Monthly Archives: August 2021

by Louise Maureen Simeon (The Philippine Star), 16 Aug 2021 MANILA, Philippines — The government should move to include informal workers hard hit by the pandemic in its efforts to recover from the health crisis, a unit of the Asian Development Bank said.

by Danessa Rivera (The Philippine Star), 16 Aug 2021 MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines needs to come out with an energy transition plan tailored to its specific requirements as a developing nation and as an economy recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, officials said.

by Elijah Felice Rosales (The Philippine Star), 16 Aug 2021 MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Finance (DOF) expects the third quarter economic performance to take a hit from the revert to lockdown in select areas.

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By: Julie M. Aurelio, 15 Aug 2021 MANILA, Philippines — “Insufficient internal control measures” in granting aid to workers affected by the pandemic have led to excessive payments, denied claims, and unclaimed cash aid in money remittance centers.

by Solita Collas-Monsod, 14 Aug 2021 Is the 11.8 percent growth of GDP in the second quarter of 2021 an indication that the Duterte administration has managed the COVID-19 situation really well, and has achieved the correct balance between lives and livelihood? Because that’s what Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Chua would have us believe. The…

By Julie M. Aurelio, 14 Aug 2021 The Department of Health (DOH) allegedly failed to pay mandated allowances and other benefits to thousands of health-care workers, including those who had fallen ill with COVID-19 or had died working in the front line during the pandemic, according to a minority lawmaker.In House Resolution No. 2121 she…

By Roy Stephen C. Canivel, 14 Aug 2021 The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) objected to a suggestion of the Department of Health (DOH) to impose a five-week lockdown in a bid to drastically reduce the number of active COVID-19 cases.

By Christine O. Avendano, 14 Aug 2021 Among the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), the Philippines’ work force fared poorest in 2020, suffering the “largest working-hour losses’’ caused in part by lockdowns imposed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

By Robert Siy, 14 Aug 2021 THE Pasig River Expressway, also known as Parex, is a proposed 19.37-kilometer six-lane elevated expressway running the length of the Pasig River with an estimated cost of P81.5 billion. The project proponent is the San Miguel Corp. It is still under evaluation by the Tollways Regulatory Board. Here are…

by Robertzon Ramirez (The Philippine Star), 14 Aug 2021 MANILA, Philippines — Four nuns from a Carmelite convent in La Paz District in Iloilo City have died of COVID-19.

by Louise Maureen Simeon (The Philippine Star), 14 Aug 2021 Philippine job displacement worst in ASEAN MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines should work doubletime in bringing back jobs to avoid long-term scars from the pandemic, especially as the country recorded the largest working-hour losses in Southeast Asia.

by Richmond Mercurio (The Philippine Star), 14 Aug 2021 MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Transportation (DOTr) has ordered an investigation after 28 crewmembers of roll-on roll-off vessel MV Saint Anthony de Padua tested positive for COVID-19.

by Ghio Ong (The Philippine Star), 14 Aug 2021 MANILA, Philippines — There seems to be an unequal distribution of COVID-19 vaccines for some sectors in Makati, Mayor Abby Binay said yesterday.

by Sheila Crisostomo (The Philippine Star), 14 Aug 2021 MANILA, Philippines — A total of 735 individuals inoculated against COVID-19 contracted the virus, of whom 65 died, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reported yesterday.

by Lawrence Agcaoili (The Philippine Star), 13 Aug 2021 MANILA, Philippines — Interest rates remained at record lows as the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) continued to maintain an accommodative monetary policy stance until the economy fully recovers from the pandemic-induced recession.

by Ramon Royandoyan (Philstar.com) – 12 Aug 2021 MANILA, Philippines – The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas maintained its historic-low policy rate, keeping monetary support to the economy amid the coronavirus onslaught.

(The Philippine Star), 12 Aug 2021 MANILA, Philippines — Filipinos will face difficulty seeking work until 2022 despite the gains made in recovering jobs lost last year, forcing the Department of Finance (DOF) to push for the distribution of cash aid to the poorest families.

by Louise Maureen Simeon (The Philippine Star), 12 Aug 2021 MANILA, Philippines — Consumption will remain subdued for the rest of 2021 as mobility curbs affect spending and drag expectations for a strong economic growth for the year, an international think tank said.

by Lawrence Agcaoili (The Philippine Star), 2 Aug 2021 MANILA, Philippines — Global financial institutions were not impressed by the strong rebound in the country’s economic output in the second quarter, noting that downside risks persist that could hinder a further recovery.

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(Agence France-Presse), 11 Aug 2021 GENEVA, Switzerland — The World Health Organization on Tuesday urged the 20 leaders with the power to overturn the “disgraceful” global imbalance in access to Covid-19 vaccines to reverse the tide before October.

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by Manuel L. Quezon III, 11 Aug 2021 When Chavit Singson signed on to the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC), it seemed to me the way was being paved for that party to become Manny Pacquiao’s new political home. After all, the man who calls the shots, Ramon Ang, had said Pacman is a strong contender…

by Pia Lee-Brago (The Philippine Star), 11 Aug 2021 MANILA, Philippines — Hong Kong will not recognize COVID-19 vaccination cards issued by local government units in the Philippines, Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. said yesterday. “Our vaccination cards are not accepted in Hong Kong because they are not connected to a single source. Poor…

by Kristine Joy Patag (Philstar.com), 11 Aug 2021 MANILA, Philippines (Updated 6:27 p.m.) — The Supreme Court’s highly anticipated ruling on challenges against the executive branch’s withdrawal from the International Criminal Court gave President Rodrigo Duterte what “he wanted” and added another victory to his so far “spotless” record at the high court, a law…

by Christian Deiparine (Philstar.com), 11 Aug 2021 MANILA, Philippines — Heavy numbers are ahead in this story. And for the millions affected by the coronavirus crisis in the Philippines, they may be disheartening. The Commission on Audit has released its report on the Department of Health’s COVID-19 spending last year. The audit report looked into…

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by Ramon Royandoyan (Philstar.com), 10 Aug 2021 MANILA, Philippines – Foreign direct investments slumped in May amid growing investor unease over the spread of highly contagious coronavirus variants, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas reported Tuesday.