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==Legazpi City nominee for Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize==
*Source: http://http://www.rappler.com/nation/88533-legazpi-city-lee-kuan-yew-award-nominee
*Tuesday, March 31, 2015 6:20 pm
:By Rhaydz B. Barcia (Rappler)
LEGAZPI CITY, Philippines – Eight years ago, Legazpi City, was like a shattered pot, crushed by Super Typhoon Reming that killed 1,500 people and destroyed multi-billion-peso private and government infrastructure, and  agricultural crops.
The city seemed like a wasteland than a bustling metropolis in the Bicol region. The  horrific natural disaster, however, did not hamper  Legazpi City, under Mayor Noel Rosal, from rising from the rubble.
For overcoming the catastrophic impact of natural disasters, Legazpi City has been nominated for the Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize 2016.
The Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize is a biennial award that  “seeks to recognize cities and their key leaders and organizations for displaying foresight, good governance and innovation in tackling the many urban challenges faced, to bring about social, economic and environmental benefits in a holistic way to their communities,” according to the official website of the Prize.
Based on the letter sent to Rosal by the Embassy of the Republic of Singapore, the nomination of Legazpi City was based on its outstanding achievements and contributions to the creation of liveable, vibrant, and sustainable urban communities around the world.
The city’s nomination surprised city officials after the prize-giving body noted the competitiveness of Legazpi City.
“We’re surprised but happy for being nominated for the Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize 2016. This is an honor and a challenge for us to work even more and to always rise up amid the challenge of extreme climate due to climate change for us to be the most liveable city in the Philippines,” Rosal said.   
:Recovery
Typhoon Milenyo (international name: Xangsane) first hit the Eastern Samar region on September 30, 2006, then gained strength as it pummelled the Bicol region.
On November 30, 2006, Super Typhoon Reming (international name: Durian) walloped the country. Legazpi City sustained a devastating hit, with one village nearly wiped out by rampaging volcanic debris from Mayon volcano, which had erupted that same year.
A mass exodus took place then – the city seemed lifeless – but local officials and businessmen worked together to recover from the disaster.
The city government led by Rosal partnered with the people of Legazpi and the  private sector, specifically with Bicolano business tycoon Elizaldy S. Co in picking up the pieces to regain the city’s glory.
Legazpi City, center of trade and commerce in Bicol, became the fastest booming city in the country despite the Mayon eruption, and Typhoons Milenyo  and Reming.
“After Super Typhoon Reming, Legazpi’s comparative business tax posted at P263,522,742.16 in 2013 local income (local taxes). If Legazpi is booming before, after Reming we rise back even better,” Rosal said.
:Disaster not a hindrance
Rosal said that disaster should not be a hindrance for development.
“We have to think global but act local to compete with other big cities of the county through good governance by giving back to the people your taxes religiously such us establishment of hospital, farm to market roads, and school for education of our children. We’re able to send back to school 60% of dropped out students 7 years ago,” the mayor said.
To prove that the city government is taking care of poor people,  Rosal said that in 2013, at least 23,717 poor families have Philhealth cards, the highest enrolment and contribution in Bicol.
The city government is constructing the P80-million Legazpi City Hospital for the poor to decongest the Bicol Regional Training and Teaching Hospital. The city government also built and runs the Legazpi City High School intended for talented but poor students.
Several projects are also lined up for the development of Legazpi: the P14.63 million multi-purpose hall that would accommodate 3,000 people in times of calamity, the P140-million 4-lane Yawa bridge, the P200-million mega highway, the P8-million core shelter program in Dapdap, and the P10-million school classrooms for upland national high school.
:Fast-rising city
The city government is also fasttracking the implementation of the P500-million Legazpi City Urban Drainage project, a priority project under the Aquino administration to address the perennial flooding problem during rainy seasons.
The city has also beeing transformed into a  “City of Fun and Adventure” which has seen an influx of investments and tourism-related developments.
Legazpi City is giving big number of tourists to Albay province. We’re hosting big events and we cannot deny the fact that Legazpi contributed a phenomenon to the development of Albay,” Rosal said.
He said this will be complemented with the operation of the Bicol International Airport in two years.
A recent Asian Institute of Management (AIM) study disclosed that Legazpi will be the next hub after Davao and Cebu, and is ranked fifth among fast-rising cities in the country in terms of infrastructure development, business growth, and peace and order.
The city has also convention hub.  In 2014, the city government hosted at least 14 big national conventions, and is in the list of 10 Next Wave Cities of the Business Processing Association of the Philippines (BPAP).
Three malls are being constructed this year in Legazpi, including LCC Mall, a venture between Ayala Land Inc and LCC group of companies.
==Legazpi City takes path to Hall of Fame in this year’s search for Gawad Kalasag awards==
*Source: http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?nid=2&rid=748982
*Monday, March 30, 2015
:By Danny O. Calleja [(PNA), FPV/FGS/DOC/CBD/]
LEGAZPI CITY, March 30 (PNA Features) – Fresh from winning the national championship crown of the Gawad Kalasag Awards—its second in two consecutive years, the local government here is taking this year the final segment of its path leading to the Hall of Fame of the same contest.
Attesting to facts that this key Bicol metropolis--officially recognized as one of the three most livable cities in the country today, is indeed a place where everyone is safe from both natural and man-made calamities, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) last Thursday awarded to the city government the same crown it first won in 2013.
The national championship crown represents the city government’s continuing excellence in disaster risk reduction and management (DRRM) performed by its City DRRM Council (CDRRMC) that once again proved its supremacy in this area of local governance over other component and independent cities in the country.
The award was conferred at Camp Aguinaldo to City Mayor Noel Rosal and CDRRMC action officer Wilfredo “Pecos” Intia by NRRRMC Chair and National Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin and NDRRMC Executive Director and Civil Defense Administrator Alexander Pama during awarding ceremonies in conclusion of the 2014 search for the 16th Gawad Kalasag.
Other than this city, 27 other winners -- including Barangay Oro Site here which also retained the national championship crown it won in the 2013 search for the Best DRRMC in the Urban Barangay Category--were also awarded during the occasion.
Gawad Kalasag is a nationwide award being given yearly in recognition of the outstanding performances of local government units (LGUs) including barangays as well as civil society organizations, private and public service institutions and volunteer groups in DRRM and in humanitarian assistance.
Launched in 1998, the awards project is among the national government’s mechanism in obtaining sustained commitment and support from DRRM practitioners in strengthening the resilience and adaptive capacities of the country and communities to disaster risks by recognizing their exceptional contributions.
Kalasag stands for Kalamidad at Sakuna, Labanan, Sariling Galing ang Kaligtasan and since the 2014 championship crowns were second in two consecutive years for both the city and Barangay Oro Site, they would be gunning for the Hall of Fame in this year’s search.
“While we have already proven the excellence of our DRRM, our obsession now is focused on improvements toward perfection not only to land in the Hall of Fame of Gawad Kalasag but primarily on sustaining our attainment of ‘zero casualty’ and resilience in the face of disasters,” Rosal told the Philippines News Agency on Monday.
That awarded excellence does not erase the fact that calamities remain a threat given the city’s geographical setting that is exposed to typhoons, volcanic eruptions and other forms of natural hazards so, “we have to work for more”, Rosal, who also heads the CDRRMC as its chair, said.
“This inspires us towards ensuring further that the city is indeed a very livable place not only for Legazpeños but also for the thousands of people coming on a year-round basis to our place as tourists, visitors, students, shoppers, businessmen and delegates of dozens of national and international conventions, seminars, conferences, sports competitions and other grand occasions that choose the city as venue,” he said.
The city was cited last year as among the three winners in the first Livable City Challenge organized by the National Competitive Commission, APEC 2015 National Organizing Council, World Wildlife Fund, Alliance for Safe and Sustainable Reconstruction and Asia Society and Urban Land Institute.
Iloilo City won the first place followed by this city which got the second spot and by Cebu that placed third in that competition which measured their respective strategic visions and plans for a resilient and livable city.
For Barangay Oro Site chieftain Joseph Philip Lee, this latest award serves as an affirmation of their BDRRMC’s being the country’s model in its category in DRRM programs and a challenge for them to sustain its gains in the coming years.
Lee said, he dedicates this new national championship award to all the people of Oro Site who have been very supportive of the BDRRMC in making the barangay calamity-resilient and every household disaster-ready and vigilant all the time.
“We intend to improve further from what we have achieved which gave us the award for the second time. This will be done by way of learning more on disaster preparedness, mitigation and resiliency from national agencies promoting the same, among them the NDRRMC and the Department of Science and Technology,” he said.
According to Intia, the city and Barangay Oro Site won the Gawad Kalasag National Awards for the second time this year because both the CDRRMC and BDRRMC achieved the national framework for disaster management required by the NDRRMC – which includes the areas of mitigation, preparedness, response and rescue and rehabilitation and recovery.
“We got our toughness against calamities from the painful lessons we’ve had from various disasters several years back—one of them was the February 1993 Mt. Mayon eruption that killed 75 villagers of the city who were caught by the sudden avalanche of super-hot volcanic materials while farming at the lower slope of the volcano,” Intia said.
After that incident, the city government worked on the permanent relocation to a safer place of all residents in barangays within the danger zone of the volcano, he said.
The other one was from the catastrophic impact of two super typhoons — "Milenyo" and "Reming" that battered in late 2006 the city as severely as if it was the doomsday, killing over 1,200 people who were swept by the massive flashflood that hit some of its low-lying barangays.
“Amid those devastating scenarios, the badly shaken spirit of the city regained its composure promptly and the herculean character its administration has developed for the local government and instilled among the governed swiftly roused back to work towards speedy recovery,” he recalled.
Now, life does not only continue to bloom in this city after those disasters but it has also been getting livelier and highly livable as the city administration continues to nourish its booming economy and explore more opportunities to rise high not only in DRRM but also in tourism and private business investments leading towards inclusive growth and development, he added.
==Priest asks people to stop using gadgets during Lenten season==
*Source: http://www.manilatimes.net/priest-asks-people-to-stop-using-gadgets-during-lenten-season/172708/
*Sunday, March 29, 2015 10:00 pm
:By RHAYDZ B. BARCIA
LEGAZPI CITY: The outspoken prelate of the Diocese of Legazpi asked the public on Sunday to stop using gadgets for a week in observance of the Lenten season. Bishop Joel “Bong” Baylon of the Diocese of Legazpi made this plea to about 7,000 churchgoers attending the holy mass at St. Gregory the Great, Albay Cathedral on Sunday here. In his homily during the Domingo de Ramos (Palm Sunday) mass celebration, he said that abstinence should also apply to the use of fancy electronic gadgets like mobile phones and electronic tablets.
==Bicol power coops nix bill to grant franchise to a new energy supplier==
*Source: http://www.bicolmail.com/2012/?p=20220
*Saturday, March 28, 2015
:By Danny O. Calleja
LEGAZPI CITY — Electricity retailers in Bicol are opposed to the proposed grant of a congressional franchise to a new independent power producer (IPP) that intends to serve as an alternative energy supplier for the region.
Allowing this [new] IPP to operate could result in higher power rates since it is a profit-oriented private company which is expected to add on profit to its power rates on top of its recovery of the cost of development and maintenance of its energy generation and distribution infrastructure, the Bicol Electric Cooperatives Association (BECA) said in a statement.
The statement was issued by the association over the week in opposition to House Bill No. 4935 which seeks to grant a franchise to Bicol Light and Power Corp.(BLPC) to operate and manage an energy distribution system in the entire region.
The bill — jointly sponsored by Reps. Deogracias Ramos, Jr. of the second district of Sorsogon, Elmer Panotes of Camarines Norte’s second district, and Salvio Fortuno of Camarines Sur’s fifth district — when enacted would allow the BPLC to “establish, operate, manage, own, lease, and maintain for public interest and commercial purposes.”
In an earlier statement, Ramos said the corporation, whose owners or people behind he did not name, will invest in the setting up and operation of a dependable and efficient power distribution system that will provide the Bicol provinces of Albay, Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, Catanduanes, Masbate, and Sorsogon with alternative source of energy.
This new firm, he said, will join the power distribution business in the region in the essence of free trade competition to challenge all the existing suppliers and distributors into making their services efficient for the benefit of consumers.
It will also generate more jobs and boost the economic growth of Bicol with the anticipated coming in of more investments when power supply and cost is stabilized, Ramos said.
“We in Bicol have been confronted with constant power service interruptions and perpetual threat of disconnections due to the inefficiency, mismanagement, corruption and political meddling that are true among power cooperatives, resulting in bankruptcy,” Ramos said.
He cited the case of the Sorsogon II Electric Cooperative (Soreco II) which is suffering from a financial crisis and the cash-strapped Albay Electric Cooperative (Aleco) whose operation has been awarded by the government to a giant private firm due to huge indebtedness.
Brownouts and unrest among member-consumers of Aleco, however, have not ceased even as the operation and management of cooperative is now under Albay Power and Energy Corporation (APEC) of the San Miguel Corp.’s Global Power Holdings Corp. (SMC Global) to whom the National Electrification Administration has awarded its concession a year ago.
A case to win back Aleco from this giant private firm filed by member-consumers and old coop officials is now pending in a court in Legazpi City.
Soreco II, on the other hand, is under attack from its members for alleged shady deals and huge indebtedness that threaten to send the power coop into bankruptcy.
Masbate and Catanduanes are suffering from constant power shortages and higher cost of electricity as both provinces are off-grid areas served only by petroleum-fed generator sets provided by the National Power Corp. (NPC) and private suppliers, he noted.
Same problems are also being encountered by electric cooperatives in Camarines provinces, according to Ramos.
When approved by Congress, BLPC, Ramos said, will be granted a 15-year franchise.
Higher power rates that could result from the operations of this new IPP, the BECA said, may no longer be affordable to economically-depressed rural consumers in Bicol, resulting further in the deprivation of their right and privilege to have access to cheap electricity in their homes.
“The passage of the bill will be an act of ‘electrocuting’ the Bicol electric cooperatives and paving the way for the corporatization of all power utilities in the country, monopolized and controlled by the opulent and powerful,” it claimed.
The association perceives a serious and present danger in HB 4935 that could lead to the abolition of electric cooperatives leading to a massive displacement or unemployment of their workforce, wastage of assets funded by the government, and economic depression in the rural areas.
It could also render the National Electrification Administration irrelevant and redundant, and subsequently pave the way for its abolition, the BECA added.
These statements are carried in a resolution passed by the association during its regular meeting recently held in Daet, Camarines Norte.
BECA is composed of the Aleco, Camarines Sur Electric Cooperative I (Casureco I), Casureco II, Casureco III, Casureco IV, Camarines Norte Electric Cooperative (Canoreco), Soreco I, Soreco II, First Catanduanes Electric Cooperative, Masbate Electric Cooperative, and Ticao Island (Masbate) Electric Cooperative.
The first eight power cooperatives draw their power supply from various private energy giants like the Lopez-owned Energy Development Corp., the Aboitiz Power Corp., and SMC-Global– through the transmission lines of the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines.
==PHL first CCA-DRR research institute to rise in Albay==
*Source: http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?nid=2&rid=748477
*Friday, March 27, 2015
:By Rhaydz B. Barcia [(PNA), FPV/FGS/RBB/CBD]
LEGAZPI CITY, March 27 (PNA) -- The Philippines, through the province of Albay, will establish the first-ever research and operation center that will serve as a one-stop shop for Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Reduction (CCA-DRR) training institution for disaster responders, local officials, educators, farmers and indigenous communities on disaster mitigation and adaptation measures against the challenging threat of climate change.
The county’s first CCA-DRR research institution will go beyond disaster risk reduction training not only for disaster responders and public officials as it will also train educators, farmers, fishermen and indigenous communities to laymanize science and the effects of global warming that cause climatic change, Albay Governor Joey Sarte Salceda said.
“We want to go beyond disaster risk reduction, with Albay as a designated training institution for DRR as agreed upon with the Office of Civil Defense to train eight regions on disaster mitigation and adaptation measures. We want not only disaster responders and local officials to be trained but including our farmers, fishermen and indigenous communities for them to adapt to the changing climate and comprehend science as the core and impetus of our mission,” Salceda said.
The governor said the existing two-storey Albay Public Safety Emergency and Management Office building will be re-constructed as a five-storey building through the build-operate-transfer mode with local counterpart from the provincial government.
It will house research institution and training centers and related studies on disaster risk reduction management, agriculture and education.
Two years ago, the provincial government of Albay established the first-ever Climate Change Academy within the compound of the Bicol University in this city aimed to bolster the government’s response and adaptation measures to mitigate the adverse impact of global warming that triggers climate change.
The academy, according to Salceda, will serve as a think-thank and center for local and international academic studies and conferences. While the CCA-DRR training institution will go beyond disaster risk reduction management as it will train the grassroots.
“As center for training, we want not only the responders and local officials to be knowledgeable on disaster risk mitigation and adaptation measures but also the sectors who feed the world like farmers and fishermen. We need to work together to help and lessen the world’s carbon emission,” he said.
The Philippines, according to the green economist, contributes 0.31 percent of the aggregate carbon emission or 159 metric tons of CO2 in 2010. It is ranked 159th on GHG per capita basis versus 127th in income per capita. The Philippines has the 13th biggest population of 105 million (1.58% of total), GDP of USD351 billion or 40th largest in GDP (0.48% of total) and 41st in C02 (0.31% of total).
Citing the World Risk Index study, Salceda said the Philippines ranks among the top 3 "most at risk" countries in the world to natural hazards since 2011.
In 2014, it ranked second because of urban exposure.
The World Humanitarian Trend of 2014 reported that “the overall number of large-scale natural disasters has slowly decreased, but disasters associated with the effects of climate increased.”
In the report on World Humanitarian Trends and Trajectories to 2030, Philippines is on the top of the list.
Disaster damages for the country is, on the average, 0.52 percent of the GDP in 1990-2014, which represents an escalation from the 0.3 percent in1990-2009.
Like all developing countries, the Philippines contributes little to global emissions and bears even less responsibility for historical emissions, yet is among those that suffer the most but, at the same time, the least able to cope with the increasingly adverse effects of climate change.
“Learning from our experience in Albay, this may be possible in a framework where a green economy nurtures a low-emission, inclusive and empowering, resilient and sustainable development. It is important to note, that communities across the country have shown the way forward by ensuring mangrove forests are protected and plantation is encouraged for the purpose of contributing to carbon capture and enhancement of forest carbon stocks while securing protection against powerful storm surges,” Salceda, UN senior global champion on climate change adaptation and UN climate fund advisor, said.
Since Salceda’s getting at the helm the provincial government of Albay, forest cover has increased by 88 percent over the past seven years and mangrove forests almost quadrupled from 700 hectares to 2,400 hectares.
“Despite unremitting climate disruptions, we increased our rice production from 147,900 MT (2008) to 228,080 MT (2014) through proper use of water resources like irrigation. Many Filipino indigenous communities live to protect the sustainability of ecosystem services, equitable and sustainable use of resources while enhancing forest carbon stocks,” he noted.
They who protect the environment should be given their rightful space of participating in the local economy and benefit from them, he said. “We will, however, not deny the fact that the country will need help. We are striving to develop but challenged by hazards beyond our control. It is at this point that we see the value of solidarity. In the context of global climate action, climate financing is one of manifestation of such solidarity,” the governor pointed out.
For countries at the mercy of climate hazards like the Philippines, according to Salceda, adaptation will be a priority, bearing in mind that adaptation actions must contribute to the reduction of greenhouse gases.
“If we want to avoid the climate-related disaster risks of the future, investments in climate and disaster science that lead to understanding not only of the hazards and how they are formed but also of vulnerabilities and capacities of people, crops, infrastructure, and biodiversity to contribute to both adaptation and mitigation will be necessary under the green economy framework.
For countries like the Philippines, surviving the next climate challenge requires a reduction of vulnerabilities as a pre-requisite for resilience. This means massive investment on infrastructure, industrialization, adaptive agriculture and safer settlements; only then will we, perhaps, earn resilience.
Salceda said mitigation is imperative because it is the only global response that would give time for people to adapt.
“Adaptation actions alone, no matter how purposive and massive, will not stall the intensifying climate-related hazards. GHG mitigation by a few countries will also not make a dent in the problem. That is why the Philippines will do its share in mitigation,” the green economist governor pointed out.
Salceda explained that the creation of the Green Climate Fund (GCF) gives hope as the only climate fund for developing countries.
“The GCF is the core channel of financing for both adaptation and mitigation, and loss and damage, supported by development and transfer of technology and capacity-building in any Paris agreement as proposed by the developing country parties of the UNFCCC. The current USD10.3-billion fund is a first step towards the USD100 billion annually by 2020 committed in Copenhagen,” Salceda said.
The demands for survival and development that trigger policy action, according to Salceda, must inspire and usher in a new economy that considers development not only as growth in the economy but also a meaningful, sustainable, inclusive, low-emitting and empowering development.
“Ours is not a plea for help rather a call to recognize the essential right of our people to life, environment and development. This recognition must be at the heart of any climate financing initiative in the era of a new green economy. Any decision in Paris must consider that climate change context is specific and must therefore take into account realities such as ours,” Salceda said.
==200 CARP beneficiaries in Albay attend DTI livelihood training==
*Source: http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?nid=11&rid=748186
*Thursday, March 26, 2015
:(PNA), LAP/FGS/EMC/CBD
LEGAZPI CITY, March 26 (PNA) -- About 200 Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) beneficiaries from different Agrarian Reform Communities in Albay are participating in the livelihood training conducted by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)–Albay Provincial Office on Wednesday.
Entitled “SMERA (Small Medium Enterprise Roving Academy) Para sa mga Negosyanteng Paraoma,” the training is being held at the Concourse Convention Hall here.
SMERA, which is a continuous learning program for the development of micro, small and medium enterprises, is designed to promote entrepreneurship and develop key competencies in opportunities searching, product development, marketing and other skills training.
The activity is part of the DTI’s continuing program to assist the CARP beneficiaries to further help them in enhancing their skills and knowledge in developing sustainable livelihood, and eventually prepare their products for the global market.
The training is being conducted through lectures, discussions, demonstrations and workshop.
It is divided into two courses: Productivity Seminar Course and Skills Training Course.
The first course involves topics on Marketing: Awareness and Strategy, Promotion of Green Economic Development: Green Farm Practices, and Updates on CARP Programs.
The second course includes topics on Agricultural Waste Conversion, Capacity Development on Raw Vegetable Processing, Fashion Accessories, and Technology Training on Corn and Root Crops By-product Conversion.
The DTI activity is in partnership with the DTI-CARP National Program Office and the Department of Agrarian Reform-Albay.
It is in line with the government’s thrust to address economic development in the countryside through the provision of alternative livelihood opportunities to the community residents and to agrarian reform beneficiaries.
==PNP-Bicol ready for Oplan Summer Vacation, Holy Week==
*Source: http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?nid=2&rid=747588
*Wednesday, March 25, 2015
:By Nancy Ibo Mediavillo [(PNA), FFC/FGS/NIM/CBD/EBP]
LEGAZPI CITY, March 25 (PNA) -- The Philippine National Police-Bicol regional office is all prepared to keep the public safe and secured during the summer vacation, especially Holy Week, with at least 1,000 police officers and 3,000 force multipliers ready to ensure peace and order.
Chief Supt. Victor Deona, PNP-Bicol regional director, had given full instructions to his men to be on a 24-hour duty to implement Oplan Summer Vacation and Holy Week, said Senior Insp. Maria Luisa Calubaquib, PRO5 spokersperson.
Calubaquib said the PNP-Bicol leadership has implemented the operational security plan early for the safety of the vacationers and the residents alike.
The operational plan is effective on March 20 to May 31, she said.
The plan involves setting up of motorist assistance centers along the Maharlika Highway from Barangay Tabogon, Daet, Camarines Norte, to Matnog, Sorsogon, and in the island-provinces of Catanduanes and Masbate.
Police officers have also been posted in populous areas like transport terminals, airports, sea ports, markets, malls, churches and tourist destinations.
Deona has also assigned uniformed men in entry and exit points in the region and asked his men to intensify patrol and police visibility, especially in areas of convergence.
The police officers will be assisted by about 3,000 force multipliers from different sectors of the society like village law enforcers, security guards, radio communication groups like the Kabalikat Civicom and Barangay Peacekeeping and Action Teams.
Each police station has also put up a hotline where people needing assistance can call for assistance.
"We want to ensure peace, order and the security of the public in the entire region during the whole summer vacation," Calubaquib said.
She said the order of Deona covers all police offices and stations in the six provinces, towns and cities in the Bicol Region, whose chiefs will be required to submit accomplishment reports that would be reflected in their report cards to the Office of the Regional Director.
==Philtoa picks Albay anew among top summer destinations==
*Source: http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?nid=6&rid=747343
*Tuesday, March 24, 2015
:By Johnny C. Nunez [(PNA), LAP/JCN/EBP]
LEGAZPI CITY, March 24 (PNA) -- The Philippine Travel and Operator’s Association (Philtoa) has once again picked Albay as among its top summer destinations. The province has remained among the top tourist destinations in the country in 2014 with a recorded 7.1-percent share of foreign arrivals.
Philtoa president Cesar Cruz said that other than the "sights and activities" as part of the major considerations in selecting top summer destinations, the organization also considers the local government’s political leadership and its commitment in providing a sustainable tourism program.
Governor Joey Salceda, banking on Albay’s global standard tourism destinations, has embarked on a strong and holistic program, which involves the province’s cultural heritage from historical religious edifices, old roads and houses, to ethnic culinary wealths, branching out most recently to sports tourism.
As a result, Albay’s domestic arrivals have doubled during the first three months of 2015 based on gate receipts at the Albay Parks and Wildlife, a favorite destination of local visitors, and a 40 percent increase in the number of visitors at the Cagsawa Ruins Park.
Albay will hold its Daragang Magayon Festival 2015 last week of March and the whole of April, with culinary tourism on the spotlight, and where famous chefs around the country will meet local talents for a gastronomic showdown.
Salceda was among the initial recipients of the Tourism Star Award by the Department of Tourism (DOT) for 2014, for exemplary excellence and dedication in driving the Philippine tourism industry forward, under the Tourism Star Philippines (TSP) program.
Philtoa has invited Salceda to speak at the organization’s 2nd general membership conference on April 8 to discuss updates on Albay’s summer holiday program, highlighting recommended destinations. Philtoa had declared Albay as its 2013 summer destination.
Salceda said Albay’s strong position in the industry and the continuous upward trend in its performance has further opened up more opportunities for investors in the hotel business, where more competitively priced rooms are needed to accommodate the growing numbers of tourists.
He said the “key is cheap accommodations and the key to cheap accommodations is more rooms, not just in Legazpi but in Daraga, Tabaco, Camalig, Guinobatan, Polangui, Sto. Domingo, Bacacay. This should get Albay into the budget domestic tour packages.”
Albay, Salceda said, has already laid down the requirements of a strong tourism program: robust year-round national promotions — most specially in social media, increased domestic flights, road access which are among the best in the country), and improved sea travel with the ROROs (Matnog, Bulan, Pioduran, Tabaco, Legazpi).
More tourists mean more demand in food and souvenir items, and activities, which should be priced competitively enough for domestic tourists, he said.
The province was declared the fastest growing tourism area in the country in 2013, with a 66-percent growth rate, way up the national figure and dubbed as a “tourism powerhouse” by the DOT. It “will likely lead in the next major wave of the country’s tourist inflow.”
Albay has emerged from being a disaster-afflicted to a dynamic province with a phenomenal tourism growth, from 8,700 foreign visitors in 2007 when Salceda assumed its governorship to 339,000 in 2013. The number has consitently remained above 300,000 since 2011 and has steadily increased.
DOT has continuously showcased Albay in many international tourism expositions, the latest of which was the 2015 Marche International Proffesionels d’Immobilier, an annual show participated in by influential property players worldwide, at the Palais des Festivals in Cannes, France March foreign 10 to 13, and the Manila FAME, March 13-16, the design and lifestyle event, trade platform for exports and design.
Albay is also pushing culinary tourism as among its most recent attractions. This will kick off with a showdown of the country’s famous chefs April 27 – 29 in support of DOT’s Flavors of the Philippines campaign and at the same time farther promote the province’s ethnic cuisines.
Various international and national tourism promotions where Albay was featured by DOT included the Berlin ITB 2012 in Germany, the London WTM 2013, Shanghai TM 2013, DOT Hongkong 2014, and special events of the Philippine Asia Travel Association and the Philippine Travel Operators’ Association.
==Government allots P131 million for agriculture projects in Bicol==
*Source: http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/government-allots-p131-million-for-agriculture-projects-in-bicol/
*Monday, March 23, 2015
:(Philippines News Agency)
LEGAZPI CITY—The national government has allocated P131 million for various agricultural projects in the Bicol region under the Bottom-Up Budgeting (BUB) approach.
In a joint memorandum circular issued by the departments of Budget and Management, Interior and Local Government, Social Welfare and Development and the National Anti-Poverty Commission, all heads of the departments involved in the implementation would release the fund for BUB 2015 projects to implementing agencies as part of the General Appropriations Act.
Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) Regional Information Officer Ed Bailon said Camarines Sur got the biggest allocation at P35.3 million for the purchase of planting seeds and organic fertilizers, procurement of equipment, infrastructure and livelihood for farmers.
Sorsogon was allocated P24.1 million, followed by Albay with P21.5 million; Camarines Norte, P20.8 million; Catanduanes, P6.7 million; and Masbate, P6.6 million.
Bailon said that, in the Bicol region, 109 local government units (LGUs) have substantially implemented their Financial Management Improvement for calendar years 2014 and 2015.
“This means that they are qualified for the 2015 Bottom-up Budgeting fund,” he said.
In Albay, according to Bailon, most of the projects to be implemented within the year are infrastructure facilities, provision of agricultural machines, sustainable agri-based livelihood and other agri-business investments and distribution of assorted vegetables.
The BUB process is focused on engaging 300 to 400 of the poorest municipalities identified by the Cabinet’s Human Development and Poverty Reduction cluster.
Local-level engagement will be facilitated via relevant government agencies, local community leaders, LGUs and partner-civic organizations.
==Legazpi attributes twin Gawad Kalasag national championship wins to firm anti-disaster commitment==
*Source: http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?nid=8&rid=746864
*Sunday, March 22, 2015
:By Danny O. Calleja [(PNA), CTB/FGS/DOC/CBD/RSM]
LEGAZPI CITY, March 22 (PNA) -- The city government here and one of its urban villages will receive honors on March 26 for winning anew the Gawad Kalasag Awards national championship—a twin victory that its leaders attribute to their resolve in ensuring that each local community is a truly livable place for everybody.
“Basically, it is our unrelenting commitment to this area of governance supported by our people in the barangays that won for us for the second time the national championship awards,” City Mayor Noel Rosal on Sunday told the Philippines News Agency.
An announcement made by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) late last week named the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (CDDRM) as the best nationwide in the Component/Independent City Category of the 2014 Gawad Kalasag search.
Barangay Oro Site, a densely populated village at the heart of the city’s commercial district, on the other hand, won the number one spot for having the Best Barangay DRRMCs for the Urban Barangay Class. Launched in 1998, the awards is among the national government’s mechanism in obtaining sustained commitment and support from DRRM practitioners in strengthening the resilience and adaptive capacities of the country and communities to disaster risks by recognizing their exceptional contributions.
Kalasag stands for Kalamidad at Sakuna, Labanan, Sariling Galing ang Kaligtasan.
Rosal, who is CDRRMC chairman along with City Administrator and CDRRMC action man Pecos Intia, and Joseph Philip Lee, the Oro Site village chieftain and Barangay DRRMC head, will receive the awards during formal ceremonies at Camp Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo in Quezon City.
The accolades will be conferred on them by Department of National Defense Secretary and NDRRMC chair Voltaire Gazmin who will also honor all the 28 other national winners for their outstanding contributions in strengthening the resilience and adaptive capacities of the country and communities to disaster risks.
Intia said the recognitions, which both the city and Barangay Oro site won for the second time in two consecutive years (2013 and 2014), are affirmations of their being the country’s model in their respective categories in DRRM programs and a challenge for them to sustain those gains in the coming years.
“This inspires us towards working for more in ensuring that the city is indeed a very livable place not only for Legazpeños but also for the thousands of people coming on a year-round basis to our place as tourists, visitors, students, shoppers, businessmen and delegates of dozens of national and international conventions, seminars, conferences, sports competitions and other grand occasions that choose the city as venue,” he said.
The city was cited last year as among the three winners in the first Livable City Challenge organized by the National Competitive Commission, APEC 2015 National Organizing Council, World Wildlife Fund, Alliance for Safe and Sustainable Reconstruction and Asia Society and Urban Land Institute.
Iloilo City won the first place, followed by this city which got the second spot and by Cebu that placed third in that competition which measured their respective strategic visions and plans for a resilient and livable city.
Intia said the city got the Gawad Kalasag National Award for the second time this year because the CDRRMC achieved the national framework for disaster management required by the NDRRMC – which includes the areas of mitigation, preparedness, response and rescue and rehabilitation and recovery.
Rosal said “we got our toughness against calamities from the painful lessons we’ve had from various disasters several years back—one of them was the February 1993 Mt. Mayon eruption that killed 75 villagers of the city who were caught by the sudden avalanche of super-hot volcanic materials while farming at the lower slope of the volcano.”
After that incident, the city government worked on the permanent relocation to a safer place of all residents in barangays within the danger zone of the volcano.
The other one was from the catastrophic impact of two super typhoons — "Milenyo" and "Reming" that battered in late 2006 the city as severely as if it was the doomsday, killing over 1,200 people who were swept by the massive flashflood that hit some of its low-lying barangays.
“Amidst those devastating scenarios, the badly shaken spirit of the city regained its composure promptly and the herculean character its administration has developed for the local government and instilled among the governed swiftly roused back to work towards speedy recovery,” he recalled.
Now, life does not only continue to bloom in this city after those disasters. It has also been getting livelier and highly livable as the city administration continues to nourish its booming economy and explore more opportunities to rise high, he added.
Lee said he dedicates this new national championship award to all the people of Oro Site who have been very supportive of the BDRRMC in making the barangay calamity-resilient and every household disaster-ready and vigilant all the time.
Apart from the honors, both winners will receive from the NDRRMC cash prizes amounting Php100,000 each that should be spent for DRRM-related activities.
==Bill to extend services of gov’t scientists passes House body==
*Source: http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?nid=13&rid=746644
*Saturday, March 21, 2015
:(PNA), RMA/FGS/DOC/CBD/PJN
LIGAO, Albay, March 21 (PNA) -- Albay third district Rep. Fernando Gonzalez on Saturday announced here that the bill he authored seeking the extension of services after mandatory retirement age of government scientists has been approved by the House committee on science and technology.
The approval, which came during a committee meeting last March 17, makes possible the passing of House Bill No. 515 into a law that will allow the extension for five years of the services of government scientists who would be due for compulsory retirement.
Principally sponsored by Gonzalez , the Bill seeks to amend Republic Act No. 8439, otherwise known as the Magna Carta for Scientists, Engineers, Researchers and Other Science and Technology Personnel in Government of 1997.
Gonzalez told the Philippine News Agency that although RA 8439 provides for the rehiring of a retired employee “who possesses technical qualifications and the capability to undertake specific scientific research activities, provided no qualified science and technology expert is available to undertake said scientific activities,” extending their services behind their mandatory retirement age is more favorable to both the government and the employee.
“It is of my honest belief that even at the age beyond 65, the mandatory retirement age for civil service employees, most, if not all scientists, are still at the peak of their mental capabilities and are still very much capable of continuing their invaluable work on scientific projects that they had been working on prior to retirement,” he said.
He clarified that while the Magna Carta covers all scientific personnel in government including science and technology (S&T) managers, supervisors and planners; members of the scientific career system; scientists, engineers and researchers; and Department of Science and Technology (DOST) technicians and related S&T personnel, HB No. 515 covers only “scientists."
RA 8439 defines S&T managers, supervisors and planners as those who are graduate degree holders or have at least 10 years of managerial experience or are performing executive, planning and policy-making functions to effectively carry out science-related activities.
Scientists, engineers and researchers, the same law says, are at least undergraduate degree holders in any of the natural science and engineering courses and are involved in research and development or other scientific and technological activities.
DOST technicians and related S & T personnel are those who obtained at least 12 units in science, engineering and other related courses or any appropriate training and are providing support services.
Gonzalez explained that under HB No. 515, the extension of services shall be subject to conditions such as the project that the scientist is working on at the time of compulsory retirement is within the priority research and development programs of the DOST and is identified as strategic to the national development.
Other conditions are that the scientist is still mentally and physically fit to complete the project; and the request for extension of services shall be submitted to the Civil Service Commission (CSC) for approval at least three months prior to the date of the compulsory retirement of the scientist, he said.
When the extension is approved, a scientist will continue receiving preferential salary approved by the President under the Magna Carta outside the existing law on salary scales and other benefits such as honorarium, share in royalties and hazard allowance.
Honorarium is for S & T personnel who rendered services beyond the established irregular workload of scientists, technologists, researchers and technicians whose broad and superior knowledge, expertise or professional standing in a specific field contributes to productivity and innovativeness shall be entitled to receive honorarium subject to rules to be set by the DOST.
Share in royalties is defined as a share in the proceeds of royalty payments arising from patents, copyrights and other intellectual property rights divided on a 60-40 percents basis in favor of the government and the entitlement is for personnel involved in the technology activity which has been produced or undertaken during the regular performance of their functions.
Hazard allowance, on the other hand, is paid to S& T personnel involved in hazardous undertakings or assigned in hazardous workplaces.
The amount ranges from 10 to 30 percent of their monthly basic salary depending on the nature and extent of the hazard involved.
Considered hazardous workplaces are radiation-exposed laboratories and service workshops; depressed areas; areas declared under a state of calamity or emergency; strife-torn or embattled areas; laboratories; and disease-infested places of assignment.
Gonzalez has thanked the House committee chaired by Rep. Victor Yu for approving the bill which when finally passed into a law will play an important role in the government efforts to entice scientists from the country’s universities to join the DOST and address the “brain drain” following retirements of some of the agency’s experts.
==TESDA-Bicol allots Php177M for scholarship in 2015==
==TESDA-Bicol allots Php177M for scholarship in 2015==
*Source: http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?nid=2&rid=746467
*Source: http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?nid=2&rid=746467
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