(Second of two parts) As the German federal government continues to drive renewable energy (RE) developments through incentives, subsidies and regulation, several German companies have established technological leadership on the global front in the key areas of wind energy, hydropower, solar energy, geothermal and biomass.

MANILA, Philippines – The country’s gross international reserves (GIR) reached a new record high of $42.3 billion in September as a result of government foreign borrowing and the increase in the price of gold, the central bank reported yesterday.

Labour Behind the Label, a group that campaigns for garment workers, has calculated a wage it says should be used as a minimum for workers in Asia. It says that a single Asian “floor wage” would prevent countries competing at the expense of workers. ‘

Envoy finds few convictions ‘regrettable’ MANILA, Philippines—(UPDATE) The European Union on Thursday said it would give 3.9 million euros (about $5.8 million or P270 million) to the Philippines to help the government stop extra-judicial killings and disappearances of activists.

There are many, many sources and places of exposure to asbestos. Here’s a list:

GENEVA – Once just a simple telecommunications tool, the mobile telephone has in recent years become a driver of economic growth in emerging countries, experts said at one of the industry’s biggest fairs.

MANILA – Philippine courts are not cooperating in the investigation of vigilante killings that have claimed nearly 1,000 lives in the country’s south, Human Rights Watch said.

Zero-waste advocates scored the dumping of 80,000 metric tons of garbage from storm-hit cities even as the Metro Manila Development Authority assures residents of enough suitable sites to prevent a crisis.

THE Supreme Court has ordered the labor arbiter to compute the compensation due some 1,400 cabin crew that Philippine Airlines retrenched in 1998 after the flag carrier was placed under corporate rehabilitation.

Allowing for migrationboth within and between countrieshas the potential to increase peoples freedom and improve the lives of millions around the world, according to the 2009 Human Development Report.

Not only will the Arroyo-declared state of calamity be in force for a full year, even after President Arroyo steps out of Malacañang on June 30, 2010, but also warrantless arrests of businessmen will be the practice of the administration if they are caught resorting to overpricing of goods which have a mandated price ceiling.

THE National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) said the two recent typhoons that hit the country could further dampen economic growth this year. Dennis Arroyo, NEDA-National Planning and Policy Staff director, told reporters that Philippine gross domestic product (GDP) growth may be cut by 0.2 percentage points to between 0.6 percent and 1.6 percent this…

The Supreme Court has affirmed with finality its ruling that found the Lucio Tan-owned Philippine Airlines (PAL) guilty of illegal dismissal. The court’s Special Third Division, in a 31-page resolution written by Associate Justice Consuelo Ynares-Santiago, denied with finality the motion for reconsideration filed by the country’s flag carrier seeking a reversal of its assailed…

Vice President Noli de Castro has approved a three-month moratorium on housing-loan payments for Pag-IBIG Fund members to alleviate the borrowers’ burden from recent flooding. “We are heeding the clamor of Pag-IBIG members to alleviate their debt burden in the aftermath of Typhoon Ondoy by extending a three months’ moratorium on payment of their amortizations,”…

I had a rather long telephone conversation last Monday with Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Peter Favila. He called me up after reading my column “Favila hits the ceiling” which appeared on that day. Favila explained to me where he was coming from when he took a swing at media while briefing President…

MANILA, Philippines – The government’s top housing agency is offering loans to members whose homes were severely damaged during the recent onslaught of tropical storm “Ondoy.”

MANILA, Philippines – Some of the victims displaced by tropical storm “Ondoy” have developed a fear of water, hampering efforts to get them back to their residences, an official of the Philippine National Red Cross (PNRC) said yesterday.

MANILA, Philippines – Administration and opposition congressmen approved last Monday night a measure that provides financial relief to victims of tropical storm “Ondoy” through the suspension for 90 days of payments for government loans.

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines ranked 105th out of 182 countries in the human development index (HDI) that shows the country’s development and growth rate compared with those of other nations.

MANILA, Philippines – Resistance to the government imposition of price ceilings on basic commodities has turned violent with Trade Secretary Peter Favila receiving threats and some of his personnel being harassed by angry traders and merchants.

MANILA, Philippines – American businessmen are now generally more satisfied with the business environment in the Philippines than last year, although major concerns such as corruption continue to weigh on their business plans, results of a survey on business expectations by the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) showed.

Shocking video from the National Labor Committee on one of the hidden costs of globalization: the human toll of “shipbreaking” on workers in Bangladesh.

There is an asbestos referral center at the Lung Center of the Philippines’ Outpatient Department under the supervision of Dr. Dina V. Diaz, head of Pulmonary Medicine. The center handles patients suspected of suffering from asbestos related diseases.

WORLD DAY FOR DECENT WORK TUCP CALLS FOR DECENT WORK, DECENT LIFE For Immediate Release 07 October 2009 TUCP leaders engaged DOLE Secretary Marianito Roque and PEZA Director General Lilia de Lima in separate meetings for a dialogue and hand-over of the World Day for Decent Work’s Call to Action for Decent Work, Decent Life!…

rendered idle and put to waste because of neglect following the transfer of flood control from the public works department to the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA). The idle equipment could have mitigated the deluge brought about by tropical storm Ondoy in Metro Manila.

It has been reported that a woman who never worked with asbestos in her life died from the asbestos cancer, mesothelioma earlier this year. Linda Sinnett died from the cancer in July, and her widower John said that it came as a terrible shock, particularly since his wife had never worked with asbestos.

Brussels, 6 October 2009 (ITUC Online): “While some commentators see green shoots of recovery, the crisis is far from over and the global stimulus packages supporting economic turnaround will not be sufficient to keep joblessness from growing at a steady pace,” said ITUC General Secretary Guy Ryder, commenting on a new ITUC publication The Path…

Researching a recent column, I couldn’t help noting how anomalous the figures in the quarterly Labor Force Survey (LFS) appear to be, as are some of the categories. An example of the latter is that “unpaid family workers”0 are counted as employed. (This is, it should be noted, also the case in other countries.) There…

Speaker Prospero Nograles yesterday hit at militant party-list lawmakers who have been criticizing the government for its alleged slow action to help the victims of Tropical Storm “Ondoy” and Typhoon “Pepeng,” saying they should stop blaming the administration and instead help out in the efforts to provide relief to those affected by the calamity.

The Philippines has again fallen in ranking from the list of a United Nations Human Development Index (UN-HDi). The country fell below most of its Asian counterparts as it ranked 105 among 182 countries in the UN-HDi.