Author: malaysiang

DUMAGUETE CITY: Environmentalists and advocacy groups are pushing for a stronger alliance among local government units (LGUs) in Negros Oriental, which will pave the way for the protection of mangrove forests amid the global climate crisis.

The call was sounded Thursday at a forum at a local hotel here where experts on mangroves and environmental laws and policies were invited as resource speakers.

In response, Manric Barillo, head of the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Division (PENRD), said there are existing alliances among some LGUs that advocate the protection of the mangroves.

Barillo admitted that there is a need to broaden these alliances in LGUs where mangrove forests are found to improve further the campaign.

‘These alliances, formed a few years ago, are working very well until today but we need to organize other LGUs so that there would be a concerted effort to protect our mangrove forests,’ he said.

At present, the local governments of Bindoy, Ayungon, Tayasan, Manjuyod, and Sant
aBayaBas (Santa Catalina, Bayawan City, and Basay) have existing agreements.

Barillo also said they have agreed with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources that four LGUs – Jimalalud, La Libertad, Guihulngan City, and Vallehermoso – would be organized this year and perhaps receive funding.

Mangroves not only serve to protect the environment but are also a source of food and a natural habitat for some marine creatures.

Barillo said he is hopeful that mayors would review or include mangrove reforestation in their respective comprehensive land use plans.

The Mangrove Forests for Climate Change Mitigation forum is a joint endeavor of FENOR (Friends of the Environment in Negros Oriental), the provincial government, KINAIYAHAN, Oceana, and Bayanihan Para sa Inang Bayan.

Source: Philippines News Agency

PUTRAJAYA, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today emphasised the need to appoint more women as secretaries-general (KSU) of ministries and directors-general (DG) of departments.

Anwar, who is also Finance Minister, said that the current representation of women leaders does not reflect the overall 42 percent female participation in decision-making roles in public service.

“There is certainly not enough (women leaders). Seriously, I have discussed with the Chief Secretary to the Government (KSN) Tan Sri Mohd Zuki Ali that we should find a way to increase the number of women in KSU and DG positions,” he said at the Malaysian Administrative and Diplomatic Service Association (PPTD) Aidilfitri Town Hall Meeting with the Prime Minister here today.

The session which lasted for more than two hours was also attended by Mohd Zuki, Public Service Director-General Datuk Seri Wan Ahmad Dahlan Abdul Aziz, PPTD president Datuk Seri Isham Ishak, Alumni of Administrative and Diplomatic Officers (PTD) president Tan S
ri Abdul Halim Ali and more than 2,000 PTD officers.

Currently, among the women leaders in high-ranking positions are Chief Justice Tun Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat, Customs Director-General Datuk Anis Rizana Mohd Zainudin @ Mohd Zainuddin, and Auditor-General Datuk Wan Suraya Wan Mohd Radzi.

Only two women currently hold secretary-general positions namely Datuk Maziah Che Yusoff for the Ministry of Women, Family, and Community Development and Datuk Seri Suriani Ahmad for the Ministry of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

MANILA: President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has named Undersecretary Hans Leo Cacdac as Secretary of the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW).

Cacdac’s appointment was signed by Marcos on Thursday, a copy of which was made available to the media.

He served as officer in charge of the DMW after the passing of former secretary Susan ‘Toots’ Ople in August last year.

Before his ad interim appointment in the Cabinet, Cacdac also served as Executive Director V of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration; Executive Director V of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration; and Undersecretary of the Department of Labor and Employment.

Source: Philippines News Agency

KUALA LUMPUR, The Human Resources Ministry (KESUMA) is extending over 3,000 job opportunities in the green sector through the KESUMA Green Skills Fair 2024 at the Avenue K mall here this week.

Its minister Steven Sim Chee Keong said the fair, to run from today until Saturday and jointly organised by Talent Corporation Malaysia Berhad (TalentCorp) and the Social Security Organisation (PERKESO), offers employment prospects with salaries ranging from RM3,000 to RM16,000.

‘This is part of KESUMA’s commitment to preparing our nation’s workforce for the challenges of the 21st-century economy, including artificial intelligence (AI), digitalisation and the green economy,’ he told a press conference after the launch of the fair here today.

The fair will feature exhibitors highlighting job types and green skills pivotal in sustaining the National Green Economy, including POS Malaysia, Modenas, Green Technology Corporation and Malaysian Green Technology and Climate Change Corporation (MGTC), among others.

At the sam
e time, the MYFutureJobs Green Job Fair 2024, with the participation of nearly 60 employers including AEON Co (M) Bhd, RHB Bank Bhd, United Solar Energy Malaysia Sdn Bhd and FGV Holdings Bhd, is also being held at the same venue.

Sim also said that TalentCorp is currently conducting an impact study on the ramifications of AI, digitalisation, and the green economy on Malaysia’s job market, with an interim report slated for completion within six months.

He said the report aims to provide a framework not only for the government and policymakers to formulate more tailored policies but also for companies and Malaysian workers to better equip themselves for the 21st-century economy.

‘This study will shed light on the effects of the green economy and AI on existing jobs, identify roles that will persist in this new economy, and pinpoint those that may undergo transformation,’ he said.

‘So, the insights gained will enable us to make informed decisions regarding the type of training needed for our workforce and th
e incentives required for SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises) and Malaysians,’ he concluded.

PERKESO will also be organising the MYFutureJobs Kesuma Madani Job Fair in conjunction with Labour Day 2024 at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre (PICC) on April 30 and May 1.

The job fair will offer over 10,000 vacancies and will be held across several states, including Kelantan from May 4-5, Johor on May 5 and Sarawak from May 18-19.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

BACOLOD CITY: The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has allocated PHP93.906 million in cash aid to hundreds of drought-hit families in three provinces of Western Visayas (Region 6), including Iloilo, Antique and Negros Occidental.

The assistance is being implemented under Project Local Adaptation to Water Access (LAWA) and Breaking Insufficiency through Nutritious Harvest for the Impoverished (BINHI) through the cash-for-training and cash-for-work (CFTW) programs.

As of Thursday, beneficiaries have been identified in 17 areas – Iloilo City and Sara, Ajuy, San Dionisio, Batad and Estancia in Iloilo Province; Barbaza, San Remigio, Sebaste, Sibalom, Tibiao and Valderrama in Antique; and Calatrava, Toboso, Escalante City, Himamaylan City, and San Carlos City in Negros Occidental.

The number of beneficiary-families in each area has not yet been determined pending the completion of validation process.

Project LAWA and BINHI aim to strengthen the adaptive capabilities of poor and vulnerable fam
ilies during severe drought and mitigating the food insecurity and water scarcity caused by El Niño phenomenon under the DSWD’s Risk Resiliency Program.

Some 400 partner-beneficiaries in San Carlos City, Negros Occidental recently attended the three-day cash-for-training in preparation for the activities in the 15-day cash-for-work on the river easement rehabilitation by planting fruit bearing trees.

They will attend an additional two-day cash-for-training for project sustainability.

Each beneficiary that participates in CFTW activities for 10 to 25 days has a corresponding daily wage based on the prevailing regional daily minimum wage rate range of the project area.

DSWD-6 project development officer III Mylene Binondo discussed the agency’s Risk Resiliency Program with San Carlos City Mayor Renato Gustilo during a courtesy call at the City Mayor’s Office on April 23.

“We thank the mayor for the full support of the city government. We hope the partnership between San Carlos and DSWD continues since many
residents benefit from the program,” she added.

Source: Philippines News Agency

KUALA LUMPUR, Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil today presented donations from the Kasih@HAWANA Fund to five former employees of Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM) currently facing health challenges.

They are former Radio Bahagian Melayu announcer Halijah Buang, 74, who suffers from heart disease, high blood pressure and asthma, as well as former TV1 host Khatijah@Suraya Ismail, 74, who has diabetes, high blood pressure and knee problems.

Also, former announcer at Radio Sabah (Religious and Dakwah Section) Radziah Md Isa, 74, who has heart problems and former announcer at Stesen Suara Malaysia-Indonesia, Dewi Mohammad Shaleh, 67, who has diabetes and cholesterol issues.

Another recipient is the former announcer at FM Stereo, Suara Malaysia and Nasional FM Fatimah Mohamed, 85, who is facing knee, joint and kidney problems.

Fahmi presented the donations at the MADANI Muhibbah Aifilfitri 1445H open house, which was organised by the Communications Ministry and the Housing and Local Government Ministry in Putr
ajaya and graced by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

Also present were Malaysian National News Agency (Bernama) chief executive editor Nur-ul Afida Kamaludin, Bernama editor-in-chief Arul Rajoo Durar Raj, and Broadcasting Department director-general Datuk Suhaimi Sulaiman.

The Kasih@HAWANA Fund was established in conjunction with the National Journalists Day (HAWANA) 2023. It aims to assist existing and former media practitioners as well as veteran journalists who need a helping hand.

It is an initiative of the Communications Ministry and implemented through Bernama.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

SOCORRO: The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is looking to set up a voting precinct at the Sitio Kapihan in Barangay Sering here for the May 2025 midterm elections.

‘Pinag-aaralan ng Comelec na bakit hindi mag create ng presinto sa Sitio Kapihan. Kung may higit 2,000 na botante, bakit kakailanganin pa pumunta sa bayan kung pwede naman dalhin ang pagboto dito? (The Comelec is studying, ‘why not create a precinct here in Sitio Kapihan?’ If we have more than 2,000 voters, why do they need to go the town proper when we can bring the voting process here),’ Comelec chairperson George Erwin Garcia said in a presser on Thursday on the sidelines of the poll body’s satellite voter registration activity at the community of the members of the Socorro Bayanihan Services Inc. (SBSI).

Garcia said this move would ensure that the community members would be able to vote without going through the hassle of travelling far.

Asked if their plan contradicts the order of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR
) for the community’s residents to relocate, Garcia said this is not among their concerns.

‘Sa atin, ang kapangyarihan ng Comelec siguraduhin lahat makaboto.Walang iiwanan. Isang boses na di nadinig, isang boses na di nadidinig sa isang demokrasya (As for us, the Comelec’s mandate is for to ensure that all will be able to vote. No one would be left behind. You make one voice unheard, you make the whole democracy unheard),” he said.

On April 8, the DENR canceled its agreement with the SBSI for violating the provisions of the tenurial instrument awarded in June 2004, covering 353 hectares in the Siargao Island Protected Landscape and Seascape (SIPLAS) in Surigao del Norte.

Once implemented, the DENR’s order is expected to result in the relocation and resettlement of around 1,425 households based in Sitio Kapihan.

For his part, SBIS president Johann Lasala acknowledged the efforts of the poll body for bringing the registration activity to their areas.

‘Maganda ang ginawa ng Comelec at dinala dito sa amin pa
ra makapag-register (It’s good that the Comelec brought the registration activity here for us to be able to sign up as voters),’ he said.

The area has more than 5,000 residents, almost half of whom are eligible to vote.

On the other hand, the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) have assured that the area will be safe and secure come the May 2025 polls.

Source: Philippines News Agency