RINA JIMENEZ-DAVID WROTE in her Dec. 2 column (“Giving migrant workers a voice”) that she heard a group of women OFWs complaining, over dzMM, that their repatriation from Dubai were delayed by the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA).

MANILA, Philippines — Recruitment agencies warned the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) against making statements about the expected rise in remittances from overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in countries where the Philippine government has been negotiating for more job opportunities for them.

COPENHAGEN – Environment ministers haggled behind closed doors in their first major get-together of the UN climate summit, as they were warned Sunday of the catastrophic consequences of failure to reach a deal.

LONDON: The world’s equity, commodity and exchange markets bounced back in 2009 after a vertiginous plunge, but analysts warn 2010 may be full of danger, with doubts over the rhythm and vigor of the recovery.

Philippine and Jordanian labor officials will soon sign an agreement that seeks to address issues arising from the employment of overseas Filipino workers in Jordan.

WASHINGTON (AP) – Just in time for Christmas, the fragile economic recovery is showing signs of strengthening: Consumers are spending, companies are rebuilding stockpiles and Chinese exports are mounting a comeback.

MANILA, Philippines – The Congressional Planning and Budget Department (CPBD), the think-tank of the House of Representatives said it is maintaining its revised economic growth forecast for the year despite the weaker-than-expected 0.8-percent economic growth for the third quarter.

MANILA, Philippines – Liberal Party (LP) presidential candidate Sen. Benigno Aquino III’s lead in opinion polls has “significantly dropped” to single-digit levels while Lakas-Kampi-CMD standard-bearer Gilberto Teodoro Jr. surged to a double-digit mark for the first time since entering the race, according to results of the first survey taken after the Dec. 1 deadline for…

CALIFORNIA, United States—The Christmas season is a time for sharing but not for an immigrant elderly couple in California. Having endured more than three decades of abuse from her husband, Rosa finally made a decision this Christmas to leave their conjugal home.

ILOILO CITY—A government job training agency received at least P2.4 billion from 2006-2008, but achieved very little in generating employment, the Commission on Audit (COA) said in a report.

COPENHAGEN – It is now generally agreed that the developed countries will have to make a substantial financial contribution to enable the developing world to deal with climate change. Funds are needed to invest in new low-carbon energy sources, reforestation and protection of rain forests, land-use changes, and adaptation and mitigation. But there is no…

ABU DHABI—When you arrive at this oil-rich nation’s swanky airports, look up at the massive glass skyscrapers and walk into luxury hotels, you won’t be mistaken if you think Filipino hands helped make all this progress possible.

MANILA, Philippines – The air quality in Metro Manila, according to data gathered by the Clean Air Initiative for Asian Cities (CAI-Asia), has improved in terms of the Total Suspended Particulates (TSP) level, a 15-percent reduction from 2004 to 2008. The metropolis is less dirty than the more progressive cities of Shanghai and Jakarta as…

MANILA, Philippines – Albay province takes center stage again in the climate change adaptation initiative, having been recently chosen by an international research group as a model for the study of the impact and mitigating measures against the menace of global warming.

MANILA, Philippines – The soured loans of universal and commercial banks in the country inched up 4.8 percent in October immediately after tropical storm “Ondoy” and typhoon “Pepeng” pummeled major cities and municipalities in the National Capital Region and nearby provinces.

MANILA, Philippines – President Arroyo yesterday lifted martial law in Maguindanao on the recommendation of her security officials.

PILI, Camarines Sur – Senator Loren Legarda yesterday disclosed an on-going review of the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of the Cooperative Code of 2008 (RA 9520) intended to “further help cooperatives in the country provide better services to their members.”

Kabataan party-list Rep. Raymond Palatino is seeking a ban o the use of food containers made of styrofoam in public and private school canteens, saying styrofoam packaging produces dioxins that cause a wide range of illnesses, including male and female reproductive problems, diabetes and hormonal disorders.

MANILA, Philippines – Filipinos had better improve their their English to keep the country’s competitive edge in the global business process outsourcing industry as China is improving its people’s English-speaking skills and could emerge as a key player in the BPO business, a top official said.

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) has issued a circular suspending the accreditation of erring hospitals and clinics facing administrative charges for defrauding the government agency.

MANILA, Philippines – The impact of typhoons “Ondoy” and “Pepeng” doused consumer confidence in the country as revealed by the grim economic outlook in the fourth quarter of the year and the first quarter of next year, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) deputy governor Diwa Guinigundo said.

MANILA, Philippines – The number of HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) cases in the Philippines has continued to increase over the past two years, alarming the Department of Health (DOH).

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates—With the repercussions of Dubai’s worst financial crisis still hanging thick in the air like lost secrets, life for most Filipinos working in this Middle Eastern cosmopolitan enclave goes on, their resilience hanging tough against yet another litmus test.

MANILA, Philippines – The Asian Development Bank (ADB), in a new study on poverty, warned that unless the Philippine economy is able to shift to higher growth trajectory, the country might be “stuck in a poverty trap.”

MANILA, Philippines – The policy making body of the Bangko Sentral ang Pilipinas (BSP) is dangling an incentive for rural banks to merge and consolidate.

The relatively warmer air temperature felt the past few days in Luzon is only temporary, meteorologists of the state-run Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said Sunday.

THE Supreme Court has ordered state-run National Power Corp.’s top officials to explain why they should not be held in contempt for ignoring its order to compensate 5,648 of its employees who were dismissed in 2003.

DATA showing that the profits of listed firms surged by at least 60 percent in the first nine months of the year don’t lend much confidence in near-term prospects. According to the Philippine Stock Exchange, asset sales and cost-cuts were largely responsible for the positive margins.

GreenGrowth_Web

AS the Philippines strives to attain higher growth to cut poverty and increase incomes of Filipinos, an Asian Development Bank (ADB) published study showed that the cycle of poverty will likely continue in the Philippines and prevent the country from attaining its desired economic growth in the future.