‘Diskwento Caravan’

The roving “Diskwento Caravan: Balik Eskwela” of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is visiting key cities nationwide this month of May, 2013, in time for the opening of classes on June 3, 2013, to sell school supplies and basic commodities at discount prices. A variety of products, such as school uniforms, children’s shoes and bags, canned goods, processed meat, bread,... 

The international day for biodiversity

The United Nations has designated May 22 as International Day for Biological Diversity (IDB) to increase understanding and awareness of biodiversity issues. It was initially celebrated on December 29, when it was first created by the Second Committee of the UN General Assembly in 1993. In 2000, the UN General Assembly adopted May 22 as IDB, to commemorate the adoption of the text of the... 

Civil registrations, better health services

The United Nations (UN), national governments, and international development agencies at The Global Summit on Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) recently held in Bangkok, Thailand, issued a call for global action to ensure countries have the necessary support to register birth and other important events in people’s lives, stressing that this is essential to develop better... 

Job bridging for technical-vocational graduates

The “Hanapbuhay para sa mga TESDA Specialista” is a job bridging converging program of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) to facilitate the employment of thousands of Filipino technical-vocational (tech-voc) graduates. The program, launched through job fairs on March 11, 2013 in Metro Manila, is a venue... 

Commission on Audit Chosen Food and Agriculture Organization’s External Auditor

The re-appointment of the Philippines’ Commission on Audit (COA) as External Auditor of the United Nations-Food and Agriculture Organization (UN-FAO) is another recognition of COA’s expertise in the field of international audit. It was approved during the 146th Session of FAO’s Finance Committee in Rome, Italy, on April 22-26, 2013. The Philippine Audit body will serve for a period... 

New Saints of Catholic Church

His Holiness, Pope Francis, celebrated his first canonization ceremony for new saints at Vatican in Rome, Italy, on May 12, 2013, when he canonized Antonio Primaldo and his companions, the 813 “Martyrs of Otranto, Italy;” Laura di Santa Caterina da Siena Montoya, of Colombia, founder of the Congregation of the Missionary Sisters of Blessed Virgin Mary Immaculate and St. Catherine... 

Investing in midwives and recognizing their contribution to maternal health

Midwives make the difference in the lives of hundreds of thousands of women around the world. According to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), midwives save the lives of some 300,000 women each year and 10 times as many infants. They are also the key in ensuring universal access to voluntary family planning, and this alone could help prevent 87 million unintended pregnancies as... 

Glimpse of Mindanao through arts

The celebration of the 115th Anniversary of Philippine Independence on June 12, 2013, kicked-off in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, with the mounting of an art exhibit, “Glimpses of Mindanao: Peace in the Land of Promise,” at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Center on May 6-10, 2013. The exhibit showcased 30 paintings of four Mindanao-based artists to depict the way of life, history, traditions,... 

Tourism cooperation in Southeast Asia

The intra-regional tourism program “ASEAN for ASEAN“ is encouraging nationals of the 10 member-states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) ­ Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Brunei, Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam, and the Philippines ­ to visit other ASEAN member-states through travel/tourism fairs, seminars, conferences, and other programs to further... 

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ Financial Learning Campaign for Overseas Filipinos

Dubbed “Paghahanda sa Kinabukasan,” the 6th Financial Learning Campaign (FLC) was recently conducted by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to educate Overseas Filipinos (OFs) on the importance of using remittances to build up savings and directing these into investments in financial products and business ventures. The BSP hopes to help OFs and their beneficiaries achieve financial...