Malacanang announces launch of revised Foreign
Aid Transparency Hub
Malacanang on Wednesday announced the launch of
the revised Foreign Aid Transparency Hub (FAiTH) that will allow more countries
and organizations to give aid with more transparency and accountability.
“Today, we launch Version 2.0 of the Foreign Aid
Transparency Hub, with enhancements that allow it to deliver more fully on its
promise of transparency and accountability for aid and assistance given to the
Philippines in the aftermath of Typhoon Yolanda. The improvements that
distinguish FAiTH 2.0 from its initial launch, lie primarily in the fact that
64 countries and 7 multilateral organizations now have access to FAiTH’s
content management system,” Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said in a
press briefing in Malacanang.
He said that by utilizing FAiTH 2.0, “each
embassy or organization possessing a unique account username and password, will
now have the ability to input or update their country or organization’s cash
and non-cash pledges.”
Lacierda said “necessary measures” have been
installed in FAiTH2 “to ensure accuracy and ease of verification.”
“As embassies update their data, each successful
entry will generate a unique transaction ID and an electronic alert sent to the
Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA). Each update must also be officially
communicated to the DFA via Note Verbale,” he said.
“A number of these embassies and organizations
have already updated their data; thus, the figures on this version of FAiTH are
also the most updated figures on aid and assistance,” he added.
Lacierda noted that FAiTH Version 2.0 is founded
on a system that “emphasizes accuracy and our collective responsibility to
ensure that every form of assistance given out of the good will of the global
community achieves its intended goal: to help the survivors of ‘Yolanda’.”
“By so doing, it strengthens partnerships,
fosters trust, and ensures that we will continue our march on the journey to
recovery and resilience together,” he added, inviting members of the press to
visit the FAiTH website.
“These are all part of our commitment to Open
Government Partnership. . . that allows us to upload government data in a form
that is searchable, accessible, and understandable,” he said. PND (rck)
Palace ready to defend constitutionality of
Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement with U.S.
Malacanang is ready to defend the
constitutionality of the recently signed Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement
(EDCA) between the United States and the Philippine governments, a Palace
official said Wednesday.
“If some people choose to avail of judicial
processes to question the agreement’s constitutionality, the government is
prepared to defend the EDCA,” Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda told
reporters in a press briefing.
Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago has criticized
President Benigno S. Aquino III for allowing the signing of the agreement,
saying the Senate and the Executive Branch are supposed to share the power to
make treaties.
Santiago was also quoted by press reports as
saying that the signing of EDCA will strain Philippine-Chinese relations.
According to news reports, former Senator Joker
Arroyo said the Senate should have been consulted before the signing of the
EDCA.
Arroyo further commented that the Philippines
has nothing to gain from the agreement.
“We defer in the opinion with Senator Joker
Arroyo,” Lacierda said, adding that the country stands to gain a lot from the
EDCA.
He said among the benefits is the modernization
of the military hardware of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
“An enhanced feature of the EDCA is the emphasis
on humanitarian assistance on disaster response, which we saw very, very
clearly in the aftermath of Typhoon Yolanda,” explained Lacierda. PND (ag)
Palace welcomes Philippines’ removal from U.S.
Special 301 watch list
Malacañang on Wednesday welcomed the
announcement made by the Office of the United States Trade Representative
(USTR), removing the Philippines from its Special 301 Watch List after
consistently appearing in it for the past 20 years.
The Special 301 Watch List is prepared annually
by the USTR to track “countries that deny adequate and effective protection for
intellectual property rights (IPR) or deny fair and equitable market access for
persons that rely on intellectual property protection.”
In a statement, Presidential Spokesman Edwin
Lacierda said the USTR’s announcement recognizes the recent reforms championed
by the Aquino administration, as a consequence of significant changes in IPR
legislation and regulation.
“This serves as a testament to the government’s
continuing commitment to uphold the rights of professionals and consumers
alike, ensuring that their hard work is recognized and protected by
legislation. We welcome this recognition from the USTR, along with their
promise to maintain a positive engagement with the Philippines,” he said.
Lacierda added that this development “marks a
significant step forward as we harmonize our IPR protection efforts with those
of other nations, never tiring in the task of safeguarding the rights of our
citizens.”
“Rest assured that we will continue to strive in
the same vein, as we reap even more achievements and work toward greater
success,” he said.
The USTR made the announcement on Monday, two
days before the scheduled release date of the Special 301 Watch List on April
30, to coincide with the state visit of US President Barack Obama to the
Philippines on April 28-29.
The USTR, in coming up with the decision, cited
the laudable civil and administrative gains made by Philippine authorities in
IPR enforcement and protection, according to reports.
The Philippines continuously appeared on the
watch list since 1994. It was one of only two countries removed by the USTR
from the list this year, Israel being the other. PND (hdc)
