SP AgNor to hold Youth Forum
By Jennifer P. Gaitano
BUTUAN CITY, Feb. 9 (PIA) – The 16th Sangguniang
Panlalawigan of Agusan del Norte through the Committee on Youth, Sports
Development and Drug Abuse Prevention, in coordination with the National Youth
Commission (NYC) will hold a Youth Forum on February 10, 2015 at the Provincial
Training Center, Capitol Compound, this city.
According to Elizabeth Marie Calo, provincial
board member and chairperson of said committee, the Youth Forum will be
participated by the all school student leaders province-wide with Commissioner
Earl Saavedra, NYC Mindanao representative as the guest speaker.
“The Youth Forum aims to discuss the following: 1)
The proposed amendment on some vital provisions of the Sangguniang Kabataan law
and to hear issues/concerns confronting the youth sector; 2) The proposed
creation of Provincial Youth Council under the Proposed Provincial Ordinance
No. 0-174-2015, entitled 'The Agusan del Norte Youth Welfare, Development and
Protection Code;' and 3) The drafting of the Legislative Agenda for the youth
of Agusan del Norte,” disclosed Calo. (JPG/PIA-Caraga)
CHR-Caraga, UNHCR to hold IDP Protection &
Data Gathering training
By Jennifer P. Gaitano
BUTUAN CITY, Feb. 9 (PIA) – The Commission on Human
Rights (CHR), in partnership with United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
(UNHCR) is organizing the two-day Training on IDP Protection and Data Gathering
on February 17-18, 2015 at Dotties Place Hotel, this city.
“We continually give high regards for the
protection and welfare of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) caused by
internal conflict and natural disasters in the region. The CHR and UNHCR wanted
to develop a database on such incidents,” bared Atty. Marylin Pintor, regional
human rights director.
Pintor further disclosed that on the gaps that is
commonly encountered in this kind of endeavor is the gathering of data with
regards to the plight of the IDPs.
“Some important data are sometimes left out or
unavailable. There are also unreported cases of displacement happening in some
areas of the Caraga region due to non-established links and lack of capacity in
data gathering and processing,” added Pintor.
IDPs are the people who are forced to flee their
home but who remain within their country’s borders. (JPG/PIA-Caraga)
Butuan City govt completes P292M infra projects in
2014
By Ma. Lourdes P. Apego
BUTUAN CITY, Feb. 9 (PIA) - The city government of
Butuan has completed a total of P292,740,930.38 worth of infrastructure
projects in 2014.
According to the City Engineer's Office, the
construction of 15 units of government buildings obtained the biggest share in
the expenditure in the amount of P115,011,835.11 where the largest percentage
went to the construction of the SP session hall and main building (Orig. and
Nego.) in the amount of P82,745,703.17.
This is followed by the construction of eight
sections of drainage system/flood control which totaled P106,406,578.32, where
almost one hundred million pesos or P97,723,917.67 was spent for the three
section Butuan City Flood Control project.
The concreting of a total of 3,097.00 linear
meters of road obtained the third biggest appropriation among the completed
projects in the amount of
P39,174,748.18.
The city government also spent almost ten million
pesos or P9,987,772.73 for the closure of dump site, and more than five million
pesos each for the construction of four sections of box culvert and nineteen
units of school buildings.
It also spent almost five million pesos or
P4,730.315.00 for the construction of spring development and installation of
level II water in eight areas, more than two million pesos each for the
construction of a sewerage treatment facility and slope stabilization along
Amparo-Bitan-agan and more than one million pesos each for the construction of
two sections footbridge and replacement of one section of abutment at FVR steel
bridge.
Meanwhile, the city government has a total of
P336,604,758.00 worth of ongoing projects.
This includes the construction of six units of
government buildings worth P312,864,547.63 where a total of P252,939,664.26 is appropriated for the
construction of the poly sports complex and almost fifty million or
P49,792.227.73 for the construction of
the South market.
The concreting of roads worth P23,220,211.13 is
the third biggest spender in the ongoing projects.
City Engineer Lorden G. Vismanos clarified that
some projects were completed with funding from the national government such as
the ten million peso evacuation center (First floor) which was funded by the
Department of Social Welfare and Development
(DSWD) and the Butuan City Drainage System which was partly funded by
the local government support fund (LGSF) of the Department of Interior and Local
Government (DILG) in the amount of sixty million pesos, Butuan City having been
awarded a Seal of Good Housekeeping in 2012.
The summary of completed and on going projects
totaled P629,345,689.14, the City Engineer's Office reported. (Radyo ng Bayan
Butuan/PIA-Agusan del Norte)
DepEd Butuan to conduct literacy mapping
By Luzmarie Escobal Jandug
BUTUAN CITY, Feb. 9 (PIA) – The Department of
Education (DepEd) Butuan City division - Alternative Learning System (ALS) will
continue to conduct a literacy mapping to the different barangays of the city
starting February 11 up to 15.
According city schools division superintendent
(SDS) Josita B. Carmen, the literacy mapping aims to get the desired data
needed by the Central Office.
Also, according to Carmen, the literacy mapping is
also aimed to get the real data of 15 to 30 years old out of school youth (OSY)
with their corresponding needs in the continuing education for proper placement
with other agencies concerned.
Prior to the conduct of the mapping is an
orientation on February 9 to be participated by the district ALS coordinators,
mobile teachers, abot-alam teachers and abot-alam literacy volunteers, said SDS
Carmen.
SDS Carmen also encouraged punong barangays,
kagawad chairman in education, purok officials to support and facilitate the
conduct of the literacy mapping in their respective barangays/puroks. (DepEd
Butuan City Division/PIA-Agusan del Norte)
DepEd to hold ‘Bonifacio, ang Unang Pangulo'
national essay writing contest
By Luzmarie Escobal Jandug
BUTUAN CITY, Feb. 9 (PIA) – The Department of
Education (DepEd) will conduct an essay writing contest dubbed as “Bonifacio,
Ang Unang Pangulo – National Essay Writing Contest” with the theme, “Sino si
Andres Bonifacio at bakit mahalaga na makilala siya ng kasalukuyang
henerasyon?”
According to Butuan City Schools Division
Superintendent (SDS) Josita B. Carmen, the national essay writing contest aims
to enlighten the minds and hearts of the youth on the teaching on the life,
values, principles of one of the country’s greatest heroes and father of the
Katipunan, Gat Andres Bonifacio.
Participants to the contest must be Grade 9 (3rd
year) and 4th year high school students from both public and private schools.
SDS Carmen also directed that each secondary
school shall conduct a school-based competition among the participants
scheduled on March 3, 2015. The winner from each school shall compete in the
division elimination on March 6.
The Champion in the division will represent Butuan
City to the regional level. The School heads/Principals shall assign a minimum
of three judges to determine the champions from their schools, Carmen said.
The entries for the division level must be
submitted in a hard copy not later than March 5 using the required entry form.
The national essay writing contest is organized by
the Philippians Production together with the Mt. Tapulao Lodge No. 389. (DepEd
Butuan City Division/PIA-Agusan del Norte)
SurSur planning and dev’t office cites “Fallen 44”
in report
By Greg Tataro Jr.
TANDAG CITY, Surigao del Sur, Feb. 9 (PIA) – The
Provincial Planning and Development Office (PPDO) in Surigao del Sur has
highlighted two special projects as their main report for the Monday flag
ceremony program at the capitol lobby here via two separate video
presentations.
Engr. Merlinda Baure, PPDO coordinator pointed out
“We have purposely chosen to highlight these two special projects under our office
because these aim to fight poverty, the very root and underlying cause of
rebellion and unrest in our country and the very reason for which the Fallen 44
SAF Fighters paid the ultimate price for peace and development to prevail and
succeed.”
The first one showed the “Payapa at Masaganang
Pamayanan (PAMANA) Program” while the last bore the “Mindanao Rural Development
Program (MRDP),” which were both carried out in the province.
Baure said, “In 2014, PAMANA thru the DILG
released over P63 million in various projects comprising of 10 Level II Potable
Water Supplies, rehabilitation of 16-kilometer Farm-to-Market Roads (FMRs) and
the installation of street lighting in Hornasan, San Agustin.”
Moreover, she bared that “Under the PAMANA-DA
(Dept. of Agriculture) for the same year, a whopping P167 million worth of
concreting of FMRs was released stretching to over 13 kilometers in length.”
“Notable among these projects is the one that
traverses Barangay Diatagon to Km 16 in Lianga, a known gateway to the lair of
the New People’s Army (NPA). This road
will connect to Sitio Lagangan in Caras-an, Tago,” Baure commented.
“Combined, PAMANA-DILG and PAMANA-DA benefitted
around 4,500 farmers,” she said further.
Also, Baure told capitol employees that “the
recently concluded MRDP” has brought “close to P400 million in various
infrastructures, livelihood & environmental projects spread over five years
in 11 localities province-wide.” (NGBT/Radyo ng Bayan-Tandag/PIA-Surigao del
Sur)
Gov’t, private sector eye to reopen Davao-Manado
air link
DAVAO CITY, Feb. 9 (PIA) - A multi-stakeholder
group from Mindanao and Indonesia is poised to revive the air connectivity
between Mindanao and North Sulawesi starting off with a market development
strategy for the Davao-Manado route.
In a meeting recently convened by the Mindanao
Development Authority (MinDA), key players from tourism, trade, academe, and
government line agencies agreed to take more proactive and aggressive steps in
re-establishing the connectivity between the two BIMP-EAGA cities.
BIMP-EAGA stands for Brunei Darussalam Indonesia
Malaysia the Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area. The economic grouping was formed
with the goals of promoting trade, investment, and tourism in less-developed
states and provinces in the ASEAN sub-group.
“We must package Mindanao based on the needs of
our target market from North Sulawesi, while capitalizing on our high-value offerings
such as our medical, education, and tourism sectors," said Captain Ben
Solis, senior advisor of the Asia Foundation.
Solis added that this initial step will also help
determine the most ideal trip schedules, which should be based on market
demands from the tourism and business sectors.
“It is best to start offering regular and reliable
flights to passengers instead of the usual chartered flights, said Solis while
adding “we can only achieve this if we have a ready market.”
Reviving air links between Philippines and its
EAGA counterparts is currently one of the priorities of MinDA in order to
maximize the travel tax exemption approved by the Philippine government for
travellers from Mindanao and Palawan heading to any of the BIMP-EAGA
destinations.
MinDA serves as the Philippine National
Secretariat for BIMP-EAGA and coordinates with DOT and the Manado Transport and
Tourism Ministry in developing the market for the Davao-Manado linkages.
“This is a new and more promising approach to
establishing the connectivity between Mindanao and North Sulawesi. In the past,
we have launched several flights for the same route and have always been
challenged in sustaining the passenger traffic,” explained Jonathan Miral,
chief of MinDA’s International Relations Division.
Among the strategies to be pursued to promote the
Davao-Manado route are the development of tour packages, business matching,
trade sessions, and student exchange programs.
“All these are aimed to strengthen our
socio-cultural and economic ties with Manado,” Miral said while adding “this is
a timely move since BIMP-EAGA is also exploring socio-cultural and education as
one of the strategic pillars of the ASEAN sub-region.”
The direct flight from Davao to Manado offers a
shorter route for travellers and will allow the faster movement of goods and
products. Currently, passengers bound for Manado take the circuitous and costly
Davao-Manila-Jakarta-Manado route.
Miral said that a BIMP-EAGA strategic planning
meeting will be conducted from February 15 to 18, 2015 at the Royale Chulan
Hotel in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in which initiatives to reopen the
Davao-Manado route will be discussed.
The annual meeting among key BIMP-EAGA officials
and stakeholders is aimed to review and assess the progress in the
implementation of the priority programs and projects in the sub-region’s
blueprint for 2012 to 2016. (MinDA/PIA-Caraga)
