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==Palawan Gov. Alvarez, PSU sign memorandum of agreement to grant scholarships==
*Source: http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?nid=2&rid=556886
*Tuesday, August 20, 2013
:(PNA), FPV/CARF/RTR/PJN
PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, Aug 20 (PNA) -- Palawan Governor Jose Alvatez and Palawan State University (PSU) President Dr. Jeter Sespeñe signed Monday a memorandum of agreement (MOA) that would accommodate the granting of scholarship support to indigent students.
The signing of the MOA coincided with the opening of the PSU Intramurals 2013 at the Ramon V. Mitra Sports Complex.
The MOA contains the “Programang Pang-Edukasyon para sa mga Palaweño” (PPP) under IHELP or Infrastructure, Health, Education, Livelihood and Protection of Environment.
With the signing of the MOA, the provincial government will be responsible in helping pay the tuition fees of around 10,000 marginalized students who will qualify in the scholarship grant.
Provincial Information Officer Gil Acosta said the scholarship is open to all students who will apply under different courses available at the university.
Initially, the provincial government had proposed to make the scholarship grant to students who will be willing to take up college courses that it felt are needed by currently flourishing industries.
However, Acosta said this had been changed to in respect of the would-be-applicants’ freedom to choose what course they like that would make a difference in their future.
He said to be able to continue qualifying to the scholarship offer at the university, students who will apply must maintain good grades, and must sustain the highest respect of the opportunity they were given to complete college to be able to help their families.
“At first, we were talking in the provincial government to allow the scholarship to be availed under selected courses only as suggested by the governor because these courses are what he felt needed, and where they have good chances to be hired. But the Sangguniang Panlalawigan decided that it be opened to all courses and that is the rule of the majority,” he said, adding a strict system will be placed to ensure those who will qualify will be monitored to maintain good grades.
He clarified that only the tuition fees will be paid for by the provincial government. Miscellaneous and other incidental fees will have to be shouldered by the families.
“The provincial government will pay for the tuition fees, which is already a big help to the families of these 10,000 students. We encourage students in the municipalities that if the university has branches in their areas, they should no longer come to Puerto Princesa so there will be lesser expenses for them,” he told the Philippine News Agency (PNA)
Around 38 million have been allocated for the first semester that has been filled as of this writing.
Aside from the scholarship grant, which is estimated to support thousands of Palaweño students, the agreement also includes the plan of the provincial government to construct a provincial hospital and the establishment of a College of Medicine at the PSU.
The signing of the MOA between Alvarez and Sespeñe were witnessed by Palawan Vice Governor Dennis Socrates, Provincial Information Officer Gil Acosta, deans of the PSU, and the university’s teaching staff and professors. PSU Student Government President Jaybie Arzaga was also present.
==Reef Watch Team undergoes Green Fins training in El Nido, Palawan==
*Source: http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?nid=2&rid=556528
*Monday, August 19, 2013
:(PNA), LAM/CARF/CIC/UTB
PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, Aug 19 (PNA) -– Personnel of the Municipal Tourism Office (MTO) in El Nido in northern Palawan under the Reef Watch Program concluded Monday its participation in the more than half-a-month Green Fins program.
Reef Watch is a section in the MTO that is tasked to protect El Nido’s eco-systems from the damages caused by leisure activities.
They educate tourists, clean up the islands, gather crown of thorns, a type of starfish that feed on coral polyps, monitor boat anchorages and repair damaged mooring buoys.
Green Fins is a program funded by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) that accredits dive shops around the world that practice sustainable tourism. In El Nido, where they will accredit snorkeling tours operators for the first time.
The partnership between Green Fins and Reef Watch program was made possible through the El Nido Foundation, Inc., the implementing partner of Green Fins in the town.
The training will continue through a series of field works, assessment and participation in different Green Fins activities.
Both El Nido Foundation and the Municipal Tourism Office are hoping that the Reef Watch program would fill the missing component in the Green Fins program: the visibility of enforcers in the area.
==PNOC-EC, Shell set joint study of Offshore West Palawan Basin==
*Source: http://mb.com.ph/Business/Energy/27705/PNOC-EC,_Shell_set_joint_study_of_Offshore_West_Palawan_Basin#.UhDSZn9o6kx
*Sunday, August 18, 2013
:By Myrna M. Velasco
State-run Philippine National Oil Company-Exploration Corporation (PNOC-EC) is joining forces with Dutch firm Shell Philippines Exploration B.V. (SPEX) for the conduct of a joint study of the petroleum potential of offshore West Palawan.
Based on the timetable drawn, the study will stretch for a year starting 2013. The parties intend to gather data that may show the potential of the area for prospective upstream oil and gas developments.
“The project focuses in understanding the geology and petroleum potential of the area,” a document from PNOC-EC has emphasized.
It has been qualified that “the joint study will be an opportunity to exchange ideas and insight derived from collaborative work between Shell and PNOC-EC including transfer of technology.”
PNOC-EC and Shell are currently interest-partners in the existing Malampaya gas field project under Service Contract (SC) 38, with the former taking the minority stake; while the Dutch firm is the operator. The other major interest-holder is Chevron Malampaya LLC.
The SC-38 consortium members are currently working on the phases 2 and 3 of the Malampaya field development. This entailed additional investment of $1 billion.
For this venture, the cash call on PNOC-EC amounted to $101.98 million, according to company documents.
The state-owned firm made two-tranche allocations: $25.34 million for Malampaya phase 2 or the scheduled two well drillings; and $76.64 million for Phase 3 for the installation of depletion compression platform at the gas production facility.
The company said the total financing can be sourced from internally-generated cash. Project completions are slated 2014 for phase 2; and 2015 for phase 3.
Such round of investments, according to the Malampaya contractors, would be necessary to enhance the level of gas extraction from the field and for them to meet their committed volumes under their gas sale and purchase agreements (GSPAs) with off-taker power plants.
==Nation-building, one community at a time==
*Source: http://www.philstar.com/modern-living/2013/08/17/1098351/nation-building-one-community-time
*Saturday, August 17, 2013 12:00 am
:(The Philippine Star)
MANILA, Philippines - For over 30 years, Pilipinas Shell Foundation Inc. (PSFI) has been answering the oft-repeated call of national development. In that span, Philippine presidents have come and gone, and had encouraged the Filipino people to play more active roles in nation-building. PSFI has taken concrete steps in establishing programs that directly respond to the call. More than that, PSFI’s programs are committed to providing lasting and meaningful solutions to beneficiaries and stakeholders.
Established in 1982, PSFI is responsible for managing and implementing Shell’s social development programs in the Philippines, both on national and local scale. It includes leadership enhancement and attitude development; technical, vocational, and agricultural skills development; training and employment; health care and services, sanitation, and safety; livelihood and entrepreneurship development; and environmental stewardship.
Shell, as a global leader in power, energy, and gas technology, continuously works to meet increasing energy demand and supply challenges by delivering smarter products and cleaner energy, smarter infrastructure, and by developing new energy sources while addressing their impact on society and the environment. Most importantly, “at our operations, we aim to address social concerns and work to benefit local communities, protecting our reputation as we do business,” explained PSFI president and Pilipinas Shell country manager Edgar Chua.
Just recently, Chua and other PSFI officials hosted media representatives in a tour of Puerto Princesa, Palawan where many of the foundation’s most successful and replicated social investment projects on health, livelihood, and education can be found. Among the programs covered during the event were the Kilusan Laban sa Malaria (KLM); Integrated Farming Bio Systems (IFBS); Sanayan sa Kakayahang Pangangalakal (SAKA), Tribal Education & Livelihood Program (TELP); Impok Pang-Kalusugan (IPK); and Sustaining Conservation Gains in the Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park Development Project.
PSFI’s Kilusan Laban sa Malaria (KLM) is a community-based malaria control program which aims to help control and eliminate malaria in Palawan through early-case detection and prompt treatment, vector control, community organizing, awareness raising, capability building, research, advocacy, and networking.
Since blazing the trail in 1999, the program has seen a significant decline in mortality and cases. In 2012, deaths have decreased by almost 97 percent based on 2000 figures while cases have gone down by 92 percent.
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PSFI has also been training microscopists and supplying laboratory equipment for diagnosis, blood smearing, and other malaria-related purposes. During the media tour, PSFI showcased such activities in a Malaria Awareness Day for the indigenous Tabak tribespeople at Sitio Tagnaya, Barangay Concepcion in Puerto Princesa. Fun and games, blood smearing, lectures, and distribution of treated mosquito nets highlighted the event.
Since its inception, the KLM program has turned out to be so successful that it merited the attention of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis & Malaria in 2006. The organization granted KLM $14.3M to continue operations in Palawan, and to replicate the KLM project nationwide—rechristened as the Movement Against Malaria. It now operates in Apayao, Quirino, Tawi-Tawi, and Sulu. In 2010, the Global Fund gave an additional $31.4M consolidated malaria grant to PSFI to increase the coverage to 40 more provinces.
“The global fund portfolio manager asked us why we’re successful with implementation,” narrated PSFI executive director Edgardo Veron Cruz. “I said that most of the projects of PSFI are community-based. To us, it is important that the community knows what we would like to achieve in addressing their needs. We engage either government officials or community leaders to ensure that the communities are aware of what we are doing and what we expect to achieve.”
Indeed, the success of KLM and its eventual evolution into the Movement Against Malaria is largely due to its partnership with the Department of Health and private institutions as well such as the Global Fund.
In Palawan, SAKA is a program under the Western Philippines University that is staunchly supported by PSFI. It entails a one-year scholarship program for rural out-of-school youth leading to a Certificate in Agricultural Entrepreneurship. The project empowers the youth in agricultural technologies and entrepreneurship designed to improve farm productivity and management, family income, and leadership skills.
“We pay for the youths’ tuition, provide their dormitories, give them stipends and uniforms,” explained PSFI program manager Marvi Trudeau during a visit to the SAKA Center in the municipality of Aborlan, more than 60 kilometers south of Puerto Princesa. “At the end of the program, we provide these scholars with a start-up fund for their income-generating projects.”
IFBS, meanwhile, is an ongoing week-long capacity-building program for training farmers on appropriate farming technologies, focusing on organic farming, soil analysis, and water conservation techniques.
“We teach farmers how to make full use of the resources available around them through environment-friendly, financially rewarding, and market-driven practices,” said Trudeau.
TELP is a project that takes on poverty alleviation for indigenous people. Trudeau said that PSFI wanted to uplift the lives of indigenous families through modules on livelihood, education, and enterprise development.
“What we are trying to do is to help them improve their family’s production and income, and encourage them to protect the environment and natural resources. It does not mean that just because their lives are improving they will neglect the very culture and environment that nurtured them,” she said.
Similarly, IPK is a community-based health micro-insurance program that provides hospitalization to its members. Families pay as little as P360 annually for a two-time hospitalization benefit amounting to P2,500. In rural areas such as those in Palawan, this amount already covers even major health situations such as normal child delivery.
Also among the most noteworthy ventures of PSFI is its involvement in the Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park Development Project. A comprehensive information, education, and communications campaign was the product of its partnership with PSFI. The program proved to be beneficial for the conservation of the world-famous Tubbataha — because of the campaign, people became more aware of the reef’s importance as a source of coral and fish larvae.
Chua shared the secret of PSFI’s successes thus far: “Our people make all the difference. These individuals are very professional and dedicated. They love what they do and being part of a team. Their job is not easy because they are front-liners, but they carry out their task above and beyond the call of duty.”
And Chua is not only referring to Shell employees, but also the numerous volunteers and partners in government and fellow private organizations. Above all, it is the beneficiaries themselves who are impacted for the better and who become advocates of the programs. “It is more of a mindset for them to realize that the program is well-meaning and all-giving. This involves fostering love of country, taking responsibility for one’s actions, and being able to share time and talent with those in need. These help ensure the sustainability and success of the program.”
==Sandigan convicts Palawan Ex-Mayor==
*Source: http://mb.com.ph/News/Provincial_News/27466/Sandigan_convicts_Palawan_Ex-Mayor#.Ug4qQjdo6kw
*Friday, August 16, 2013
:By Jun Ramirez
The Sandiganbayan has sentenced to 10 years imprisonment a former mayor of Rizal town in Palawan for pocketing more than P68,000 in public funds during his incumbency in 2002.
The Office of the Ombudsman (OMB) announced the other day the conviction of former Mayor Samson Degillo by the Sandiganbayan Fourth Division.
In a 17-page decision penned by Justice Maria Cristina Cornejo, Degillo was found guilty of four counts of falsification of public documents.
Court records showed that the ex-mayor received several checks for his signature from municipal treasurer Rufina Bundag Bungalso for the payments to the town’s suppliers of goods and services.
Instead of returning the checks to Bungalso, Degillo enchashed the checks and pocketed the money, thus prompting the suppliers to bring the case to the OMB.
==Health Dept to conduct school-based adolescent immunization in Palawan==
*Source: http://www.pia.gov.ph/news/index.php?article=721376391409
*Thursday, August 15, 2013
:By Orlan C. Jabagat (LBR/OCJ/PIA4B/Palawan)
PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, Palawan, Aug 15 (PIA) -- The Department of Health-Center for Health Development IV-B (DOH-CHD IV-B), in partnership with the Department of Education (DepEd) will conduct a school-based adolescent immunization program.
The Provincial Health Office (PHO) and the City Health Office (CHO) will conduct the program on August 16 to September 15.
Target of the DOH to be vaccinated with MMR or Measles-Mumps-Rebulla and Tetanus-Diphtheria (Td) are the students enrolled in all public secondary schools in Palawan.
The vaccine provides protection against severe measles, mumps, german measles, tetanus and diphtheria with possible complications which usually afflict infants, children and adolescents.
The activity will be launched on August 15 at the A&A Plaza Hotel, Puerto Princesa City from 8 a.m. to 12 n.n.
==Iwahig Prison & Penal Farm inmates use earnings from souvenirs for SSS savings==
*Source: http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?nid=3&rid=554877
*Wednesday, August 14, 2013
:(PNA), PDS/CARF/UTB
PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, Aug. 14 (PNA) -–Almost a hundred inmates from the Iwahig Prison & Penal Farm (IPPF), a low security prison in this city, are set to join the micro-savings program of the Social Security System (SSS) dubbed “AlkanSSSya,” using their profits from handcrafted souvenirs sold to tourists to pay their monthly contributions.
SSS Vice President for Management Services and Planning Division May Catherine C. Ciriaco and IPPF Superintendent Richard W. Schwarzkoph, Jr. will lead the inauguration of the AlkanSSSya unit during ceremonies at the penal farm compound in Barangay Iwahig, Puerto Princesa City on Thursday.
The IPPF is home to some 700 inmates with about a hundred already making a livelihood out of making handicrafts, such as decorative miniature galleons, photo frames, key chains, accessories, jewelry boxes and unique bamboo souvenirs called “rainmakers” that mimic the sound of rain when tilted.
The items are sold inside a souvenir shop at the IPPF, and also supplied to various souvenir shops in the center of the city, hotels and establishments, and cafes.
In a media conference Monday at a hotel in Puerto Princesa, SSS President and Chief Executive Officer Emilio S. de Quiros, Jr. said “the AlkanSSSya program helps inmates become active SSS members even while serving their jail terms.”
“Inmates who are existing SSS members but have ceased paying contributions may now also reactivate their SSS membership with as little as about P10 per day, or at least P312 per month, under this program,” de Quiros, Jr. said.
He said 92 out of 100 personal coin slots in IPPF’s AlkanSSSya units are already taken, and SSS Palawan has assigned an account officer to tally and collect the inmates’ SSS savings before the 10th day of every month.
Participating inmates will put their first AlkanSSSya program, after more than 100 members of the Honda Bay Boat Owners Association, Inc. (HOBBAI), an organization of pump boat operators that cater to island hopping tourists, joined on July 12.
==Coast Guard: German, Malaysian stranded off Palawan rescued==
*Source: http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/321741/news/regions/coast-guard-german-malaysian-stranded-off-palawan-rescued
*Tuesday, August 13, 2013 9:00 am
:(VVP, GMA News)
Two foreign nationals were rescued last Friday after they were stranded off Starfish Island in Palawan province, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said on Monday.
In a post on its Facebook account, the Coast Guard said the two — a German and a Malaysian — were aboard an unregistered motor boat that ran out of fuel.
Rescued by the Coast Guard were German Alexander Nicolas, 32; and Malaysian Jessica Lee, 32.
The initial investigation showed that the two were aboard a 3GT motor boat that ran out of fuel at 2:00 p.m. last August 9.
The Coast Guard dispatched a team that conducted search-and-rescue operations at Starfish Island, where the two were stranded.
Both Nicolas and Lee were in good condition and were brought by the SAR team to Honda Bay wharf.
==Modern ranger station in Tubbataha to be built with new P40M grant==
*Source: http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/321618/news/regions/modern-ranger-station-in-tubbataha-to-be-built-with-new-p40m-grant
*Monday, August 12, 2013 10:54 am
: By Yasmin Arquiza/RSJ (GMA News)
In two years, the remote Tubbataha Reefs in Palawan is expected to have a new state-of-the-art ranger station after the government's Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA) provided a P40-million grant for the project Sunday.
During the celebration marking the marine park's 25th anniversary, TIEZA chief Mark Lapid signed the grant agreement and handed over a symbolic check to the Tubbataha Protected Area Management Board and WWF-Philippines head Lory Tan, one of the TPAMB members.
The new station, which will commence construction in October, will greatly increase the capacity of the rangers to protect Tubbataha, a World Heritage Site in the middle of the Sulu Sea that has suffered significant destruction from two grounding incidents this year.
The most controversial damage came from a USS minesweeper that had to be dismantled on site after it rammed into the reef last January.
Designed by WWF-Philippines consultant Dylan James Melgazo, the new station is envisioned to have three interconnected structures: the command center that will house the rangers, a research building, and a helipad.
Tan said they have raised the project cost of P50 million for the project, which will replace the aging, rickety shelter that the park's rangers have been using year-round to protect Tubbataha from intruders.
"We have been asked by the Coast Guard if they can use the same design and we said, yes please do," said Tan, adding that it may also be freely utilized in other tourist attractions in the country.
The hexagon-shaped main center features a glass dome that will provide the rangers with a 360-degree view of the park, and overhanging troughs to collect rainwater. It will also house a visitor center, a mini-museum, and stepladder planters for growing vegetables.
Solar panels and micro wind turbines will be used to generate renewable energy for the station, which is located 150 kilometers from Palawan's capital city of Puerto Princesa, the nearest urban center.
Meanwhile, the TIEZA chief pledged to provide more funds for the station if needed. He added that the agency assist infrastructure development in other tourism attractions in the province, such as the long beach in San Vicente facing the West Philippine Sea.
"We will support Palawan, not only Tubbataha but the whole of Palawan," Lapid said.
TIEZA, the repository of  travel taxes collected from Filipino tourists traveling abroad, is mandated to use the funds for tourism infrastructure projects in the country.
==Foreign oil giant to explore in the seas of Palawan==
*Source: http://positivenewsmedia.com/blog/2013/08/foreign-oil-giant-to-explore-in-the-seas-of-palawan/
*Sunday, August 11, 2013
: (PNA), PDS/CARF/EBP
PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, Aug. 11 (PNA) –Forum Energy Company (FEC), a United Kingdom-based gas and oil exploration and production company with a portfolio of projects in the Philippines, is reportedly interested in exploring for oil and natural gas in the waters within the disputed West Philippines Sea.
According to information release by the provincial government on Wednesday, the expression of interest was made and presented by the FEC to the Palawan Council for Sustainable Development (PCSD) on August 2 at the Sangguniang Panlalawigan Session Hall in front of Governor Jose Alvarez and the board of directors.
The FEC is the holder of Service Contract Nos. 40 and 72 and is authorized to look for oil and gas 18 nautical miles off the waters of Palawan in the West Philippines Sea area.
Alvarez, who reportedly listened and watched the presentation, assured the FEC that it would not hinder its exploration, particularly adding that the PCSD would be supportive of pro-development projects where the people of the province can benefit from.
He also encouraged the members of the PCSD to move fast in making decisions on project proposals that can provide Palawan shares for the development of its projects and programs.
“If a new deposit of oil and gas is discovered in Palawan, the province can have shares from income generated from this that can help fund other development projects and programs,” Alvarez said.
As chair of the PCSD, he also reminded FEC to be cautious and careful in the exploration to avoid oil spillage, destruction of corals, and other similar incidents, because he would not allow them to happen and they will be made to answer just in case.
Meanwhile, Col. Emmanuel Salamat, chief of staff of the Western Command (Wescom) and representative of Maj. Gen. Rustico Guerrero, said FEC has nothing to worry about in terms of exploring for oil and gas in the disputed West Philippines Sea since security in the area is paramount in the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
He reportedly assured the FEC that it could conduct its exploration safely, and with utmost support from the Wescom.
The FEC also has a 2.27% interest through its wholly-owned subsidiary Forum Energy Philippines Corporation (FEPC) in the second phase development of the Galoc oil field under SC-14.
As joint venture participants in the Galoc field, Forum Energy and FEPC, together with Otto and a subsidiary of Otto, have entered into a facility agreement with BNP Paribas (the “Facility Agreement”) to provide a total of US$ 40 million project financing for the Galoc field’s Phase II development.
==I REMEMBER THAT MORNING==
==I REMEMBER THAT MORNING==
*Source: http://wwf.org.ph/wwf3/news/article/107
*Source: http://wwf.org.ph/wwf3/news/article/107
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