PH SPOTLIGHT: How to raise pigs and make an odorless pigpen (babuyang walang amoy)

So how can one raise pigs well? Paano nga ba magpalaki ng baboy? 

In the past, when we visit our hometown, we were able to see real live piglets being conceived manually by the local folks. This brought me the question, is it really hard to raise pigs? Is it costly?

The video below isn't about snorting or what (haha). It's about making an odorless pigpen (babuyang walang amoy) using the most updated technology.

Video Courtesy: Youtube channel PinoyHowTo

PH 2013 1st quarter GDP growth fastest among Asian countries

The Philippines economic growth was fastest among Asian countries for the first quarter of 2013, the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB) announced Thursday.

NSCB revealed that the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 7.8 percent in the first quarter of 2013, faster than China (7.7 percent), Indonesia (6 percent), Thailand (5.3 percent), and Vietnam (4.9 percent), Secretary of Socioeconomic Planning of the Philippines Arsenio Balisacan said.

NSCB attributed the 7.8 percent increase in the gross domestic product (GDP) of the country to the strong performance of the manufacturing (9.7 percent), and construction (32.5 percent) sectors, as well as the increase in government and consumer spending. The services and agriculture sectors also contributed to the growth with 7 percent and 3.3 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, the mining and industry contracted by 17 percent.

This was the second fastest growth rate of the country since a quarter in 2010 (8.9 percent), Balisacan said.

Some facts about the economy of the Philippines

According to World Bank country director Motoo Konishi, the Philippines "is no longer the sick man of East Asia, but the rising tiger." True as it may seem, PH has registered one of the highest growth rates in Asia since the Aquino administration started.

However, could the issue of 'inclusive' growth several years ago still be the same issue of today? There must be some truth in it. Here are some facts which that economic gains do not trickle down the bottom classes.

1. In 2009, about 25 million Filipinos or 1/4 of the population lived on $1 dollar a day or less.

2. In 2011, the 40 richest families in the Forbes wealthy list accounted for 76 percent of the total gross domestic product (GDP) of the Philippines. That's very high compared to Thailand's 33.7 petcent, Malaysia's 5.6 percent, and Japan's 2.8 percent.

3. In 2012, the two wealthiest people in the Philippines were worth a combined $13.6 billion, which is approximately six percent of the Philippine economy.

4. Minimum wages have not been increased to a point that could significantly impact the lives on the lowest social strata, despite corporate gains obtained by owners of profitable Philippine companies and corporations. Hence, the owners get increases, yet the workers don't.

5. Politics is a game-changer, with regards to effectiveness of public policy that negatively impacts PH capitalists and business owners.

6. Some sectors of the Philippine economy are under monopoly or duopoly; thus, prices of commodities (may it be goods or services) can easily be controlled and eventually directly affect the customer base - a big portion of which is powered up by the middle class.

SPOTTED: 1 in every 4 PH job vacancies unfilled

A presentation of Prof. Alving Ang, an Economics professor in University of Santo Tomas (UST), during a recently held economic and sustainability oriented forum revealed that 25% or 1 in every 4 jobs in the Philippines cannot be filled due to competency issues.

Most of these competency-related unfilled vacancies are found in Metro Manila at 80% of total vacant positions contributed by the quality of the graduates who enter the labor force.

Ang further discussed how the Philippines can sustain its phenomenal 6.6% growth in 2012 given the rising underemployment rate, which he attributed to competency issues hounding elementary and high school teachers.

The top 12 jobs that have remained unfilled in one year nationwide are:

1. Transport and Communications Specialist
2. Mechanical engineers
3. Doctors
4. Production and operation managers
5. Accountants and auditors
6. Human Resources managers
7. Production supervisors
8. Geologists
9. Electrical engineers
10. Electronics and Communications engineers
11. Chemical engineers
12. Pharmacists

The list of hard-to-fill jobs in Metro Manila is as follows:

1. Systems Analysts
2. Accountants
3. Electrical engineers
4. Civil engineers
5. Mechanical engineers
6. Computer programmers
7. Human Resources managers
8. Medical technologists
9. Architects
10. Industrial engineers
11. Geologists

Philippines economic growth likely to surpass target 5-6%

In an Interaksyon report, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) said Monday that the full-year economic growth of the Philippines will likely exceed the government's target of 5-6%.

In the first half of the year, economic growth averaged 6.1% bulked up by remittance-led consumer spending and the services sector including the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry.

The second half of the year will possibly reach at least 6% as more Filipino consumers will engage into extravagant shopping spree and other social gatherings, speeding up domestic spending, in the gift-giving and reunion months fed up especially by the release of Christmas bonuses and extra-month pays. 

Last month, credit ratings firm Standard & Poor's hiked its growth forecast for the Philippines while it cut or retained the outlook of the other Asian economies.

Biggest SM mall in Mindanao, SM Lanang Premier, opens

The biggest mall in Mindanao under Sy-led SM Prime Holdings, the country's largest mall developer, has been opened Friday (September 28) with 144,000 square meters retail space. Crowds of people trooped to the mall's opening day.

Photo Courtesy: SM Lanang Premier FB Page

SM Lanang Premier, the second SM mall in Davao City, is located at J.P. Laurel Avenue in Barangay (village) Lanang. The first one is SM City Davao, 9 kilometers away from SM Lanang Premier which opened in November 2001. 

Approximately 88 percent of the retail space now has contractual tenants. With its celebrated opening, SM Lanang Premier becomes the biggest and first premier mall development in the south.

Some of the stores which will be found in SM Lanang Premier are:

• SM Department Store
• SM Supermarket
• SMX Davao Convention Center
• Watsons
• Ace Hardware
• Forever 21
• Kultura
• Vikings
• Cha Time
• KFC
• Jollibee
• Mesa

SM Lanang Premier houses five cinemas, a 2,200-seater IMAX theater, a Science Discovery Center, a bowling center, and more than 1,500 parking spaces. The longest fountain in the country will be found in SM Lanang Premier.

Here are some of the gigs to look forward to in SM Lanang Premier's opening weekend! Images credits go to SM Lanang Premier and PWD World.

MRT 3 expansion, major infrastructure projects approved

It's all systems go for the purchase of 52 more train cars for the Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT 3) in the P8.63 billion MRT 3 Capacity Expansion Project, which was approved by the board of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA). This was done to increase the capacity of MRT, in response to future serious overloading or full-capacity problems. 

Ten (10) other major infrastructure projects, seen as big boosters of Philippine economic growth in the coming years, were also given approval. The approved proposals, which came from the Department of Transportation and Communication (DOTC) and the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), include: 

• P9.76 billion Light Railway Transit Line 2 East Extension Project - extension of LRT 2 coverage by another 4.19 kilometers from the existing Santolan Station to the Masinag Junction (intersection of Marcos and Sumulong highways) 
• P4.799 billion Bicol International Airport Project - construction of a new facility in Daraga, Albay; replacement of current Legazpi Airport 
• P7.44 billion New Bohol (Panglao) Airport Project - construction of a new airport at Panglao Island; replacement of existing Tagbilaran facility 
• P6.12 billion Bridge Construction Acceleration Project for Calamity-Stricken Areas Phase II - replacement of 66 temporary bridges with steel ones across 15 regions 
• P8.4 billion National Roads Bridge Placement Project - construction and replacement of 133 bridges across the country; use of UK-made pre-fabricated double-lane modular steel bridges 
• P5-billion Funding for Flood Control Projects - creation of a flood management master plan for Metro Manila, rehabilitation of dikes, seawalls strengthening, river dredging, and construction of river control works  
• P4.97 billion Restructuring of the Bridge Construction and Replacement Project - extension of the implementation of an existing project from January this year to December 2015 
• P3.91 billion Change in Scope, Increase in Cost and Implementation Extension for the Mindanao Roads Improvement Project - change of implementation period from January this year to December 31, 2014 
• P5.72 billion Strengthening of Angat Dam and Dike Project - rehabilitation of 44-year-old dam and its embankment structures; implementation by state-run Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) 
• P2.60 billion Agus 6 Hydroelectric Power Plant Uprating Project - shift in financing to on-lending by the national government from state-run Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) 

Source: Interaksyon

Local airlines banned from increasing flight operations in South Korea

According to the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB), Philippine carriers have been banned from expanding its flight to South Korea.

Seoul reportedly followed suit from the US Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) decision to stop any expansion of flights in the US due to PH's unimproved safety regulations.

Last month, the South Korean government junked AirPhil Express's application to launch flights to Incheon, gateway to the capital Seoul, citing the Philippines’ “Category 2 status with the FAA” as the basis for the decision.

Under South Korean aviation rules, airlines rated category 2 by the FAA are banned from expanding flights to and from the country. The ban also includes countries blacklisted by the European Union (EU) and those  labelled possessing “serious safety concerns” by the International Civil Aviation Organizations (ICAO).

Incidentally, the Philippines is also blacklisted by the EU and the ICAO. Existing flights however will not be affected, even after the FAA ban. A meeting between CAB and its counterparts in South Korea has been scheduled in the first week of February for another set of negotiation.

With supporting reports from Inquirer.net

RP Economy at Record High 7.3%

Arroyo's presidency has bear fruits, bringing in an economic pouring of 7.3% in its national growth from outrageous election spending, an okay-rise in remittances from abroad, and improved business and consumer confidence.

Both the GDP and GNP of the country outpaced expectations.

Augusto Santos, director general of NEDA, stated that “the improvement in the global economy, brighter economic outlook, increased business and consumer confidence, and election-related spending all contributed to the resurgence in economic activities."

The industrial sector, which embraces the fields of manufacturing, utilities, mining and quarrying, grew 15.7% during the first quarter, way better than last year's contraction of 2.6%. The services sector, which includes the growing business process outsourcing sub-sector, also increased to 6.1% in the first quarter. However, the agriculture, forestry and fisheries sector was hit largely due to the dry spell, contracting at 2.5%.

Santos suggested that to prevent stagnant growth or probable decline, the government has to increase spending on infrastructure, social services and education.

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