Day: June 2, 2023

The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has completed the rehabilitation of the access road with slope protection in Barangay Nagyubuyuban this city and an asphalt overlay project in Pangasinan province in time for the rainy season. In a statement issued on Friday, DPWH Ilocos Region information officer Esperanza Tinaza said the rehabilitation of the access road with slope protection has a 50-meter road with a five-meter width and involved a three-barrel reinforced concrete box culvert to control water flow and prevent erosion on the newly paved roads. ‘In addition to the construction of the reinforced concrete box is the continuation of paving roads connecting to the newly paved roads with slope protection works to improve transportation and mitigate risks like landslides and erosion, fostering a secure and connected community,’ she said. With a total cost of PHP4.7 million, the project was funded under the General Appropriations Act of 2023. ‘The infrastructure improvement enhances the movement of goods, boosts economic activity, and ensures road safety for residents in Sitio Calaungan, Barangay Nagyubuyuban,’ Tinaza said. Likewise, she said the project also ensures the overall safety and convenience of motorists and residents living in the area by providing easier access to local products and for residents going to their respective destinations. Meanwhile, the DPWH has also completed the newly asphalted road in Alcala town, Pangasinan. Tinaza said the implementation of preventive maintenance projects helps the residents, commuters, and motorists from Barangay Poblacion East, Poblacion West, San Juan, and San Vicente, as well as the nearby villages and municipalities, to have easier, safer, and better access to the road. ‘The road improvement project, covering the two lanes with 1.125-kilometer and with a total project cost of PHP14 million funded under the General Appropriations Act of 2023, was completed on March 28 this year,’ she said. Both projects were completed in time for the rainy season.

Source: Philippines News Agency

The Philippine flag was formally raised alongside the 10 colors from other participating countries during the 12th ASEAN Para Games team welcome ceremony at the Morodok Techo National Stadium here on Friday. Philippine Paralympic Committee (PPC) President Michael Barredo and Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) Commissioner and Chef-de-mission Walter Torres joined the 30 athletes and coaches in singing the national anthem in the event attended by delegates from Brunei, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Timor Leste, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and host Cambodia. Torres also presented a Philippine handicraft to the Union of Youth Federations of Cambodia and the National Paralympic Committee of Cambodia (NPCC) Board of Directors Vice President Hun Many and NPCC Secretary General Yi Veasna during the exchange of souvenirs. More than 2,600 athletes, coaches and officials are taking part in the Games which will officially open on June 4. Swimmer Ariel Joseph Alegrabres, a triple-gold winner in 2022, will serve as flag-bearer, leading a select group of 50 athletes and officials, during the opening ceremony. A total of 24 gold medals are at stake in the first day of the athletics competition. ‘We are ready,” said track and field coach Joel Deriada, who is aiming to improve their medal haul of six golds, four silvers and 14 bronzes last year in Surakarta, Indonesia. Also scheduled to see action on June 4 are swimmers Gary Bejino (S6) and Ernie Gawilan (S7) in the 400m freestyle event. Both competed at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics. ‘Our goal is to make the country proud,’ said Tony Ong, head of the national swimming team coaching staff composed of Olympian and Asian Games gold medalist Ral Rosario, Brian Ong (Strength and Conditioning/coach) and Leonardo Ramos. The Philippines ranked fifth overall in the last Para Games with 104 medals — 28 golds, 30 silvers and 46 bronzes.

Source: Philippines News Agency

Mindanao cacao byproducts are taking center stage at chocolate fairs in the cities of Davao and Zamboanga. In this city, the 2nd Cacao Mindanao Artisan Chocolate Fair that showcases the best of Mindanao’s cacao opened on Friday at the SM City Mall. The three-day fair gathered Mindanao’s best chocolatiers to put the island region’s chocolate industry on the map. Top chocolatiers and cacao producers like MS3, Dais Chocolate, Cacao Culture, Cacao de Davao, Cocolibre Corp., Household Multipurpose Cooperative, Cacao City, Nutrarich Philippines and Wit’s Sweets and Savouries joined the event. In his speech, Department of Agriculture in Davao Region (DA-11) Director Abel James Monteagudo said the event is a celebration of the declaration of the city as the Chocolate Capital of the Philippines in May 2021. This came after Congress passed Republic Act 11547 otherwise known as An Act Declaring the City of Davao as the Chocolate Capital of the Philippines and the Davao Region as the Cacao Capital of the Philippines. ‘We thank you for your untiring efforts for giving more cacao farmers and chocolate makers in Davao Region a venue to feature their cacao-based products,’ Monteagudo said. He also recognized three Davao cacao farmers Judith Gabasa, Policarpo Enricoso Jr. and Melinda Villaflor, who will represent the country in the 2023 International Cocoa Awards in Paris, France, on Oct. 28 to Nov. 1, 2023. The three bested about 100 entries from across the country. ‘Let us continue to promote the products of our local farmers. Buy local and eat local,’ Monteagudo said. Zamboanga chocolate fair In Zamboanga City, the Department of Trade and Industry in the Zamboanga Peninsula (DTI-9) also led its Cacao Mindanao Chocolate Fair on Friday, showcasing cacao by-products to both walk-in customers and wholesale buyers. The event, which will run from Friday until Sunday, is a collaborative effort between DTI-9, SM City Mindpro and the city government. Engr. Al-Zamir Lipae, DTI-9 director, emphasized that trade fairs provide opportunities for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to market their products. ‘By providing a platform for MSMEs to showcase their products, the fair facilitates networking, business opportunities, and market access for local cacao producers,’ Lipae said. Nine local and regional cacao growers and processors from the city, Zamboanga Del Sur and Zamboanga Del Norte are showcasing their respective products. ‘When you say cacao, the public perception is only chocolate, but here you can see all the by-products like the chocolate soap and shampoo,’ Aileen Ann Villa-Enriquez, the SM City Mindpro manager, said. Meanwhile, Lipae highlighted the remarkable growth of the cacao industry in the region that is now thriving with over 3,000 stakeholders involved, including farmers, cooperatives, nursery operators, processors, input providers and traders. He noted Zamboanga Peninsula has achieved an impressive production output of 515 metric tons, making it the second-largest national producer of cacao, with a 5 percent share of the national output. The region currently has 1,743 hectares of cacao plantations, making it the fourth-largest area planted with cacao in the country.

Source: Philippines News Agency

At least 180 farmers and partners from three regions have joined hands here to push for the promotion of high-yielding rice varieties and use cost-cutting technologies for production. In a statement Friday, the Agricultural Training Institute in the Caraga Region (ATI-13) said the farmers, cooperative leaders, representatives from local government units, researchers, agriculturists, and personnel from the attached bureaus of the Department of Agriculture (DA) in Mindanao gathered for a two-day Rice Technology Transfer Workshop here starting Thursday. It said the participants came from the regions of Soccsksargen, Caraga, and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao who are directly engaged in rice production. ‘The focus of the workshop is to strengthen the promotion of high-yielding and cost-reducing rice production technologies,’ the ATI-13 said. During the two-day activity, the participants formulated plans to promoting new rice production technologies and strategies in their respective areas. Undersecretary Leocado Sebastian of the DA’s Rice Industry Development and DA-13 Regional Director Ricardo Oñate Jr. are among those who joined the activity. Sebastian underscored the importance of the Masagana Rice Program under the present administration of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. and its implementation strategies. ‘These strategies, including the climate change adaptation, clustering and consolidation of intervention, value chain approach, and digital transformation are steps to better implement the Masagana program that aims to achieve the highest possible rice sufficiency,’ Sebastian said. He added that the convergence of efforts, cooperation, and coordination among the different stakeholders are also the key components in attaining the goals of the rice program of the present administration.

Source: Philippines News Agency

The country’s Maya-5 and Maya-6 cube satellites (cubesats) will be launched to the International Space Station this weekend, the Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA) shared on its Facebook page Friday. The launch is scheduled on June 4 at 12:34 a.m. (PST) or June 3 at 2:34 p.m. (EDT), aboard the SpaceX Falcon 9. Both cubesats were developed under the STAMINA4Space (Space Technology and Applications Mastery, Innovation and Advancement) Program through the support of the Department of Science and Technology, UP Diliman, PhilSA, and Kyushu Institute of Technology of Japan. According to the STAMINA4Space website, Maya-5 has the same mission payload with Maya-2; while Maya-6 has the experimental on-board computer mission payload that controls the attitude determination and control system and hentenna mission. Launched to space in 2021, the Maya-2 had experimental payloads, such as different antenna design and other materials used for the solar panels of a cubesat. The website added that both Maya-5 and 6 will capture images of the earth, and have an on-board image processor that uses machine learning to classify these images. These cubesats also have an amateur radio communication system which can receive packets. Additionally, they carry the store and forward mission, which collects data from specific distributed sensors across remote locations on earth. Meanwhile, the public is invited to watch the launch through the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s live feed.

Source: Philippines News Agency

Informal workers in the province of Ilocos Norte are getting a chance to earn more in these trying times as the office of First District Representative Ferdinand Alexander Marcos, in cooperation with the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), is continuously distributing goats and chickens as a livelihood support aid. The latest beneficiaries of 100 goats amounting to PHP993,000 are at least 50 marginalized and disadvantaged informal workers in Vintar town. Last month, 100 beneficiaries from this city and 25 from the municipality of Carasi also received 250 goats. This forms part of the agency’s Integrated Livelihood Program which aims to contribute to poverty reduction and reduce vulnerability to risks of the working poor, vulnerable and marginalized workers either through emergency employment, promotion of entrepreneurship, and community enterprises. “Goat raising is being popularized in the province because it has a great demand in the market,’ said Edwin Carino, project officer of Rep. Marcos in an interview on Friday. For one thing, goats thrive in the province and could be easily integrated with existing crop-based farming systems. In addition, goat production also entails low initial investment costs and small risks. Goats serve as security assets, providing emergency cash in times of need for household essentials, children’s education, and farm expenses. Qualified beneficiaries that include displaced workers and self-employed, who lack capital but are interested to improve existing businesses or to start an enterprise in order to augment their family income, may apply for a livelihood grant and wait for the distribution schedule. Meanwhile, DOLE also continues to implement its emergency employment program, the Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers (TUPAD), in the northern towns of Ilocos Norte. The DOLE awarded checks to the local government unit of Pagudpud with PHP6 million to benefit 1,000 beneficiaries; Bangui with PHP5.6 million to benefit 945 workers, and Burgos with PHP3 million to employ 500 informal workers.

Source: Philippines News Agency