NCCA promotes 1st Budayaw Festival in PH
By Venus L. Garcia
BUTUAN CITY, June 30 (PIA) – In working for the
preservation, development and promotion of arts and culture, the National
Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) under the Office of the President is
set to hold a press conference slated on July 14, 2017 (Friday) in this city to
promote the “Budayaw Festival”.
“Budayaw, a fusion of the Bahasa word ‘Budaya’
(culture, heritage) and the Filipino word 'dayaw' (bounty, prayer, beautiful)
sums up what the Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines (BIMP) Culture
Fiesta is about: a celebration of peace, bounty and diversity of cultural
expressions,” elaborated Rene NapeΓ±as, head of the NCCA Public Affairs and
Information Office (PAIO).
The 1st Budayaw: 2017 BIMP-EAGA (East-Asian Growth
Area) Festival on Culture and Arts, a multi-dimensional and multi-disciplinary
festival of arts and culture of the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the East-Asian Growth Area
will take place on September 20-24, 2017.
The event is anchored on the theme, “Taking Pride
in the Creative Diversity of the BIMP-EAGA Region”. The five-day fest will be
participated by around 300 contemporary artists and indigenous cultural
masters. The creative works of cultural masters, artists and cultural
practitioners coming from the four countries will be simultaneously showcased
in various venues in Mindanao, particularly in General Santos City and in the
Province of Sarangani.
In time with the country’s hosting of the 50th
Anniversary of the ASEAN, the festival was recommended to be launched in the
Philippines this year. The Budayaw Festival, which will be held every two years
rotating in the four member countries, will showcase the diversity of creative expressions
of the region.
Some of the highlights during the festival include:
1) The Bulos Kana! Selmat Datengln Photo
Exhibit and interactive lectures on the landscapes and peoples of the EAGA
region; 2) Intertwining Dreams for
Harmony and Peace: Master IKAT Weavers Pavilion Showcase; 3) Narratives of
Earth Music: Tell-tales of the EAGA Indigenous Virtuosos in traditional music; 4) Jewels of
the EAGA: Performance showcase of Contemporary Artists; 5) Young Voices Rising for Peace: Invitational Choral
Concert Performance; 6)
Under One Sky: EAGA Collaborative
Installation Art and EAGA Visual Arts Exhibition; 7) Film and
Digital Arts Festival; 8) Special Events: Collaborative
Performances, Community Outreach and
Hosted Community Tours and Creative
Interactions. (VLG/PIA-Caraga)
Mining caravan goes to Cantilan town
CANTILAN, Surigao del Sur, June 30 (PIA) – The
Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) spearheaded on Thursday an Information
Education Communication (IEC) caravan in mining held at the municipal gymnasium
here.
The said activity is in line with the celebration
of the Environment Month with the theme, “Connecting People to Nature.”
During the caravan, the speakers shared the
significant policies that govern mining operation to the participants from
various stakeholders including mining industries.
MGB Caraga Regional Director Roger de Dios, in his
message, emphasized that the activity conducted primarily aims to educate the
misconception of mining.
De Dios said they have conducted regular monitoring
activities to ensure that mining operations in the region adhere to the
government standard as provided under Republi Act 7942.
"Of the 25 mining companies operating with
permit in Caraga Region, four are in Surigao del Sur: Carrascal Nickel
Corporation; CTP Construction Development Corporation – Dahican Project; CTP
Construction Development Corporation – Adlay Project; and Marcventures Mining
Development Corporation," said De Dios.
De Dios added that the region has a total approved
mining permit area of 180,070.14 hectares (9%) from 1,913,842 hectares of the
total land area in the region. "Of the 9% approved mining permit areas
applied, only 2% are active mining permit area," he said.
He also claimed that the mining industry in Caraga
generated 30,829 jobs in 2016. (PIA-Surigao del Sur)
DOST, house committee push bill to upgrade S&T
officers’ rank
BUTUAN CITY, June 30 (PIA) - The House Bill No.
1205 entitled, “An Act Upgrading the Position of the Provincial Science and
Technology Officer into the Provincial Science and Technology Director in the
Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and Amending Republic Act No.
6959,” also known as Provincial Science and Technology Directors Act of 2016
filed by Zamboanga del Sur 1st District Representative Divina Grace C. Yu is a
welcome development to recognize the huge inputs of DOST provincial directors
to the whole science community.
Provincial Science and Technology Center (PSTC)
directors of the DOST have their hands quite full every working day. Their
offices are mini-DOSTs, implementing various programs that address their area’s
needs in health and nutrition, livelihood generation, education, disaster
preparedness, and others.
Thus, the said bill aims to upgrade the status and
rank of Science and Technology (S&T) center provincial officers with
commensurate increase in remuneration and benefits.
House Bill No. 1205, once enacted into law,
upgrades the PSTC director to Salary Grade 27 and shall be entitled to
reimbursable representation and transportation allowance and other benefits
prescribed by law. Currently, most PSTC directors are within Salary Grades
19-22.
Likewise, the PST office shall be provided with a
minimum of six technical staff and one non-technical officer, thereby further
strengthening the PSTC. PSTCs currently have only one to two permanent staff,
plus a few project staff.
Also, the PSTC shall be appropriated with separate
funding by the Department of Budget and Management allowing it to better extend
service to the people in the provinces.
PSTC directors currently have the following functions:
formulate the provincial S&T plan, programs and projects; implement and
monitor technology promotion and commercialization of projects under the Small
Enterprise Technology Upgrading Program (SETUP); disseminate S&T related
information of R&D results; coordinate with LGUs, the academe and other
public and private institutions to push S&T education, research, and human
resources training; among others.
With this development, DOST Secretary Fortunato T.
de la PeΓ±a is quite grateful. “We thank the House of Representatives Committee
on Science and Technology headed by Rep. Aumentado for supporting this bill to
upgrade the position of our PSTC officers,” says de la PeΓ±a.
“They are the ones directly implementing the DOST
programs like SETUP for livelihood, the RxBox for healthcare service, our
scholarship programs and many more,” he adds.
To push the enactment of the bill into law, the
Committee on Science and Technology at the House of Representatives held a
public hearing at the Bohol Bee Farm in Dauis, Bohol last May.
Committee chair Rep. Erico Aristotle C. Aumentado
of the 2nd District of Bohol and host of the event said that the committee
fully recognizes the many projects of the DOST in the province, as well as in
the regions, that greatly help people improve their lives.
The public hearing served as a venue for the
participants to submit their comments, suggestions, and recommendations before
the final draft is made for endorsement to the committee-at-large.
“We also are thankful for the DOST and the PSTC in
Bohol for providing our people the needed assistance using science and technology
like the STARBOOKS that were given to our public high schools, therefore,
providing them with information they can use for school work,” says Rep.
Aumentado.
The public hearing was also attended by other House
Committee on S&T members namely, Rep. Francis Gerald A. Abaya of the 1st
District of Cavite, Rep. Allen Jesse C. Mangaoang of the Lone District of
Kalinga, and Rep. Mark Aeron H. Sambar of the PBA Party List.
(DOST-STI/PIA-Caraga)
OCHA, UNHCR launch Mindanao displacement snapshot
BUTUAN CITY, June 30 - The United Nations Office
for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in the Philippines launched the Mindanao
Displacement Snapshot, an interactive online map that provides an overview of
displacement incidents in Mindanao, Philippines from January 2012 to June 2017.
The displacement incidents range from armed
conflict to natural hazards such as floods, earthquakes and typhoons.
The collaborative project combines data collected
by UNHCR from the field, Protection Cluster members and official reports from
the Philippine government and Mindanao local authorities, with interactive
software that will be hosted on Humanitarian Data Exchange.
“More than just numbers and data, sharing vital
information of the displaced will help humanitarian actors in assessing and
monitoring of vulnerable communities,” said Yasser Saad, UNHCR Head of National
Office.
The Humanitarian Data Exchange is an open platform
hosted by OCHA for sharing data, making humanitarian information easy to find
and use for analysis. “The interactive snapshot provides an at-a- glance
insight into patterns and trends of displacement in Mindanao. It presents a
challenging issue such as protracted displacement in an interactive way that
engages a wider audience.” said Mark Bidder, OCHA Philippines Head of Office.
The launch of the humanitarian map coincides with
the release of a new global study commissioned by OCHA. Breaking the Impasse:
Reducing Protracted Internal Displacement as a Collective Outcome comes at a
time when the numbers of those repeatedly displaced by over four decades of
conflict in Mindanao are again increasing and is underscored by the conflict in
Marawi City.
The study highlights the need for a new approach
–using collective outcomes to end or reduce vulnerability for IDPs and move
towards durable solutions– and offers concrete recommendations to guide
Governments, humanitarian and development organizations and donors. Case
studies including from the Philippines illustrate the challenges and
opportunities of attaining sustainable return, local integration or relocation
for those who have been displaced either by disaster or conflict. A full PDF
version of the study can be read at https://www.unocha.org/idps.
(UNOCHA/PIA-Caraga)
Cusi vows long-term energy security in Mindanao
BUTUAN CITY, June 30 - With the launch of the
Mindanao Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) on Wednesday, June 28, Energy
Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi pledged his full commitment to President Rodrigo
Duterte’s people-centered policies and government’s long-term economic vision
for the country.
“I will see to the accomplishment of the paramount
objective of guaranteeing long-term energy security in Mindanao,” Cusi averred
in his keynote speech during the unveiling of the Mindanao WESM that took place
at the SMX Convention Center in Lanang Premier in Davao City.
WESM provides a competitive and transparent power
market for Mindanao electricity consumers.
Cusi said, “The launch of the Mindanao WESM brings
us one step closer to the fulfillment of the intent to restructure the electric
power industry – to introduce higher efficiency, greater innovation and
end-user choice, as well as enhance the entry of competitive market forces.”
By providing a healthy and genuinely fair
competition in the power market, Cusi underlined that “WESM is calculated to
bring forth the beneficial effects of improved consumer services, lower
electricity rates, and reasonable returns to investments.”
Specifically, WESM will provide a cost-effective
mechanism for dispatching power capacities in Mindanao, which is already
experiencing improved generation supply since the first half of 2016.
According to the Electric Power Industry Management
Bureau data, Mindanao now stood a total installed capacity of 3,352 megawatts
(MW) as of first half of 2017, in which available capacity is around 2,100 MW
against the actual peak demand of 1,696 MW posted in April 2017.
Additionally, the increase in generation capacity
will continue until 2019 with an expected around 1,300 MW additional capacities
to operate, and another 1,500 MW by 2022 from the indicative power projects.
The Energy chief further informed that “the WESM in
Mindanao also complements the Retail Competition Open Access and the
Competitive Selection Process, which are all kindred programs under the
Administration’s energy regulatory agenda.”
The Secretary also highlighted the role of the Energy
Regulatory Commission (ERC) and the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC)
both armed with a strengthened fair competition policy to serve as watchful
eyes against unwanted market abuses and anti-competitive behaviors.
In conclusion, the Secretary shared the lined up
energy projects the DOE targeted for the region in the next years to come:
additional power generation projects across Mindanao; the Visayas-Mindanao grid
interconnection and the continuing mission to significantly boost the household
electrification level in Mindanao. (DOE/PIA-Caraga)
