Day: September 20, 2021

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Philippines Logs 18,937 New COVID-19 Cases, Death Toll Nears 37,000

MANILA – The Philippines’ Department of Health (DOH), reported 18,937 new COVID-19 infections today, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 2,385,616.

 

The DOH also reported 146 coronavirus-related deaths, raising the country’s death toll to 36,934, as the highly infectious Delta variant continues to spread in the country.

 

Health Undersecretary, Maria Rosario Vergeire, said, the Delta variant detected increased from five percent in June, to 89 percent of lineages detected in Aug.

 

The Delta variant is now “the most common lineage” among the more than 12,500 sequenced samples in the country, Vergeire said, in an online briefing.

 

She said, the number of cases in Metro Manila “continues to increase but at a slower rate,” warning that the number of cases has not hit its peak.

 

DOH experts have projected cases to peak by the end of Sept or early Oct, while Vergeire said, the projection could change.

 

She said that, 97 areas in the country are classified under alert level 4, meaning that, the hospital utilisation rate is more than 70 percent.

 

On COVID-19 related deaths, Vergeire said, deaths in the country have been increasing since the last week of July, and a new peak was seen in mid-Aug.

 

She said, the country’s average daily deaths in Aug hit 155, exceeding those recorded in Apr this year, and partial data for Sept showed an average of 99 deaths per day.

 

The Philippines, which has around 110 million population, has tested nearly 19 million people since the outbreak in Jan, 2020.

 

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK

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Road Accidents Kill 98 In Lao Capital In First Six Months

VIENTIANE– A total of 98 people were killed in 568 road accidents in the Laotian capital, Vientiane, in the first six months of 2021.

 

According to the report, issued by the Traffic Police department, under the Lao Ministry of Public Security, 533 were injured and 1,143 vehicles were damaged, in road accidents in the capital, in the first six months of 2021.

 

Most road accidents occurred because of drunk driving, speeding and other violations of traffic rules, according to the report.

 

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK

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$79.48 Million ADB Loan to Boost Higher Education, Innovation in Indonesia

MANILA, PHILIPPINES— The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $79.48 million loan to improve education and research at two Indonesian public universities to boost the country’s innovation capacity and global competitiveness amid the fourth industrial revolution.

The Higher Education for Technology and Innovation Project will build an academic building and four innovation centers at the Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember (ITS) in Surabaya, the second-largest city in Indonesia, focusing on graphic design and other creative industries, maritime technology, electric vehicles, and advanced information and communication technology and robotics.

The project will also fund a new teaching hospital at the Universitas Lampung (UNILA) in Lampung Province and strengthen medical education amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. The hospital will specialize in tropical infectious diseases, metabolic disorders, geriatrics, and rehabilitative medicine. It will also construct a research center with five laboratories and multidisciplinary research programs on health and life sciences.

“Higher education and research are two key drivers of technology development and innovation,” said ADB Principal Education Specialist Lynnette Perez. “The project will improve the teaching and learning quality at two major public universities in Indonesia, provide new research facilities and grants to support the commercialization of new products, and foster collaboration between universities and industry.”

The Government of Indonesia has recognized the importance of improving the quality of higher education and research, as the COVID-19 pandemic has had a severe impact on student access to high-quality learning and research.

ITS ranks among Indonesia’s top 10 universities and specializes in science, technology, engineering, and arts. Its location facilitates access for students and industry in eastern Indonesia to high-quality education and research, thus contributing to the government’s objective of achieving regional equity.

The project support for UNILA, which already has a medical education study program, will help enhance health care services in Sumatra and expand access to high-quality medical education, services, and research addressing regional health problems.

The project is in line with Indonesia’s National Medium-Term Development Plan, 2020–2024, which prioritizes strengthening higher education to support technological change, innovation, and entrepreneurship for human capital development. It is also in line with ADB’s 2020–2024 country partnership strategy for Indonesia, which aims to strengthen the country’s health care system and bolster education quality.

ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. Established in 1966, it is owned by 68 members—49 from the region.

 

Source: Asian Development Bank

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Bello hails brave OFWs in UK

Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III hailed overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) especially those in the healthcare service for ‘persevering’ in their jobs amid the pandemic.

In a virtual address before the Filipino community in London, Bello said “the government is proud of OFWs especially the Filipino health care workers who bravely delivered their service in UK hospitals.”

“Thank you for continuing to be at your best when you’re working. You make all Filipinos proud,” Bello said.

“Indeed, being at your best during the pandemic could be very difficult but you persevered because of your commitment to duties and responsibilities,” he added.

The labor chief also congratulated other OFWs for jobs well done. “Also doing a great job are our service and domestic workers who continue to perform despite the threat of COVID-19,” he said.

Further, Bello took note of the Filipino community organizations that played important roles during the lockdowns. The groups coordinated help at the height of restrictions due to surging cases of Covid-19.

“Many of you supported our Philippine Overseas Labor Office so we could provide food, medicines and more to our brothers and sisters who got sick and lost their jobs. Thank you for keeping the spirit of ‘bayanihan’ alive,” he said.

During the occasion, Bello also reported government responses to the needs and concerns of OFWs in UK.

He said financial assistance worth 200 dollars was also given to each OFW who got unemployed temporarily and were not covered by the Furlough program of the UK government.

“More than 1,700 Covid victims who are members of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration likewise received financial aid of 200 dollars each,” he said, adding that the government tried to reach other Filipino migrant workers in other countries near UK for the aid.

Bello said the Department of Labor and Employment, Philippine Overseas Employment Office and OWWA have been relentless in implementing various key programs to help pandemic-hit OFWs cope with the crisis.

These include the skills and development training programs and the Post-Arrival Orientation Seminars and other information dissemination activities that went online, he said.

“The processes for job-related accreditations and employment contracts are continuously being done despite the pandemic. We have also opened more POLOs in other places like Prague, Morocco and more,” he added.

In high-level discussions with the UK government, Bello said they make sure OFW issues are pushed. “Your rights and protection are the priorities of the state,” he told the migrant workers.

 

Source: Department Of Labor and Employment Republic of Philippines

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Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan to Attend the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York Followed by a Working Visit to Washington D.C

Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan will attend the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) from 21 to 25 September 2021.

 

Minister Balakrishnan will deliver Singapore’s statement at the General Debate of the UNGA. He will participate in the Meeting of the Alliance for Multilateralism (AfM) and the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) Leaders’ Meeting, and have a series of bilateral meetings with his counterparts.

 

He will host the 14th Global Governance Group (3G) Ministerial Meeting, and an informal Roundtable Discussion on “Closing the Digital Divide: From the Roadmap to the Common Agenda” in our capacity as co-Chair of the Group of Friends on Digital Technologies. He will also meet US interlocutors based in New York.

 

Minister Balakrishnan will proceed from New York to Washington D.C. where he will make a working visit from 26 to 29 September 2021. He will meet senior officials from the Biden Administration and Members of Congress.

 

 

Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Government of Singapore

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BSP Governor Shares Philippines’ Efforts Toward Post-COVID Economy with Foreign Central Bankers, Financial Regulators, Investors

​Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Benjamin E. Diokno shared with foreign central bankers, other financial regulators, and institutional investors how the Philippines is striving to achieve a post-COVID economy that is stronger and more resilient, more technologically advanced, and more inclusive than ever before.

On 10 September 2021, the BSP Governor was the featured speaker in the virtual event “Conversations with the Governor” organized by London-based think tank Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum (OMFIF).

OMFIF provides an international platform for central banking and public policy dialogues, such as through events whose audience includes financial sector regulators and financial industry players from the private sector.

During the event, Governor Diokno noted that the Philippines was already set to graduate from lower to upper middle-income status right before the pandemic. He said the Philippines was keen to regain its pre-COVID momentum and become a much better economy in the post-COVID era.

“Looking ahead, we do not aim to simply regain the economic losses from the pandemic. We aspire for a ‘post-COVID-19 Philippine economy’ that is stronger and more resilient, more technologically advanced, and more inclusive than ever before,” Governor Diokno said in his speech.

The Governor shared that the Philippines is pursuing this goal in three ways and that the BSP is an active partner of the government toward this end.

First is by further liberalizing the economy and making it even more investor friendly, such as through the country’s participation in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) among select Asia-Pacific economies and legislative reforms like the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) law. “On the part of the BSP, we support investment promotion through a regulatory environment that is welcoming to foreign investors and technological innovation,” Governor Diokno said.

Second is by infrastructure development. Citing the BSP’s contribution to the government’s infrastructure development drive, Governor Diokno said: “The BSP is contributing to infrastructure development through regulatory measures such as by increasing the single borrower’s limit (SBL) as well as deepening of the capital market that makes it easier for infrastructure companies to finance projects.” The BSP last year implemented time-bound regulatory relief measures that included an increase in the SBL from 20 to 25 percent and exemption from the SBL of debt securities acquired by banks from market making activities. These two measures were meant to support infrastructure development amid the pandemic.

Third is through the inclusion agenda. “[BSP] regulations and advocacy programs meant to ease access of micro enterprises to credit and other financial services are in place and are constantly revisited for enhancement. The BSP likewise implements financial literacy programs that improve knowledge of Filipinos on savings and investments,” he said.

Governor Diokno also said the BSP is steadfast in its commitment to price stability and financial stability, which provide an enabling environment for consumption, investments, and overall economic growth.

 

 

Source: Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP)