The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) formally signed an agreement with the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) to reaffirm its commitment to educate and protect the investing public against unauthorized investment schemes and promote financial literacy through investor education.
SEC Commissioner Karlo S. Bello signed the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with SBMA Chairman and Administrator Eduardo Jose L. Aliño on February 27 at the SBMA Administration Building in Subic Bay Freeport Zone.
This collaboration named SEC Communication, Advocacy and Network (SEC-CAN!) serves as a channel for the SEC and SBMA to collaborate on information, education and communication (IEC) initiatives aimed at raising awareness on business and capital markets, financial literacy, smart and sustainable investing, company registration process and reportorial requirements.
The said initiative shall also undertake activities relative to the implementation of the SEC Anti-Scam and Illegal Taking of Investments Group or SEC-ASTIG which is focused on raising awareness of and educating the general public on investment scams and other fraudulent schemes.
“Our partnership represents more than just a contract, it embodies our shared vision, values, and commitment to excellence. Through this agreement, we are forging stronger bonds, fostering innovation, and paving the way toward sustainable and inclusive economic growth in the Subic Bay Freeport Zone,” Commissioner Bello said.
Meanwhile, SBMA Chairman Aliño expressed profound gratitude for this collaboration that will boost economic activities and development in Subic Bay. It will also protect the locators, stakeholders and the whole Freeport zone community against illegal investment-taking activities and other predatory practices carried out through the misuse of the corporate vehicle.
Under the agreement, the SEC and SBMA will work together to design and develop financial literacy programs and investment scam awareness activities, allowing the stakeholders of Subic Bay to gain knowledge on financial and debt management.
Also present during the signing ceremony were SEC Tarlac Extension Office Director Richard R. Laus, SBMA Deputy Administrator for Business Group John V. Aquino and SBMA Business and Investment Department for Information and Communications Technology Officer-in-Charge Panfilo S. Jurilla.

CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga – Minimum wage earners in Central Luzon will receive the second tranche of the daily wage increase effective Jan. 1, this year.
The second tranche of the daily pay hike amounting to PHP10 was pursuant to Wage Order No. RBIII-23 issued by the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB) last June 2022.
Wage Order No. RBIII-23 mandates a PHP40 increase in the daily minimum wage of workers in private establishments in the region.
The first tranche of PHP30 daily pay increase took effect on June 20, 2022.
Geraldine Panlilio, regional director of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and chairperson of the RTWPB-Central Luzon, said on Monday that the wage increase shall apply to all minimum wage earners in the private sector in the region, regardless of their position, designation, or status and irrespective of the method by which their wages are paid.
“We are happy to inform our workers all over the region that a new minimum wage is taking effect this month,” Panlilio said in a statement.
With the new order, minimum earners in Central Luzon in the non-agriculture category and establishments with more than 10 workers will receive a PHP460 basic pay per day.
Employees working in the non-agriculture category and establishments with less than 10 workers will have a PHP453 basic pay per day.
Under the agriculture category, the new wage hike for plantation and non-plantation workers will be PHP430 and PHP414, respectively.
For the retail or service category, the daily minimum wage in establishments with 10 or more workers will be PHP449 and PHP435 in establishments with less than 10 workers.
This new wage hike adjustment applies for minimum wage earners in the provinces of Pampanga, Tarlac, Bulacan, Zambales, Bataan and Nueva Ecija.
For the province of Aurora, the daily minimum wage rate for the non-agriculture category will be PHP409.
The daily minimum wage of plantation workers in agriculture establishments will be PHP394 and PHP382 for non-plantation workers.
Meanwhile, workers in retail and service establishments will receive a daily minimum wage of PHP344. (PNA)

Caution against stigma

He cautioned that stigma and discrimination can be as dangerous as any virus.
In addition to recommendations to countries, Tedros called on civil society organizations, including those with experience in working with people living with HIV, to work with the WHO to fight stigma and discrimination.
“With the tools we have right now, we can stop transmission and bring this outbreak under control,” he said.
Since early May 2022, cases of monkeypox have been reported from countries where the disease is not endemic as well as several endemic countries, according to the WHO.
Most confirmed cases with a travel history reported visits to countries in Europe and North America, rather than West or Central Africa, where the monkeypox virus is endemic.
This is the first time that monkeypox cases and clusters have been reported concurrently in non-endemic and endemic countries in disparate geographical areas.
Monkeypox can be transmitted through contact with bodily fluids, skin lesions, or internal mucosal surfaces, such as in the mouth or throat, respiratory droplets and contaminated objects, according to the WHO. (PNA / Anadolu)

Manila—The U.S. Grains Council (USGC) and Mariano Marcos State University (MMSU) signed on July 19 a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to facilitate the exchange of expert knowledge, technical information, and best practices related to the biofuels industry and policy development.
The signing ceremony took place during the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agribusiness Trade Mission to Manila this week.
“The Philippines continues to position itself as a regional leader in biofuels. The contributions from experts at MMSU’s National Bioenergy Research and Innovation Center (NBERIC) help underpin this impressive growth,” USGC Regional Director for Southeast Asia & Oceania Caleb Wurth said.
The U.S. Grains Council’s ethanol development program works with partners globally to expand the market for fuel and industrial use ethanol.
“The Council stands ready to collaborate with biofuel experts at MMSU to further promote the use of biofuels to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, generate rural employment and income, and lower prices at the pump for the Filipino people,” Wurth added.
Located in Batac, Ilocos Norte, MMSU is a leading institution of higher education and houses the NBERIC, a USAID-supported state-of-the-art hub for bioenergy research, training, extension, and technopreneurship.
“MMSU is deeply grateful to USGC for initiating this partnership. This will surely help the NBERIC in its mandate to support the Philippine government’s renewable energy program towards energy security and sustainability,” said MMSU President Dr. Shirley C. Agrupis.
Witnessing the signing were U.S. Embassy Chargé d’Affaires ad interim Heather Variava, USDA Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) Administrator Daniel Whitley, and Philippine Department of Energy Undersecretary Roberto Uy.
“Clean energy is a foundational component of our Indo-Pacific Economic Framework and ethanol is a clean, renewable, fiscally-prudent alternative,” said CDA Variava in her remarks.
FAS Administrator Whitley noted, “this agreement will create new economic opportunities for agricultural producers while helping the Philippines reduce its dependence on imported petroleum products.”
“I reiterate my support and commitment to the production of bioenergy that gives good profit to vertically-integrated farmers yet fair to the consuming public,” Undersecretary Uy said.

CLARK FREEPORT – Clark International Airport Corporation (CIAC) is set to install new surveillance radar for Clark International Airport (CRK).

CIAC President Aaron Aquino said CRK needs a new radar system because the existing radar facility already exceeded its technically accepted usefulness.

He added the current radar site needs to be relocated to conform to the government’s master plan for the Clark airport, citing technical issues such as height restrictions of commercial buildings surrounding the old radar facility.

“After 16 years, a new radar system will be located at Lily Hill, the highest point in Clark, as recommended by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines. With a relocated radar system, CIAC will be able to continue the landside commercial developments within the aviation complex unhampered,” he said.

Aquino said the modern radar facility project h includes the supply, installation, testing, and commissioning of both the primary and secondary surveillance radar for Clark airport.

The project, which costs P593.6-million, is expected to be completed by February 2023.

He noted that CIAC, Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), and Clark Development Corporation are in coordination for the issuance of Site Possession for the relocated radar system.

The new airport surveillance radar project is part of CIAC’s airport infrastructure expansion program whose funding was approved via the General Appropriations Act of 2020 under the account of the BCDA Group, CIAC’s parent company. (PIA 3)