Aquino to address National Transport Conference
in Marikina Monday
President Benigno S. Aquino III will address the
transport leaders and stakeholders who will be participating in the National
Transport Conference at the Marikina Hotel and Convention Center on Monday, May
14.
The President, who will be joined by Energy Secretary
Jose Rene Almendras, is expected to deliver a message that is in line with this
year’s conference theme: “Buy as One Movement.”
This year’s National Transport Conference aims
to encourage transport organizations to purchase and choose a single product
brand in order to avail of volume discounts under a cooperative setup for such
incentives.
These products include spare parts and equipment
as well as fuels and lubricants.
The conference, which will be hosted by 1-United
Transport Koalisyon, will be participated in by the various transport groups
such as the Provincial Bus Operators Association of the Philippines and the
Federation of Jeepney Operators and Drivers Association of the Philippines. (PCOO)
Malacanang calls on Filipinos to keep surroundings
clean to prevent spread of dengue
Malacañang called on all Filipinos anew to do
their share in preventing the spread of the dreaded dengue virus by keeping
their surroundings clean and free from stagnant water, a known breeding source
of mosquitoes that carry the virus.
In a press briefing aired over government-run
radio dzRB Radyo ng Bayan on Sunday, Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail
Valte said Filipinos should be responsible enough to clean their surroundings
all year-round.
She said the spread of the dengue virus is not
confined only during the rainy season but also during the hot summer months.
“Kahit mainit ang panahon na nararamdaman natin
ngayon, dapat patuloy ang ating paghahanda para maiwasan ang dengue. Sana
ipatupad pa rin natin ang ating paglilinis sa ating kapiligiran dahil
nagsisimula naman sa atin yan,” Valte said.
She added that the Department of Health is in
the thick of coordinating its anti-dengue campaign with local health units,
specifically in Zamboanga City, where an outbreak has recently been reported.
“Nakikipagtulungan na po ang ating Department of
Health doon sa local health units diyan para naman po maapula ang pagkalat ng
sinasabi nga po nilang dengue outbreak,” Valte said.
“Hindi lang po kasi ‘pag tag-ulan nagiging
delikado tayo sa dengue. Kahit tag-araw, kahit medyo tag-init ay kailangan
tuloy-tuloy ang ating paghahanda at siguraduhing ang ating kapaligiran ay hindi
pagbabahayan ng mga dengue-carrying mosquitoes,” she added. (PCOO)
Newly appointed Acting Socio-Economic Planning
Secretary and NEDA Director General to 'build on the achievements of Paderanga'
Newly appointed Acting Socio-Economic Planning
Secretary and National Economic Development Authority Director General Dr.
Arsenio Balisacan said that he will continue the achievements and reforms
instituted by his colleague and predecessor, Cayetano Paderanga, Jr.
In an interview, Balisacan, who is Dean and
Professor of the University of the Philippines School of Economics, was quoted
to have said that he would build on what Paderanga had started in his former
post.
“Sec. Paderanga has led in instituting changes
in the planning, investment programming and M&E (monitoring and evaluation)
processes within NEDA and the government. We will build on these reforms as we
focus on reducing poverty and attaining inclusive growth that leaves no one
behind,” said Balisacan.
As Acting Socioeconomic Planning Secretary and
NEDA Director-General, Balisacan will concurrently chair the National
Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB), the Philippine Institute for Development
Studies (PIDS), and the Philippine Center for Economic Development (PCED).
Balisacan will also be the vice-chair of the
NEDA Board, the country's highest development planning and policy coordinating
body chaired by the President, as well as head of several interagency
committees under the NEDA Board.
Prior to his UPSE deanship, Balisacan was
Director-Chief Executive of the Southeast Asian Regional Centre for Graduate
Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) from 2003 to 2009, and
Undersecretary of the Department of Agriculture in 2000, 2001 and 2003.
While serving as Agriculture Undersecretary, he
was the country’s chief negotiator in the Agriculture Negotiations of the World
Trade Organization (WTO) and in various bilateral agriculture negotiations.
Prior to joining the University of the Philippines, he was a research fellow at
the East West Center in Honolulu, and an economist at the World Bank in
Washington, D.C.
Author and co-author of several books on the
Philippine economy, poverty, and rural development, Balisacan has served as
President of various professional organizations, including Philippine Economic
Society, Human Development Network, and Asian Society of Agricultural
Economists.
Balisacan holds a PhD in Economics from the
University of Hawaii, a Master’s degree in Agricultural Economics from UP Los
Baños, and a Bachelor’s degree in Agriculture (magna cum laude) from the
Mariano Marcos State University. (PCOO)
