better trading into the big growth markets of Asia, Latin America and Africa,” Baird said.

The UKTI, through the year-old UK Asean Business Council, is hoping to facilitate this exchange through spreading greater Asean market awareness to UK firms, said the council’s executive director, Tom Burden.

“We are working on raising awareness of Asean markets in the UK. It’s really about giving Asia the attention it deserves,” Burden told reporters in a separate briefing.

...the freshwater

Fil-Am helps provide fresh drinking water for children in Africa

 

ROSE-AN JESSICA DIOQUINO,

GMA News

February 16, 2012

 

 

By mixing business with social advocacy, a young Filipino-American helps provide fresh drinking water to children in Africa by managing an online writing service.

Ralph Hoffarber, who earned a degree in business administration from the University of Oregon in 2010, is the co-founder of ThirstyTalent.com.

Both in their twenties, Hoffarber and his partner, Kwame Essieh produce resumes, web content, and sales letters for a fee.

“A lot of young professionals struggle with words so we’d like to be their alternative whenever possible,” Hoffarber noted.

ThirstyTalent partnered with GlobalWater.org, to children in Africa, where the lack of safe drinking water is a major problem.

Every writing service accomplished by the ThirstyTalent team gives “at least one gallon of clean purified water… to a child in need,” the website of ThirstyTalent said.

Both ThirstyTalent and GlobalWater are working “to drill wells across rural Africa ensuring safe and easily accessible drinking for a lifetime,” it added. - VVP, GMA News