Palace dares ‘presidentiables’ to lay down governance platform
In a press briefing, Deputy Spokesperson Lorelie Fajardo said the administration is eager to showcase the achievements of Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. and what his plans are for the country. Teodoro is the standard bearer of the ruling administration coalition party Lakas-Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino-Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas-Kampi-CMD).
Fajardo added Teodoro’s achievements and governance platform are superior to that of opposition rival and Liberal Party’s standard bearer Senator Benigno Aquino III.
Fajardo stressed the economic accomplishments of the Arroyo administration and the favorable reviews of international financial institutions cannot be invented because they are based on hard data and statistics.
It only shows, she said, that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and her Cabinet are working very hard to generate more jobs for Filipinos and to improve the country’s economy.
These government programs that benefit the poor and the marginalized, she added, will be continued by Teodoro if he is elected as president.
Despite the criticisms of the opposition, the Philippine economy under President Arroyo has grown for 34 consecutive quarters and is one of the few in
10 Saudi firms eye RP as food production hub in the
AL-KHOBAR,
Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap, who accompanied President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in her two-day visit to this
Yap said the 10 companies formed the Far East Agricultural Co. (FEAC) as their investment platform for agri-business projects in the
“We are determined to invest in the
“We are especially interested in
According to Yap, FEAC representatives will visit the
The Saudi Arabian firms preferred the
“Culturally, the Saudi’s are used to us. We have more than a million Filipinos here so they’re not alien to our culture, and definitely we are not alien to theirs,”
“They are also very much aware that we are an agricultural country. And with a coastline longer than that of the
PGMA arrives in Jeddah for a three-day official visit
JEDDAH,
The President is expected to take up the welfare of the more than one million overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in
She will also discuss economic development and the possibility of ending the conflict in Mindanao with
The Chief Executive flew in from Dammam upon the invitation of King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, on the last leg of her three-nation swing that took her to
She was accompanied by a lean delegation composed of Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo, Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap, Agrarian Reform Secretary Nasser Pangandaman, Labor and Employment Secretary Marianito Roque, Philippine Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Antonio Villamor, and Press Secretary Cerge Remonde.
Shortly after her arrival at the airport, the President was immediately whisked to the
During her visit, the President will meet with leading business investors such as Sheikh Mohammed Abdulqader Al Fadel, chairman of the Al Fadel Group and Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Bin Marie Mahfouz, Group chairman and vice chairman of the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce; and Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah Sharbatly, chairman of the Sharbatly Group.
The President will also spend some time with members of the Filipino community whose remittances help keep the country afloat in the midst of the global financial crisis.
Before departing for
KAUST, which is located 80 kilometers north of
Duque addresses WHO Regional Committee as Outgoing Chairperson; WHO pledges to make (A) H1N1 Vaccines available for poor & vulnerable population
Hong Kong - Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III addressed the Western Pacific Regional Office during the Opening Ceremonies of the 60th Session of the World Health Organization Regional Committee for the Western Pacific as the Retiring Chairperson of the 59th RCM which was co-hosted by the Philippine Department of Health in
The 60th session formally opened on Monday with WHO Director General Dr. Margaret Chan and newly elected Regional Director Dr. Shin Young-Soo providing words of inspiration, guidance and leadership to the 37 member states of the Western Pacific Region, in light of unprecedented global events which have far reaching implications on health.
In his address, Duque thanked and lauded the government of
The 60th Session is set to engage the 37 member states of the Western Pacific Region in a crucial & meaningful dialogue on key health and non-health issues with impact on health such as the ongoing spread of the H1N1 pandemic, the global economic crisis and climate change.
Meanwhile, WHO Director-General Margaret Chan pledged the commitment of WHO to make sure that developing countries are not left empty-handed in dealing with the A (H1N1) pandemic. “A virus that causes manageable disruption in wealthy countries is very likely to cause devastation elsewhere,“ she warned.
Thus, WHO will make sure that there will be equitable distribution of pandemic vaccines once they become available. Presently, WHO projects that it will be able to obtain donations and funding for procurement of at least 300 million doses of vaccine against the A (H1N1) virus which will be enough to cover 15% of the population of the developing world.
WHO Regional Director Dr. Shin Young Soo during his talk with the ministers of health further strengthened WHO’s support by strengthening coordination and collaboration with the member states of the Western Pacific Region in implementing the revised IHR 2005 and the Asia Pacific Strategy for Emerging Diseases (APSED).
Asked on the policy of the Philippine government on distributing the vaccines, Secretary Duque said, ”We will give the highest priority to vulnerable groups such as frontline health workers, pregnant women, people with co-morbid conditions as well as the very young and the very old with immunocompromised health status. We will discuss this in the Task Force --- our vaccination strategy --- beginning next week,” Duque said.
Duque also revealed that at present the DOH has already placed an order worth Php 100 million of pandemic vaccines that will be enough to immunize health workers. Duque hopes to augment the supply of vaccines through donations coming from WHO and wealthy countries such as the
During the Meeting, chief representatives of member states are also expected to discuss progress on the implementation of several key Regional Action Plans such as the Asia Pacific Strategy for Emerging Diseases and the International Health Regulations, the Regional Action Plan for the Tobacco Free Initiative, the Regional Action Plan for Malaria Control & Elimination and the Asia Pacific Strategy for Strengthening Health Laboratory Services.
The participants of the WHO Regional Committee Meeting will also give updates on major issues which bear significance in the Region such as malaria, TB, HIV/AIDS including STIs, vaccine preventable diseases, noncommunicable diseases and other emerging diseases.
The 60th session of the WHO Regional Committee Meeting for the Western Pacific officially opened on Monday, September 20 and will end this Friday, September 25. Other participants include health-related non-government organizations (NGOs), development and aid partners and other representatives and officials of the WHO Western Pacific member states.
