 |
||
| 12 FEBRUARY 2008 | . | |
|
|
||
| 12 FEBRUARY 2008 | . | |
|
|
|
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s Opening
Statement at the Cabinet Meeting Aguinaldo State Dining Room, Malacañang February 12, 2008 |
|
Mga kababayan, mahalagang tutukan natin ang nagbabantang
paghina ng ekonomiya ng mundo. Ito ang babala ng mga ministro ng ekonomiya
at pananalapi ng pinakamalaking mga ekonomiya ng mundo sa kanilang pulong sa
Tokyo. |
|
|
| PGMA bares 40% growth target for O&O sector as RP bcomes 2nd top BPO destination in Asia-Pacific Region |
|
Just three months after the Philippines was named as the “Offshoring
Destination of the Year” by the United Kingdom’s National Outsourcing
Association last October, Manila has been named the second top Business
Process Outsourcing (BPO) destination in the Asia-Pacific Region by the
International Data Corporation (IDC). Thus enthused President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo as she announced Monday that her administration has targeted a 40-percent growth rate in the country’s offshoring and outsourcing (O&O) sector for this year. “For 2008, we have targeted to grow our O&O workforce by 40 percent in order to cope with the industry demands, and also achieve a 40-percent growth rate in the O&O sector,” the President said in her speech before the CEO Forum of the 8th e-Services Global Sourcing Conference and Exhibition at the SMX Convention Center of the SM Mall of Asia in Pasay City. The President also said that three Philippine cities have been included by the London Financial Times in its survey of “Top Ten Asian Cities of the Future,” thus validating the country’s position as a major player in the global O&O market. “In International Data Corporation’s Top 10 list of BPO destinations in the Asia-Pacific region, Manila was ranked number 2, second only to Bangalore (India). “In a survey commissioned by the London Financial Times, Quezon City, Cebu and Davao were included in the top 10 Asian Cities of the Future, with Quezon City ranked 7th, Cebu 8th and Davao 10th, comparable with cities like Hong Kong, Singapore and Taipei which were the top three,” the President said. She also announced that Cebu -- apart from the above-mentioned distinction from the London Financial Times – has been ranked Number 4 in the study of Top 50 Emerging Cities conducted by Tholons, Inc. “These distinctions from the global ICT (Information and Communications Technology) firms and experts in the O&O sector provide our investor friends who have come to e-Services Philippines with objective third-party assessments of our O&O capabilities,” the President stressed. “They validate our position as a major player in the global O&O market. The Philippines is ranked among the most attractive offshoring destinations in the world because of cost competitiveness and, more importantly, the country’s highly trainable, English-proficient, I.T.-enabled quality manpower,” the President said. According to her, the runaway growth of the O&O industry has echoed throughout the entire system, spawning impressive growth in other sectors like real estate, telecommunications, food and retail, among others. “The demand for prime real estate for BPO operations has spawned feverish construction for office space and campuses that can house the current demand for expansion sites,” the President said, noting that such a trend is expected to grow by more than 30 percent in the next few years. “The up-and-coming O&O destinations in the Philippines are of course outside Metro Manila. And in support of this, our public-private sector partnership has been assessing various cities… to delineate what we will now call or, well, we have been calling but now we will delineate the area more specifically -- the Philippine cyber corridor -- which are positioned as viable alternatives for O&O locators,” added President Arroyo. |
|
|
| PGMA stresses need for RP to gird for slowdown of global economy |
|
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo said today that the government must act
immediately to blunt the harsh effects of the threatening slowdown of the
global economy, and sustain the country’s economic growth. In her opening statement in the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA)-Cabinet Group meeting held at the Aguinaldo State Dining Room in Malacañang this morning, the President said it was imperative that “we are fully focused on thwarting the threat of a slowdown of the world economy” on the local economy. She pointed out that the economic ministers of the world’s leading industrial countries, in their recent meeting in Tokyo, had warned of the threat facing the world’s major economies. ''Our tasks are clear,'' the President said, as she cited three action plans that the government must implement immediately to ride out the storm of the expected global economic slowdown First, the government must accelerate spending on infrastructure and pro-poor projects to fuel the engine of economic growth, create an investor-attractive environment and enhance agricultural production, she said. Second, the government will increase investments on people by boosting support for education and training, especially skills urgently demanded by industries here and abroad in such sectors as construction and the business process outsourcing (BPO). The concerns of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) must also be addressed to ensure that they enjoy the full protection of their welfare. Third, the President cited the imperative need to address the problems posed by red tape and corruption. She pointed out that she has ordered Trade Secretary Peter Favila and Budget Secretary Rolando Andaya to take immediate steps to address the twin evils of red tape and corruption in the bureaucracy. Favila heads the Anti-Red Tape Task Force, while Andaya leads the Procurement Transparency Group. She directed Favila and Andaya to ''coordinate with the private sector, business community, academe and the religious group to implement reforms in the bureaucracy.” Citing the need for peace and stability to sustain economic prosperity, the President said that in the “midst of external threats, let us make the Philippines a strong and stable economy. Let us work together to attain this goal, for our family and community.” |
|
|
| Dept. of Agriculture, 3 other agencies ink accord to promote agri-exports |
|
In a move to strengthen existing export markets and tap new ones for the
country’s agricultural products, the Department of Agriculture (DA) has
teamed up with the Departments of Trade and Industry (DTI), Foreign Affairs
(DFA) and the Export Development Council (EDC) in promoting agricultural and
fishery products overseas. The four agencies, represented by Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap, Trade Secretary Peter Favila, Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo and Philippine Exports Confederation President Sergio Ortiz-Luis Jr., signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) on this joint undertaking before the Cabinet meeting in Malacañang this morning. Yap said the MOA covers priority categories in the agri-fishery sector such as fresh and processed fruits and vegetables, marine and marine products, root crops, natural fiber, horticulture, plantation crops, wood products, herbal products and natural ingredients. The signatories agreed to hold regular consultations with stakeholders, undertake market research on potential export and investment opportunities, and identify and negotiate possible sources of funds and technical assistance in the development of the agri-fishery sector. They also agreed to set up a technical committee that would craft the criteria for projects covered by the agreement, and develop an annual work program. The EDC would serve as the oversight body tasked to monitor the activities of the DA, DTI, and DFA. Yap said the program to sustain and accelerate farm growth and raise the profitability of agriculture for its small stakeholders is in compliance with President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s directive to focus on sustaining food security and creating jobs as embodied in the Medium Term Philippine Development Plan (MTPDP). The agriculture sector registered a 4.68 percent growth in 2007, hitting the government forecast of four to five percent full-year expansion range. |
|
|
| PGMA orders DOLE to exempt direct-hires by top corporations |
|
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo instructed today Department of Labor and
Employment Secretary Arturo Brion to revise Memorandum Circular No. 04
Series of 2007 that bans the deployment of direct-hire overseas Filipino
workers (OFWs). The President issued the directive during today’s National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA)-Cabinet Group meeting at the Aguinaldo State Dining Room in Malacanang. The Chief Executive specifically instructed Brion to exempt “executive positions of top gear corporations and institutions” from MC No. 04. She said the Top 500 Fortune (Magazine) Corporations “essentially provide” these benefits and security to the direct-hires in their contracts. MC No. 04 requires that the deployment of OFWs must go through recruitment agencies and the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA). The DOLE said registration with the POEA gives overseas workers benefits such as insurance and health care, education and training, family welfare services as well as protection and assistance in their place of work. The Labor Code prohibits an employer from hiring Filipino workers for overseas employment, except through the boards (the POEA) or entities authorized by the Secretary of Labor. As an exemption to the ban of direct-hires, the POEA was allowed to process the employment contracts of OFWs who were directly hired by members of the diplomatic corps and international organizations. The President also issued several instructions to concerned government agencies to improve frontline services for OFWs. These instructions include the following: -- DOLE to scrutinize and review systems in conducting mental exams for OFWS to lessen and eventually eliminate cases of mental disorders in OFWs; -- Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) president Alfonso Cusi to ensure that proper courtesies are extended to all passengers, especially OFWs, by all airport personnel. The President also instructed the POEA to stop using the Equitable Bank card as identification cards for OFWS and instead use the Social Security System (SSS) card. |
|
|
| New York-based press freedom body hails arrest writs vs journalist slay brains |
|
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has welcomed the arrest warrants
issued by the Cebu regional trial court against the two suspected masteminds
in the 2005 killing of journalist Marlene Garcia-Esperat as “a significant
step forward for the Philippines” in its resolve to stop extrajudicial
killings in the country. The CPJ is an independent, nonprofit organization based in New York, that promotes press freedom and defends the rights of jounalists. The CPJ has furnished Press Secretary and Presidential Spokesperson
Ignacio R. Bunye a copy of its letter to Philippine National Police (PNP)
Director General Avelino Razon Jr. calling for the immediate apprehension of
the two accused masteminds. The trial of the Esperat case was transferred from Tacurong to Cebu City after the Supreme Court granted the prosecution’s request for a change of venue that greatly helped in getting witnesses to testify against the suspects under the government’s witness protection program. Eight months after the killing, the Cebu court convicted and meted with life imprisonment Randy Garcia, Gerry Cabayag and Estanislao Bismanos who admitted they were hired for P120,000 to kill Esperat. Last year, the Department of Justice (DOJ) ordered the reopening of the investigation against alleged brains Montaner and Sabay, finance officer and accountant, respectively, of the Department of Agriculture (DA) in Region 12, who were earlier excluded from the killing of Esperat by the Regional Trial Court in Tacurong City. Esperat, a radio broadcaster and former employee of the DA, had exposed numerous cases of graft and corruption committed by public officials including allegations against Montaner and Sabay. |
|
|
| PGMA addresses prov’l governors league meeting; Inaugurates infra projects in C. Sur tomorrow |
|
PILI, Camarines Sur—President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will keynote on
Wednesday (Feb. 13) the opening of the 2nd General Assembly of the country’s
provincial governors and lead the groundbreaking and inauguration of various
government school buildings and infrastructure projects in this province. The President is expected to arrive at 10 a.m. at the Naga Airport in San Jose, Pili, Camarines Sur, where she will be briefed at the VIP Lounge by Armed Forces and Philippine National Police officials and local government executives on the peace and order situation in Camarines Sur and the rest of Region V. She will motor later to the Camarines Sur Watersports Complex (CWC) for a brief declaration rites of the six-hectare complex to be the next cable skiing Mecca of Asia, with a six-point cable ski system. In July this year, the CWC will host the World Wakeboarding Championship, the first of its kind in the country. From the CWC, the President will proceed to the Provincial Capitol Compound in Cadlan to address the 2nd General Assembly of the League of Provinces of the Philippines (LPP) at the Villa del Rey. Camarines Sur Gov. Luis Raymund Villafuerte will host a lunch for the President and the more than 80 governors and other government officials, including Budget Secretary Rolando Andaya and Congressman Dato Arroyo. At Barangay Pandan, Cabusao, this province, the President will preside over the groundbreaking rites for the P60-million Sipocot-Cabusao road construction and improvement project. She is also scheduled to launch two school buildings and groundbreak the construction of a UNICEF-funded school building at the Castillo Elementary School in Barangay Castillo, Cabusao. |
|
|
| Statement of the President: On the attacks on Timor Leste President Jose Ramos-Horta and Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao |
|
The Philippine Government condemns in the strongest possible terms the
recent attempts on the life of Timor-Leste President Jose Ramos-Horta and
Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao. The Filipino people join the Timorese people in praying for the swift and complete recovery of President Ramos-Horta. These cowardly and criminal acts have no place within a democratic and free nation whose people respect the rule of law and adhere to the peaceful and principled resolution of differences. The Philippines joins the community of nations in hoping that the perpetrators of these dastardly acts are identified soon and brought swiftly before the bar of justice. While these events are regrettable, the Philippines believe these only serve to further strengthen the resolve of the Timorese people to preserve the gains of their hard-earned democracy and will not in any way deter the Timorese people from their onward collective advance in building their nation. The Philippines stands firmly behind Timor Leste and remains committed to help Timor Leste achieve its dreams of greater peace, progress and prosperity within a democratic framework. |
|
|
