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(Journal Online) Electricity is a necessity in the Philippines, and many are reliant on devices for work and for our personal life. Reports by We Are Social in 2021 revealed that Filipinos spend close to 11 hours on the internet each day, the highest record in the world.

Yet, power outages in the Philippines are a common experience among many as well. This caused a unique demand where e-commerce platforms saw an increased interest in items such as solar panels, and solar-powered products to combat the issue of frequent blackouts.

Taking a step deeper to understand the needs of online consumers, iPrice’s insights team conducted a study analyzing the demand for products such as solar panels, solar-powered lights, and solar power banks in the Philippines in the past 5 years… Read More

(CNN Philippines) Metro Manila — The Department of Trade and Industry assured Thursday that the country’s salt supply is enough, despite the agency approving a price hike for the commodity.

DTI Undersecretary Ruth Castelo said they allowed some manufacturers to raise prices as it has been around six years since their last increase.

“Mayroon talaga tayong in-allow na magtaas ng presyo ng asin. Kailangan maintindihan natin that itong mga manufacturer na ito (ay) sobrang tagal nang hindi nagtataas ng presyo. Parang umabot na ng 4, 5, 6 years bago sila nag-request ulit,” said Castelo in a public briefing… Read More

(Manila Bulletin) The shift to various forms of electrified vehicles (xEVs) is rapidly accelerating in the Philippines, with the industry seeing the fastest adoption rates yet since the very first Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV) was introduced commercially in the country in 2009.

Toyota Motor Philippines (TMP), whose groundbreaking HEV, the Prius, pioneered the electrification movement, is leading this shift with 95% of xEV users in the Philippines today driving an electrified model from its Toyota and Lexus lines.

Based on the recent official figures from the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines (CAMPI), as of end of June 2022, there are already 1,013 total xEVs sold in the market, surpassing the 2021 total volume of 843 and 2020’s 378. A total of 962 of the 2022 year-to-date sales are Toyota and Lexus models… Read More

(The Manila Times) NEW Orleans Pelicans forward Herbert Jones went to Angat, Bulacan on Monday, August 22, to spearhead a basketball court dedication and youth clinic at the Enchanted Farm village of Gawad Kalinga Community Development Foundation Inc.

The outreach program is part of the NBA’s 75th Live, Learn or Play initiative for the 2021-22 season.

The project featured the ceremonial opening of a newly-refurbished basketball court and an NBA Cares youth clinic for more than 25 boys and girls from Gawad Kalinga and the Jr. NBA program in the Philippines.

Gawad Kalinga is a local nonprofit organization based in Bulacan province that aims to alleviate poverty through affordable housing and community development programs… Read More

(The Epoch Times) Millions of students in the Philippines have returned to school for in-person classes after more than two years of school closures during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Students were seen donning face masks as they lined up to enter their classrooms on Monday. Temperature checks and limits on the number of students per classroom remain in place.

The Education Ministry stated that 27.6 million students enrolled in private and public schools this year, falling short of the government’s target of 28.6 million students, Philippines-based GMA News reported.

Students will be required to attend a combination of in-person classes and remote learning from August to October before switching to the full five-day in-person classes in November, according to the ministry.

The Philippines’ school closures due to the pandemic were among the longest in the world, with reopening delayed by slow vaccine rollouts and the country’s 2022 elections.

Vice President Sara Duterte described the resumption of in-person classes as a “victory” for the nation’s education sector, as students across the Philippines were finally able to attend school like their peers around the world.

“We cannot afford to delay the education of the Filipino youth any longer,” Duterte was quoted as saying by GMA News. She emphasized the need to provide students with proper and quality education through in-person classes.

Some schools decided to split classes into morning and afternoon sessions to accommodate students while maintaining physical distancing due to classroom shortages.

“We cannot make the lack of educational infrastructure or the inadequate number of classrooms in certain provinces another excuse to keep our children from schools,” Duterte said.

The ministry piloted in-person classes involving 300 schools in 2021 but didn’t extend this to cover all schools until the start of the current school year.

The shift to online classes, self-learning modules, and educational television and radio programs has proven extremely challenging for the country’s population, where less than a fifth of households have internet access and many lack mobile services… Read More

(PhilStar) MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine government vowed it will go after those who contribute to the online sexual exploitation of children (OSEC), may it be parents or other individuals involved in the operations.

Government officials on Tuesday acknowledged that the Philippines has become the hub for explicit materials that cater to pedophiles around the world, harming Filipino children in the process.

“Ang pagsama samin dito ng law enforcement agencies natin ay isa lang hudyat na hindi talagang hindi tayo papayag na manatili ang ganito sa ating bansa,” Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said in a press conference on Tuesday.

(The presence of our law enforcement agencies here today is one of the signs that we will not accept that this will continue in our country.)

Officials noted that in some cases, the parents of the children are involved in the abuse. Interior and Local Government Secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr. even recalled a case where the parents got angry at local government officials for stopping their operations because they lost P20,000 to P30,000 worth of monthly income… Read More

(CNN Philippines) Metro Manila — The House of Representatives is set to receive on Monday the proposed ₱5.268-trillion national budget for 2023.

The proposed budget for 2023 is ₱244 billion or 5% more than this year’s ₱5.024-trillion allocation.

In a statement released on Sunday, House Speaker Martin Romualdez said the first National Expenditure Program (NEP) of the Marcos administration will be submitted through Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman. The turnover ceremony will be at 10 a.m. at the social hall of the Speaker’s Office.

Also expected in the ceremony are Majority Leader Manuel Jose “Mannix” Dalipe, Minority Leader Marcelino Libanan, House Committee on Appropriations chairman and Ako Bicol Party-list Rep. Zaldy Co and his senior vice chairperson, Marikina City Rep. Stella Luz Quimbo… Read More

(CNN Philippines) Metro Manila — Tropical Depression Florita slightly accelerates west southwestward at 20 kilometers per hour over the Philippine Sea east of Cagayan, the state weather bureau said.

In its 11 p.m. bulletin, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said Florita was estimated at 460 kms east of Tuguegarao City, Cagayan, or 420 kms east of Casiguran, Aurora with maximum sustained winds of 55 kph near the center and gustiness of up to 70 kph.

Places under Tropical Cyclone Signal No. 1 are the northern portion of Aurora and the northern and eastern portions of Isabela. These areas may expect winds within the next 36 hours, with a minimal to minor threat to life and property, the agency noted.

PAGASA said signal no. 2 may be raised over areas in the eastern section of Northern Luzon as early as Monday morning. The highest possible wind signal that may be hoisted is signal no. 3, it added… Read More