Category: General

BUTUAN CITY: At least 8,901 vacancies will be offered to jobseekers as the Department of Labor and Employment in the Caraga Region (DOLE-13) will spearhead different job fairs in the area to celebrate the 122nd Labor Day on May 1.

Data provided by DOLE-13 on Wednesday showed that 4,374 of the vacancies are for local jobs, while the 4,527 are overseas jobs.

‘There will be simultaneous jobs fair activities in different sites in Agusan del Norte, Agusan del Sur, Surigao del Norte, Surigao del Sur, and Dinagat Islands,’ DOLE-13 said.

Jobseekers from Agusan del Norte may proceed to Almont Inland Resort in Butuan City for the jobs fair; the Naligayan Grounds at the Provincial Capitol in Patin-ay, Prosperidad, Agusan del Sur; the Surigao City Cultural Center for Surigao del Norte; the Tandag City gymnasium for Surigao del Sur; and the Sta. Cruz covered court in San Jose town for Dinagat Islands.

In addition to the jobs fair, payout activities for the beneficiaries of the Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvanta
ged/Displaced Workers (TUPAD) will also be held in various parts of the region.

During the activity, 27,732 beneficiaries will receive PHP123.2 million worth of TUPAD payments, while 873 beneficiaries of the DOLE Integrated Livelihood Program will also be awarded PHP21.1 million worth of livelihood packages.

Also, some 421 beneficiaries of the government internship program will receive their salaries, amounting to more than PHP1.7 million.

Moreover, some 131 sellers from 74 farmers’ organizations will join the celebration through the Kadiwa ng Pangulo program, where displays of agricultural products will be sold to the public. (

Source: Philippines News Agency

MANILA: Japanese Ambassador Endo Kazuya and Department of Tourism (DOT) Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco pledged to collaborate closely to advance the tourism relations between Japan and the Philippines.

During his courtesy call on Frasco on Tuesday, Endo expressed that the two countries ‘would work closely together to further deepen bilateral relations in a wide range of areas.’

‘Ambassador Endo highlighted joint efforts in tourism promotion to people-to-people exchanges between the two countries,’ the Japanese embassy said in a news release on Wednesday.

Frasco conveyed her appreciation for the support of the Japanese government in tourism-related areas.

During Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s first official visit to the Philippines on Nov. 3-4, 2023, the DOT and the Japanese government’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism (MLITT) signed a landmark agreement that is seen to expand opportunities for tourism development between the two countries.

Frasco and MLITT Minister Te
tsuo Saito signed a memorandum of cooperation for tourism, the first stand-alone cooperation agreement between the two nations, in the presence of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. and Kishida in Malacañan Palace.

Under the cooperation, both countries agreed to strengthen and further develop Philippines-Japan ties in the field of tourism by increasing tourist arrivals for both countries from world tourist-generating markets; encouraging more tourists to visit various tourist destinations and attractions, including rural areas in each other’s country; encouraging mutual visits and traffic of high-value-added travelers to increase tourism consumption; encouraging healthy growth of tourism industry of Philippines and Japan, especially on the aspects of education, culture, gastronomy, sustainable tourism, and adventure.

Japan is considered as one of the country’s top source of visitors ranking third, with nearly a quarter of a million arrivals into the Philippines as of November last year.

The Philippines and
Japan also agreed to cooperate in terms of ensuring safety among tourists while they are staying in their respective countries.

o also paid a courtesy call on Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Alfredo Pascual, wherein they discussed the current economic partnership between Japan and the Philippines.

The ambassador lauded the Marcos administration’s efforts to attract more foreign investments, noting these programs have contributed to the growth of Japanese businesses in the Philippines.

He conveyed his eagerness to further deepen the nations’ strategic and economic partnership, aiming for tangible results following the recent Japan-USA-Philippines Trilateral Summit Meeting and Commerce and Industry Ministerial meeting.

He also reaffirmed Japan’s commitment as the top trading partner and investor of the Philippines.

Pascual assured that foreign business will be taken care of in the Philippines by creating a level-playing field and more opportunities for market access.

‘The meeting was a si
gnificant step towards forging stronger ties and enhancing economic cooperation between the two nations. Both the Ambassador and the Trade Secretary expressed mutual commitment to fostering a thriving partnership that will benefit their economies and people,’ stated in a separate news release of the Japanese embassy. (PNA)

The Philippines and Japan formally established diplomatic relations in July 1956.

Source: Philippines News Agency

SAN MANUEL: Pangasinan – An executive of the San Roque Power Corporation (SRPC) on Wednesday assured continuous supply of electricity to the grid and to the irrigation system amid the ongoing El Niño phenomenon.

SRPC Vice President for Corporate Social Responsobility Tommy Valdez, in an interview, said the power plant is currently providing the 115 megawatt minimum requirement to the grid while it is being run at mass flow rate.

“Tapos na (ang) cropping season (the cropping season is over) and irrigation was not sacrificed,” he said.

Valdez said the hydro power plant was able to irrigate 36,000 to 40,000 hectares of land in the last dry cropping season amid the dry spell.

“More than enough for irrigation requirements,” he said.

He said the water level of the dam’s reservoir is currently at 230.45 meters above sea level (masl), almost at its critical level of 225 masl.

The plant may even reach the critical level and maintenance shutdown may be done on May 6, earlier than the set schedule in the third wee
k of next month, but Valdez assured power consumers that this is a normal activity for the plant during hot season when energy from coal-fired power plants are more relied upon.

“We are mandated to have maintenance shut down for one week or two. But our re-regulating pond will run for river ecology,” he said.

Valdez said they are hoping for rainwaters in the coming months to elevate the level of the water reservoir in time for the wet cropping season of the farmers.

Source: Philippines News Agency

Hanoi: Vietnam needs to complete a legal framework to better manage virtual assets (VAs) as well as virtual asset service providers (VASPs), experts said at an annual forum on Blockchain and AI held by the Vietnam Blockchain Association in Hanoi on April 24.

Some 20% of the Vietnamese population own crypto assets which are developed by blockchain technology, they said, stressing without strict management and failure to comply with global taxing principles, VA transactions will pose great challenges for the country in the coming time.

As of the end of December 2023, 32 countries regulated crypto-assets in their jurisdictions, including ten nations of the G20 group officially issuing regulations on VA and VASP, the Alantic Council’s surveys on anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) and protection of users and the VASPs revealed.

Standing Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Blockchain Association Phan Duc Trung said 18 related documents have been issued in Vietnam so far. The notabl
e one being the national action plan to carry out the Government’s commitment to preventing money laundering and financing of terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction so as to lift Vietnam out of the Financial Action Tasks Force’s list of Jurisdictions under Increased Monitoring (grey list).

He said the plan has focused on the AML/CFT and VASP standard but neglected taxation of VA and protection of users. Therefore, a complete legal framework has not been shaped up yet.

The association hoped to collect opinions from the community and enterprises as well as have dialogue with state management agencies to develop a complete framework before May 2025.

At the event, the association announced the second Switch Up Accelerator, helping startups to call for funds, and highlighted an overview of the blockchain industry in Vietnam and the globe.

The Academy of Blockchain and AI Innovation was debuted on the occasion, aimed at providing blockchain and AI training strategies for 1 million people
by 2030, including 100,000 students in 30 universities across the nation./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

ILOILO CITY: Fish farmers, especially those growing brackish and marine species, should seize the opportunity to grow milkfish production amid the ongoing effects of the El Niño phenomenon.

‘The heat exacerbated by the phenomenon provides an advantage for breeders, as the relatively high water temperatures stimulate milkfish metabolism, leading to spawning and ample egg and larvae production,’ Dan Baliao, chief of the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center/Aquaculture Department (SEAFDEC/AQD), said in a press statement on Wednesday.

During the cold months between November and February, they have to invest in industrial water heaters to keep the breeders active at a water temperature between 29°C and 30°C and ensure a continuous supply of eggs for hatcheries, he added.

Further, the lack of rain also encourages better pond preparation for the growth of natural food sources, such as ‘lab-lab,’ a naturally occurring mat of benthic algae that thrives in brackish water fishponds but dissipates when exposed
to rain.

‘Fishpond operators can save on supplemental feeding if they take advantage of good ‘lab-lab’ growth during dry spells because ‘lab-lab’ itself is a robust source of fish nutrition,’ he added.

The SEAFDEC/AQD, however, has recommended good water management during the tidal cycle and maintaining desirable pond water levels and stocking densities because extreme heat followed by a sudden rainfall can cause fish kills.

‘Farmers ought to stock only the recommended density of 2,500 to 3,000 milkfish fingerlings per hectare. Stocking beyond what is recommended would necessitate additional investment in artificial feeds and life support systems,’ he added.

He also urged farmers to prepare their ponds, including applying organic fertilizers and liming for the rainy season.

Meanwhile, the SEAFDEC has in its facility in Tigbauan 17 juvenile wild mackerel tuna, also known as ‘kawakawa’ or ‘tulingan,’ taken from a fish trap in the municipality of Barbaza in Antique last month.

‘The kawakawa juveniles will
be kept in our hatchery where we hope they reach maturity and lay eggs. It will be another breakthrough for us if the eggs hatch into the first captive-bred tuna in the Philippines,’ Baliao said.

The research center has been studying their reproductive biology since 2020 as part of a project funded by the Japanese government.

Source: Philippines News Agency

BAGUIO CITY: The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) on Wednesday said the region has a 96.7 percent employment rate, with 1.3 million people in the labor force.

Citing January 2024 data, Aldrin Bahit, regional statistical specialist at Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), in a press conference, said 64.43 percent of the region’s people are part of the labor force.

‘This places the unemployment rate in our region at 3.3 percent, lower than the national rate at 4.5 percent,’ he said.

The services sector has surpassed agriculture as the top job generator, while the other job generator is the industry sector, he added.

Under the services sector, the top generators are the business process outsourcing (BPO), construction, and retail and wholesale, Emerito Narag, Department of Labor and Employment-Cordillera Administrative Region (DOLE-CAR) assistant regional director, said.

‘Tumataas na rin ang tourism at marami na ang nakaka recover sa pandemic (tourism
is increasing, and more establishments are recovering from the pandemic),’ he said.

Meanwhile, Narag said they barely receive labor-related complaints, and these are settled at the second or third conference between the parties.

‘We do not wait for the 30 days to finish the problem,’ he said.

Narag said DOLE continues to conduct ‘unannounced and unscheduled inspections in workplaces to see the condition of the workers and the employers’ compliance to the standards.’

He said they are also focusing on the booming construction industry which poses high risk to the safety of workers.

Safety violations have a fine of PHP40,000 while absence of personal protective equipment has a penalty of PHP20,000, which should be paid immediately, otherwise the fine increases daily.

‘We cannot compromise health and safety,’ Narag added.

Source: Philippines News Agency

IPOH, The remains of the ten people perished in the crash of two Royal Malaysian Navy (TLDM) helicopters at its Lumut base yesterday will be accorded military honours at the 23rd Royal Malay Regiment (RAMD) Camp here once the post-mortem process is completed.

It is understood that the bodies will be handed over to the families for burial after the post-mortem.

The 10 TLDM crew members killed in the crash include Squadron 502 commanding officer Commander Muhamad Amir Mohamad; Lieutenant T Sivasutan (Squadron 502 pilot) and Warrant Officer II Mohd Shahrizan Mohd Termizi (Squadron 502 Air Quartermaster).

Others killed were Squadron 503 Commanding Officer Commander Muhammad Firdaus Ramli; Lt Commander Wan Rezaudeen Kamal Zainal Abidin; Squadron 503 Air Tactical Officer, Lt Commander Mohammad Amirulfaris Mohd Marzukhi; and Squadron 503 Air Quartermaster Warrant Officer II Muhammad Faisol Tamadun.

The three women killed in the collision were Able Seaman I Joanna Felicia Rohna from the TLDM Air Base, Warrant Of
ficer II Norfarahimi Saedy (West Armada Supply Depot) as well as Petty Officer Nor Rahiza Anuar (West Armada Supply Depot).

So far, the post-mortem is still ongoing and expected to be completed around 3 pm.

Yesterday, the bodies were taken to the Forensic Department of the Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital here for post-mortem.

In the 9.32 am incident, two TLDM helicopters crashed in Lumut while conducting a third rehearsal for a flypast in conjunction with the TLDM Fleet Open Day, scheduled to be held this Saturday.