MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine government continued to investigate and prosecute only a limited number of reported human rights abuses, and concerns about impunity persisted, according to the latest annual US Department of State human rights country report.

COUNTRIES must act decisively to help nurture the global economy’s fragile recovery, finance ministers and central bankers said at the conclusion of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank (IMF-WB) spring meetings.

WASHINGTON — Global finance officials on Saturday endorsed a new World Bank goal to end extreme global poverty by 2030 and emphasized that its focus should be on ensuring that the poorest benefit from strong growth and rising prosperity in developing nations.

To ensure that the country’s rising economy is sustainable and inclusive, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) over the weekend said that the government is updating the Philippine Development Plan: 2011-2016 (PDP).

WASHINGTON—World finance leaders issued a somber assessment on Saturday of the global economy, saying the recovery remains uneven with growth and jobs in short supply.

THE GOVERNMENT met its mining investment target last year but the result was down a quarter from 2011 due to a halt in the issuance of new permits.

MINING investment inflows in 2013 may reach $1 billion as earlier predicted in a fitting follow-up to last year’s performance that saw actual mining investments in priority mining projects in various stages of development reaching $791.69 million, Director Leo Jasareno of the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources…

The controversial party-list cases have been remanded by the Supreme Court to the Commission on Elections for review. What the Comelec is required to do is to decide two related questions: (1) Which organizations may participate in the party-list system? (2) Who are qualified to represent the party-list organizations?

MANILA, Philippines – The World Bank identified the Philippines as a world leader in gender equality, particularly in the fields of legislation, management and government.

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – People who produce food to feed the nation—those who work in the agriculture sector—are among the lowest paid in the entire Philippines.

THE Philippine economy will continue to do better than the Asia-Pacific average although it will likely slow to 6.2 percent in 2013 due to external factors, according to the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (Escap).

The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) is optimistic that the negative growth of the Philippine merchandise exports will not dampen the country’s economy.

MANILA — The International Monetary Fund (IMF), a recipient of a $1-billion loan from the Philippines, kept its projection for the country’s growth amid risks the country faces.

CEBU, Philippines – Health officials said the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) cases in the cities of Cebu, Mandaue and Lapu-Lapu have already reached an “epidemic” proportion.

The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines is one of the preferred groups to fill up the 58 partylist seats in the House of Representatives in the May 13 elections, based on the recent survey conducted by the Social Weather Stations, the group said in a press release.

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MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) advised yesterday Filipinos who have status problems in Saudi Arabia to legalize their stay to avoid punishment from Saudi authorities.

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PEP TALK: The main function of the Commission on Elections is to manage Philippine polls so they will be fair, clean and orderly.

MANILA, Philippines – Re-electionist Sen. Francis Escudero yesterday lashed out at the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) and the Department of Energy (DOE) for granting excessive perks to their personnel.

MANILA, Philippines – Filipinos abroad were urged to go out and vote as Hong Kong reported the highest voter turnout at more than 2,500 on the second day of overseas absentee voting (OAV) yesterday.

MANILA, Philippines – Some 150 government offices failed a test for red tape conducted by the Civil Service Commission (CSC) last year. Among the offices that flunked in the Report Card Survey (RCS) published in The STAR yesterday were the Government Service Insurance System (27 branches), Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (Butuan City branch),…

MANILA, Philippines – Talk show host Kris Aquino emerged as the country’s top individual taxpayer in 2011, outdoing the big names in the local corporate world, according to data released by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) yesterday.

Did you know that April 7 was World Health Day (to celebrate the founding of the World Health Organization in 1948)? Frankly, I was too sick because of the oppressive heat to bother. I wasn’t really feeling healthy on World Health Day.

To sustain the upward momentum of the country’s economy, the World Bank has urged the Philippines to increase its infrastructure spending.

THE WORLD BANK yesterday maintained its 2013 Philippine growth forecast of 6.2% even as it trimmed projections for the East Asia and the Pacific region, noting continuing risks tied to global weaknesses and also the possibility of overheating.

The Philippines will receive €3.5 million (roughly P189 million) in grants from the European Union (EU) in support of a cleaner, more energy-efficient industrial production.

The Philippines experiencing an asset bubble might be remote now but it is possible that it eventually would, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said on Tuesday.

The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines said in a press release yesterday that it welcomes the move by the Social Security System to change its guidelines on educational assistance program.

Growth in remittances slows to 5.99% REMITTANCE GROWTH remained healthy in February despite a seasonal slump, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported yesterday, as demand for Filipino workers remained strong.