Coronavirus Lockdown: Phone Purchases Pick Up, Companies Shift Focus, and More!

More news about how the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines is being handled by the public and the government.

Tablet shipments to the Philippines have decreased to pre-pandemic levels. 

https://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=prAP51917724

According to the International Data Corporation’s (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Personal Computing Device Tracker, the Philippines’ tablet market declined 39.8% to just over 750,000 units in 2023.

“Tablet shipments dropped to pre-pandemic levels after averaging over a million units per year between 2020 to 2023. This was the lowest annual shipment recorded since 2012,” said Angela Medez, Senior Market Analyst at IDC Philippines.

Multiple launches across vendors drove 4Q23 to grow sequentially by 35.1% with Samsung’s new Galaxy Tab A9 & S9 FE series alone accounting for almost 40% of the quarter’s 218,000 shipments.

With shifting priorities among government agencies over procurement of tablets for educational purposes, IDC anticipates commercial tablet shipments to contract in 2024. Until tablets can differentiate themselves from smartphones and PCs through innovation and unique positioning, they may not be consumers’ top choice for electronic purchases. 

It seems tablets are not so popular amongst Filipinos. However cell phones are.

https://www.philstar.com/business/2024/03/03/2337580/phone-purchases-pick-post-covid

As the economy bounces back from the pandemic, Filipinos are starting to invest in new phones again, and they are mostly purchasing Chinese brands priced below $200.

According to the mobile phone tracker of International Data Corp. (IDC), the Philippines logged in a 3.8 percent hike in smartphone imports to 16.9 million units last year.

In the fourth quarter alone, over 80 percent of the 5.6 million shipments were in the $200 and under price band.

As such, the country snapped a two-year decline in phone shipments during the pandemic, when the lockdowns dried up the savings of Filipinos, cutting their budgets for several items.

IDC said brands from China made up four in five of these units purchased by Filipinos. Transsion – the maker of low-cost phones Infinix, itel and Tecno – took the top spot, growing 98.3 percent annually and accounting for over one-third of total shipments in 2023 as the company reached a new high with all three sub-brands positioned in the ultra low-end segment. Tecno, in particular, started to move upward with the introduction of its Phantom series in 2023, the company’s first smartphone at a over $500 price point.

On the other hand, other vendors slowed, with Realme registering the biggest annual decline of 27.6 percent, dropping to second spot as vendors struggled to compete in the $200 segment.

Realme made up 15.9 percent of the market, while OPPO placed third with 12.2 percent. Likewise, Chinese brand Vivo grabbed a share of 11.3 percent, while Xiaomi rounded up the list with 9.8 percent.

Notably, the largest phone manufacturers – Apple and Samsung – failed to make it to the top five list of the most preferred brands of Filipinos.

Medez said around 80 percent of the phone shipments in the fourth quarter of 2023 were sold at less than $200, encouraging Filipinos to spend part of the Christmas bonuses on a new unit. IDC expects the Philippine demand to be sustained in 2024.

“The market made a strong comeback toward the end of 2023, driven by year-end holiday festivities and Transsion’s new product lineup, propelling the $100 price segment to more than double both quarterly and annually,” she said.

IDC believes that local demand for phones will be bolstered by the continuous decline in inflation and the resurgence of consumer spending in the pandemic aftermath.

“The IDC has raised forecast for 2024 given the high performance in [the fourth quarter of 2023] and optimistic economic outlook, as inflation continues to decline and private spending grows,” Medez said.

Filipinos prefer cheap Chinese cell phones. 

After four years the University of the Philippines (UP) - Cebu Campus Tatak award has returned.

https://www.sunstar.com.ph/amp/story/cebu/tatak-up-awards-returns

AFTER a four-year hiatus, the search for an outstanding alumnus of the University of the Philippines (UP) - Cebu Campus returns.

On its fifth installment, a new batch of “Tatak UP” awardees will be recognized this May 3, 2024. The award ceremony was supposed to be held in 2020 but was postponed due to the global health pandemic. 

Jeruel Roa, president of the UP Alumni Association Cebu Chapter (UPACC), urged fellow UP alumni, students, faculties, administrations and even outsiders to nominate UP individuals with outstanding contribution to the community to be recognized.

The awarding will be held in line with the celebration of the 106th founding anniversary of UP Cebu. Roa said the nomination and acceptance for potential outstanding awardees was extended to March 15, 2024.

Instead of being limited to alumni of any UP system, Roa said the UPACC has expanded the scope of recognition to include anyone who has studied at least one semester in any UP degree-granting institution and is in good academic standing.

They must also not have received awards or recognition from other UP institutions or any award-giving bodies in UP.

He explained that this change is intended for individuals who have already outstanding recognition in the community but were not nominated or recognized by the UP institution.

Since its inception in 2011, “Tatak UP” has recognized 93 UP alumni, he added.

This seems like something that could have been reinstated sooner.

Filipino companies which invested in COVID-19 care products are diversifying as the threat has diminished.

https://mb.com.ph/2024/3/3/companies-shift-focus-as-covid-19-threat-diminishes

As the threat of Covid-19 has already been significantly reduced in the country, some companies which earlier invested in point-of-care and home test kits, have started shifting its operations to other business lines.

In the case of the local company MOHS, it pivoted its business ventures to businesses include products and services in retail, dermatology and medical services, technology services, distribution and logistics.  

“We knew as early as 2022 that we needed to pivot to non-COVID products with the pandemic winding down. We aggressively moved into new lines, particularly health care and dermatology, as we know these businesses well, and sought the vertical integration of our operations through strategic acquisitions in distribution and logistics and technology services,” said MOHS chief executive officer Michael B. Hortaleza.

“These new businesses remain true to MOHS’s DNA of engaging in businesses that add value to Philippine society. Our COVID diagnostics and consumables business and home-based test kits certainly helped ease the physiological and financial burden that the pandemic brought to many patients,” he added.

While the COVID-19 business amounted for 100 percent of sales in 2021 and 2022, non-COVID sales accounted for 40 percent of MOHS business in 2023 and is projected to increase to 99 percent in 2024.

In 2023, even with COVID-19 cases rapidly declining, MOHS’s revenues grew by 24 percent. 

The group’s chief finance officer, Kenji M. Asano Jr., says, “MOHS’s timely pivot beyond its COVID-19 business, under the strategic direction of CEO Hortaleza, positions MOHS for rapid and sustained growth in 2024 and beyond. MOHS’s new product and services mix is poised to meet the exciting challenges of the post-pandemic era.”   

Diversifying into other business lines with established brands and aggressive competitors meant that the playing field was going to be tougher and in the case of the MOHS, some of its business ventures include dermatology clinics—the Arkana neurocosmetics and Swiss Image skin care products, and Scatter scalp micropigmentation technology for hair loss and bald spots.

These companies have been shifting focus to non-COVID products since 2022.

The amusement tax for Filipino films has been waived for three years to help the film industry recovery from the effects of the pandemic. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1219841

The Metro Manila Council (MMC) has waived the 10 percent amusement tax for the screenings of all local films in the National Capital Region (NCR) for the next three years to help support and promote the Filipino film industry.

In a statement on Thursday, Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) acting chair and Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) overall concurrent chair Don Artes said the amusement tax “adds a financial burden to local film producers, potentially affecting the sustainability of the Filipino film industry.”

In response, the MMC passed a resolution to waive the tax, which will be adopted by each local government unit in Metro Manila.

“In support of the resolution, they will amend their respective local revenue codes to waive the amusement tax for Filipino movies exhibited in Metro Manila from Jan. 8 to Dec. 24 of every year for the next three years,” Artes said.

During an MMC meeting on Wednesday, film director Jose Javier Reyes, representing the Film Development Council of the Philippines, said the current state of the Filipino film industry is “dismal” and has declined significantly.

Reyes cited the lingering effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, streaming platforms, piracy, and heavy taxation as some of the biggest hurdles being faced by the film sector.

“A producer needs to pay three types of taxes for each film, including 10 percent amusement taxes together with other taxes, such as value-added tax and income tax, making us the most heavily taxed movie industry in the world,” he said.

The DILG says this will be a big help to the film industry. 

The OCBC Cycle has returned to Singapore for the first time since the pandemic. 

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/ocbc-cycle-2024-sea-championship-returns-first-since-covid-the-foldie-ride-makes-debut-093935038.html

This year's OCBC Cycle will see the Speedway SEA Championship return for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic, with nine teams from Southeast Asia competing at the annual mass cycling event on 11 and 12 May.

Meanwhile, a new category - The Foldie Ride by Brompton (40km) - will make its debut to cater to the expanding base of cyclists who ride foldable bikes.

OCBC Cycle announced these additions as it kicked off registrations on Tuesday (5 March) at orchardgateway. Organisers expect more than 7,000 cyclists to participate across 10 categories, with 1,000 cyclists taking part in The Foldie Ride by Brompton. The evergreen rides - The Sportive Ride (40km) and The Straits Times Ride (20km) - will feature again in this year’s event.

Teams from Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Philippines, Laos, Myanmar, Cambodia and Indonesia will be competing at the Speedway SEA Championship this year. Philippines took the crown in the last edition back in 2019, with Malaysia and Vietnam finishing second and third respectively.

Of course the Philippines is sending a team to compete. 

Coronavirus Lockdown: VCO Research, Stake Sale, and More!

More news about how the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines is being handled by the public and the government.

The big thing about post-pandemic recovery is tourism. Everyone wants everyone to visit. This includes Japan which has seen a rise in Filipino tourists. 

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/topstories/nation/898529/622k-filipinos-visited-japan-in-2023-jnto/story/

More than 620,000 Filipinos visited Japan last year as outbound tourism surged with the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions.

Data from the Japan National Tourism Organization shows there were 622,300 visitors from the Philippines in 2023, up 1.5% from the levels recorded in 2019 or before the COVID-19 pandemic.

''Last July, the number was the highest in ASEAN. People-to-people exchange is flourishing. We would like to keep our country attractive to the Filipino people,'' Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines Koshikawa Kazuhiko said in his speech during the annual National Day Reception at the Grand Hyatt Manila to celebrate the 64th birthday of Emperor Naruhito on Friday.

In comparison, 305,580 Japanese nationals visited the Philippines in 2023, according to the Department of Tourism.

Koshikawa said bilateral relations ''have evolved beyond traditional areas and made great progress in a variety of new areas with the warm support of the Filipino people.''

Locally tourism revenues are up from both local and foreign tourists. 

https://www.philstar.com/nation/2024/02/26/2336196/la-union-posts-p1-billion-tourism-revenues

The provincial government of La Union recorded P1.04 billion in tourism revenues last year.

Data from the office of Gov. Raphaelle Veronica David showed the easing of restrictions imposed during the pandemic resulted in a surge in tourist arrivals, both foreign and local.

The amount exceeded the P897 million that the province posted in 2022.

Tourist arrivals in 2023 increased to 550,359 from 494,387 in 2022.

The month of April recorded the most tourist arrivals with 68,567, followed by June with 55,131 and May with 53,921.

Of the total figure, 543,909 were local tourists while 6,450 were foreigners.

Forty-nine percent of domestic tourists came from Metro Manila followed by Central Luzon with 14 percent, Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon) with 13 and the Cordilleras, 10 percent.

The surfing site of Urbiztondo Beach in San Juan was the most popular tourist destination.

San Juan received 215,645 visitors in 2023 followed by Bauang with 100,762 and San Fernando, 97,726.

Among the province’s tourists attractions are the Tangadan Falls in San Gabriel, Poro Point Lighthouse, Ma-Cho Temple in San Fernando, Immuki Island in Balaoan, Baluarte Watch Tower and Namacpacan Church in Luna town, and the grape farms of Bauang.

David reminded residents and business owners to be mindful of the impact of the surge of visitors to the environment.

She said environmental protection should always be a priority.    

They are not specific on how tourists are destroying the environment. Is it garbage? 

Philippine Airlines is looking to sell a 20% to 25% stake in the company to help them "better navigate the global aviation industry after the COVID-19 pandemic." 

https://qa.philstar.com/business/2024/02/28/2336596/pal-revives-stake-sale-investors

Taipan Lucio Tan has revived plans to sell a significant stake in Philippine Airlines (PAL) to a strategic investor who could help the flag carrier soar to even greater heights, industry sources said.

The STAR learned that PAL’s management recently formed a team to “receive some offers,” which could come from foreign carriers to help the company better navigate the global aviation industry after the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The process (of the sale) has started and there is a team handling that,” a source confirmed.

However, the Tan family “is not relinquishing control” and the size of the stake it is willing to give up depends on the offer it would get, said the source.

Instead, the Tan family is willing to sell a 20 to 25 percent stake in the airline, which would be a “minority but significant stake” and attractive enough for a new investor to come in at this time.

The family of the tobacco and airline magnate deems that now is a good time to sell, especially because PAL has been performing well.

PAL is selling but is anyone really interested? 

During the pandemic there was some chatter about virgin coconut oil being a treatment for COVID-19. Researchers are asking for more money to continue trials. 

https://www.philstar.com/business/2024/02/26/2336092/coconut-processors-want-more-funding-vco-research

The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) need to fund more studies to prove the health benefits of virgin coconut oil (VCO), a coconut processors group said.

The VCO Producers and Traders Association of the Philippines (VCO Philippines) said a 2021 clinical trial on VCO as an effective adjunct treatment for COVID-19 cases in Valenzuela City has gained international publication.

The group said studies on the coconut derivative product would be a big boon to the coconut farming industry as well as the coconut processing industry, showing the multiplier effects of such government assistance to the sector.

VCO Philippines issued the call after a study spearheaded by the DOST-Food Nutrition and Research Institute (DOST-FNRI) titled, “Virgin coconut oil (VCO) supplementation relieves symptoms and inflammation amoing COVID-19 positive adults: A single-blind randomized trial,” was published by the Cambridge University Press on their prestigious Journal of Nutritional Science last Jan. 23.

The Journal of Nutritional Science is an international, peer-reviewed, online only, open access journal that welcomes high-quality research articles in all aspects of nutrition. The journal says that the underlying aim of all published research should be the development of nutritional concepts.

“More studies on the efficacy of VCO should be considered to determine whether VCO can provide safe and affordable adjunct therapy against viruses. This will also be valuable support for the VCO industry,” VCO Philippines said.

Certainly VCO is much safer than the gene therapy of the mRNA "vaccine."

The Confederation of Wearables Exporters of the Philippines wants to restore the direct subsidy to workers which was implemented by DOLE during the pandemic period. This they prefer over a wage hike which they say will kill jobs. 

https://mb.com.ph/2024/2/27/wearables-sector-wants-direct-gov-t-subsidy-to-workers-instead

The Confederation of Wearables Exporters of the Philippines (CONWEP), the largest wearables sector group in the country, categorically said they cannot afford any wage hike and instead urged government to reactivate the inflation subsidy to workers implemented during the pandemic period to ensure continued employment of its workers, but warned they may be able to retain only 20-30 percent of its current 160,000 direct workers if the planned P100 daily wage hike gets implemented. 

CONWEP made this position clear in a letter to Malacanang on Feb. 26 and similar letters submitted to the Senate, House of Representatives, secretaries of the Department of Trade and Industry and Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) as legislators pushed for P100 increase in daily minimum wage at the Senate and P350 at the House.

“We stand to lose more with wage increase of any amount,” said Maritess Jocson-Agoncillo, executive director of CONWEP, during an online press conference Tuesday, Feb. 27. 

Instead of a mandated wage hike, CONWEP would like the government to reactivate the monthly wage protection subsidy against inflation to workers of P600 to P1,000 over a period of two years. This direct subsidy to workers was implemented by DOLE during the pandemic period. 

CONWEP is asking to reimpose the subsidy or the job protection program by DOLE for two years or until 2026 for their workers as they qualify as a “distressed” industry. 

Agoncillo explained that the wearables sector is in “dire strait” even adding that its investors and buyers relayed their comments that implementing a wage hike just a few months after the last minimum salary increase took effect could be the “final nail on the coffin”.

CONWEP said that even without a wage hike, the sector is seen shedding at least 21,900 workers this year. 

According to Agoncillo, a major brand has stopped sourcing of sportswear from two factories since last year and shifted to Vietnam, resulting in more than 9,000 workers losing their jobs. 

With a mandated wage hike, Agoncillo said they fear that only 20 percent to 30 percent would be left out of its current 160,000 direct workers. More brands are also expected to shift sourcing. 

Once again we see that the post-pandemic economy is not good for everyone. However, it has been good for SM Malls.

https://www.rappler.com/business/sm-open-new-malls-2024/

The Philippines’ retail king SM Group is opening five new malls in the Philippines in 2024, two of them in Ilocos, the home region of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. 

The retail industry in the Philippines has rebounded big from the pandemic, with most retail businesses seeing high growth. 

“Immediately after the pandemic, people went back to the mall, flocked to the mall. Last year was a testament of that – we’re very happy with the numbers because we weren’t expecting it to be that good. We were expecting growth, definitely, but the result is very humbling, it really blew me,” Tan said. 

SM Prime Holdings had a net income of P40 billion in 2023, 33% higher than the P30 billion in 2022. Its mall business generated 56% of the company’s consolidated revenues. Mall rental income went up 24% to P61.3 billion in 2023 from P49.7 billion the year prior. 

“The favorable result we achieved in 2023 reflects the strong support and trust from our tenants and customers despite the economic challenges encountered in 2023. We continue to see this growth momentum this year as we pursue our expansion plans in our key businesses, and explore new opportunities to expand our businesses,” SM Prime president Jeffrey Lim said on February 19. 

Yes, Filipinos love "malling."

Coronavirus Lockdown: Business Still Struggling, Rediscovered Painting, and More!

More news about how the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines is being handled by the public and the government.

The DOH is reporting a 35% decrease in daily COVID-19 cases. 

https://mb.com.ph/2024/2/16/ph-reports-35-decrease-in-daily-covid-19-cases-doh

The Department of Health (DOH) said on Friday, Feb. 16, that 661 new Covid-19 cases were recorded from Feb. 6 to 12.

It noted that these cases showed a 35 percent decrease compared to the previous week from Jan. 30 to Feb. 5.

Based on the latest data, seven of the newly reported cases have been classified as "severe” or “critical.”

Meanwhile, the DOH recorded two additional Covid-19-related deaths that occurred between Jan. 30 to Feb. 12.

It was also stated that as of Feb. 11, hospitals across the Philippines had admitted a total of 184 severe and critical Covid-19 patients for treatment.

Of the 1,345 ICU beds designated for Covid-19 patients, 151 of them, or 11 percent, are currently occupied.

DOH also noted that 1,528 out of 11,291 non-ICU Covid-19 beds, constituting 14 percent, are also in use.

Related to this, it reminded the public that practicing different layers of protection can limit transmission among vulnerable groups and in enclosed, overcrowded areas.

Frequent handwashing, using masks, social distancing, and providing adequate ventilation in closed settings altogether remain effective prevention measures.

Testing is done to confirm cases to determine appropriate clinical management and isolation at home may be done for mild cases, the DOH added.

Despite the decrease don't forget to wash your hands, wear a mask, and social distance. 

Tourism in Cebu is slowly recovering but construction is struggling to reach pre-pandemic levels.  

https://www.philstar.com/the-freeman/cebu-news/2024/02/18/2334274/business-still-struggling

Tourism in Cebu is still recovering while the construction business is not as dynamic as it used to be.

These were the observations disclosed by Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Charles Kenneth Co during the latest episode of The Freeman’s “Hot Seat”.

Co said that while the food businesses are already doing okay, the tourism sector is still recovering and the construction industry is slowing down.

“Food business, medyo okay-okay,” he said, as people who were in lockdown due to the pandemic shifted from ordering online to going out to explore and eat out again, as evidenced by the current traffic situation.

He, however, said that the construction industry has slowed down the situation was even better during the pandemic.

“Construction projects, nag lie low pud karon,” Co said.

He said there are currently only a few construction projects, especially government projects.

“Little government projects especially in Cebu unlike in the Build Build Build program (under former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte’s term), when it was very strong ang atoang construction sector,” said Co.

“That’s not only for the Philippines, not only to Cebu… During the pandemic, the government was really conscious of the lockdown. Most of the government’s priming, nibuga gyud ug maayo ang government…. Now, slow down even in China and other world economies,” he added.

Co said the Philippines is even luckier as it still has the Business Process Outsourcing sector as well as the Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW), as they have kept the country Gross Domestic Product to grow up at 4 to 5 percent.

For Cebu’s tourism industry, Co said, it is still recovering and has not rebounded yet to its pre-pandemic time.

This, Co said, could have been caused by “territorial disputes” that affects tourists from coming here.

“We need to look at other Asian neighbors also for tourism,” he said.

In particular, Co said, hotels here are already doing okay, but not that much for resorts.

“Resorts?  Not so…. Lesser than pre-pandemic,” he said, adding that among other factors, non-resumption of many direct flights to Cebu could be a reason.

He also said that to help address the situation, the government could help by making visa applications easier for visitors.

Cebu appears to be contradicting the DOT which claims tourism isn't struggling but is actually thriving and will fully recover this year. This report also contradicts the claims of the other reports regarding business growth post-pandemic. 

https://business.inquirer.net/446029/growth-champions-shine-post-covid-2

Philippine business seems to be well on its way to recovery after the devastation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic that struck the country hard in 2020.

The Philippines Growth Champions 2024, the Top 30 companies in the country that achieved the highest percentage growth in revenues between 2019 and 2022, impress, even dazzle, with their success during those three years, notwithstanding the fact that 2020 was a year that could be written off for most enterprises.

The highly diverse roster includes employment services, e-commerce ventures, information technology (IT) and software, real estate, advertising and marketing, financial technology services, construction and engineering, health care and life science, manufacturing and professional and scientific services.

Compiled by the Philippine Daily Inquirer and the Germany-based Statista, the world’s leading data and business intelligence portal, the rated companies had to meet the following criteria:

• Revenues of at least P5 million in 2019

• Revenues of at least P30 million in 2022

• The company must be independent (acts largely independently in its business decisions and does not derive financial benefits from its parent company)

• The company is headquartered in the Philippines

• The revenue growth between 2019 and 2022 was primarily organic (i.e. “internally” generated)

For the 2024 Growth Champions selection, the Inquirer and Statista invited companies to participate. Application period was from Aug. 7 to Oct. 31, 2023. Revenue figures had to be certified by the chief financial officer, chief executive officer or a member of the company’s executive committee.

All data reported by the companies were processed and checked by Statista. Missing data were research in detail. The minimum average growth rate for the covered period to be included in this year’s ranking was 7.04 percent.

While the ranking involved a complex procedure and research was extensive, the Inquirer and Statista do not claim that the ranking is complete. Some companies did not want to make their figures public or did not participate for other reasons.

The caveat is that these ranking are based on self-reporting. 

A Filipino based in Singapore who picked up his paintbrush during the pandemic is having his first show in Manila. 

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/lifestyle/artandculture/897792/this-singapore-based-filipino-architect-rediscovered-painting-in-the-pandemic-now-he-is-in-art-fa/story/

At the Art Fair Philippines media preview, Johnrey Quiban couldn’t stop smiling. He couldn’t believe his luck either. 

It’s the 38-year-old Singapore-based Filipino architect’s first time participating in the highly acclaimed art event, as one of the artists that Galerie Stephanie is exhibiting at their space, in Booth 44 on the 6th floor of The Link Carpark.

“It’s all overwhelming,” Quiban tells GMA News Online, wide-eyed. “Bago lahat sa ‘kin,” he adds.

While Quiban has always enjoyed painting as a hobby, he forgot about it when he started working as an architect.

It was when he moved to Singapore in 2012 that he picked up his paintbrush again, and when the pandemic hit, Quiban went on overdrive.

“It was out of boredom at first,” he admits. “Paint lang ako nang paint. Duon ako nakaka-release ng energy and stress.”

With strong appreciation for the likes of Monet and Juan Luna — “minimalist landscape impressionism,” he says — Quiban paints textured scenes of natural landscapes like mountains and streams, of oceans and of what looks like forgotten foot paths. They’re almost like vacation photos except Quiban’s landscapes are moodier and darker. 

All his art is emotion-based, the artist says. “Ang process niya is, I have no idea what to paint,” Quiban says. "It's just a feeling, like a mood.”

“It's like, an emotion left unexpressed,” he adds, saying he doesn’t stop until he feels that distinct “lukso ng dugo.”

He likes to paint in the dead of the night, in the dark because “duon ako nakakakuha ng energy.” 

"At this point in my life - I'm 38 - hindi ko alam kung depression or anxiety or kung ano man 'to. So china-channel ko ang mga 'yon to this thing," Quiban said.

When he rediscovered painting in the pandemic, his process also included uploading photos of his works on Instagram.

In 2021, Singaporean gallery Sound of Art took notice. “Someone messaged me, they went to my house to check some of my works. Then they asked me to join a group show.”

Things were going well with Sound of Art, with whom he would often join group shows, when Filipina art enthusiast, Mia Jaranilla, found him also on Instagram the following year. 

According to Quiban, that was the first time he’s ever encountered Jaranilla. “I didn’t know her. Nagulat na lang ako sa kanya,” the artist recalls.

Jaranilla messaged him on Instagram, requesting to see a few more of his works. She happened to like them, and then offered to help him get his paintings exhibited in Manila.

It takes a lot of work but any hobby can become a career. 

The National Anti-Poverty Commission  says the Philippines has still not reach pre-pandemic employment levels. 

https://mb.com.ph/2024/2/19/philippines-sees-rise-in-employment-but-pre-pandemic-level-not-yet-reached-napc

The National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC) on Monday, February 19, acknowledged the progress in the country's employment rate but stressed the need for continued efforts to recover from pandemic losses.

When asked how is the country’s employment rate going, Danilo Laserna, NAPC-Formal Labor and Migrant Workers Sector Alternate Sectoral Representative said in an interview: “We have not yet reached (pre-pandemic employment) there are still many workers who were laid off during the pandemic.”

He explained that because during the pandemic the skeletal workforce lost almost 75 percent.

Although, Laserna pointed out that "Formal labor is slowly returning, with businesses, particularly in the service industry, reopening —-this only shows that there is an “increase” in Philippines economic activities.

He further highlighted the continued deployment of Filipino migrant workers abroad indicates relaxed restrictions and returning to normal.

“In fact, our migrant workers continue to be deployed in different parts of the world. Restrictions especially on health establishment declarations have disappeared, so their deployment is okay,” he said.

Moreover, addressing the reports on the Philippines' lowest unemployment rate in over two decades, Laserna expressed cautious optimism.

"We (NAPC) think that the increase in employment and underemployment is the result of seasonal, especially the data shown by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) data, a large part of which is from the contribution of seasonal rates," he said.

The Philippines' unemployment rate dropped to 3.1 percent in December 2023, according to a PSA Labor Force Survey ---this shows a decline of 617,000 unemployed individuals compared to December 2022

This also means that the employment rate surged during the period, which was posted at 96.9 percent or 50.52 million employed individuals from 95.7 percent in December 2022.

"Christmas season, for example, sees a surge in demand for workers in tourism and hospitality,” he added.

Meanwhile, the NAPC added that while the Philippines shows positive signs of employment recovery, they still urged continued efforts to address underemployment, especially supporting those still struggling, and striving for pre-pandemic employment levels.

"Our capacity to engage in services and receive incoming goods has reached 100 percent, but we still need more workers compared to pre-pandemic levels," he said.

“Besides, we will also look at the pattern of not increasing radically, nor decreasing radically, the rate is almost stable,” Laserna said.

Thus, he added that “we still need to focus on re-integrating those who lost their jobs during the pandemic."

Many of the jobs lost during the pandemic are never going to return.

The DepEd is amending the school calendar to shift back to the pre-pandemic April-May break. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1219220

The Department of Education (DepEd) on Tuesday released its amended school calendar amid its gradual shift back to the pre-pandemic April-May school break.

According to DepEd Order No. 3, series of 2024 dated Feb. 19, the “adjusted end of the school year (SY) shall be May 31, 2024.”

The DepEd urged schools to conduct all end-of-school-year rites from May 29 to 31, as the school break is set from June 1 to July 26.

Moreover, the start of the SY 2024-2025 is set for July 29 which will then end on May 16, 2025.

Besides this, the DepEd also reminded schools that they are not allowed to give teachers all forms of assignments for the entire June.

“No voluntary or mandatory tasks or activities shall be assigned to teachers from June 1 to 30,” the DO reads.

The said adjustments were made in response to the petitions to gradually revert the school calendar to a pre-pandemic setup, as well as the results of consultations with various stakeholders and a study conducted by the Philippine Normal University (PNU).

Maybe that will fix the education problem the Philippines is facing?

Coronavirus Lockdown: Learning Loses, Post-Covid Recovery Survey, and More!

More news about how the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines is being handled by the public and the government.

The DFA is ready to acommodate pre-pandemic levels of visa applications. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1218482

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) is ready to process more than 1 million Philippine visas annually as pandemic restrictions continue to ease.

In a press briefing on Wednesday, DFA Office of Consular Affairs Visa Section Director Leilani Feliciano said the country was able to issue at least 1.62 million visas in 2019.

“We have issued 1.6 million Philippine visas to foreign tourists and travelers in 2019. It’s just that during the pandemic, everything has significantly declined,” she said. “We have the capacity to process and issue visas and go back to that pre-pandemic level.”

In 2020, visa issuances went down to 159,440 as governments across the world imposed travel restrictions due to the coronavirus disease 2019.

The following year, the figure further declined to 82,260 as travel throughout the year was virtually at a halt.

The total grew to 217,265 in 2023, with the Philippine Embassies and Consulates in China, India, and Dubai as some of the top visa-issuing posts of DFA.

Meanwhile, the DFA has yet to identify a specific date for the resumption of the e-Visa program in China after suspending it for improvement last year.

The department said the program is still undergoing a “period of reassessment,” specifically on the payment aspect.

Umm, I thought tourism levels were back up? Shouldn't this be a no-brainer?

The economic lockdowns killed jobs but apparently now the Philippines is virtually at full employment. 

https://mb.com.ph/2024/2/7/ph-virtually-enjoying-full-employment-says-salceda

It's as good as full employment 

Economist-solon Albay 2nd district Rep. Joey Salceda gave this glowing assessment of the country’s latest unemployment figures, which are at their lowest in almost 20 years. 

"As far as economics goes, a 3.1 percent unemployment rate is as good as full employment," Salceda, chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means. said in a statement Tuesday, Feb. 7. 

"This jobs report confirms that the Philippines is the fastest growing economy in the region for 2023. This could have been even brighter, if government spending only caught up to the rest of the economy last year," he said. 

According to Salceda, the year 2023--President Marcos' first full year in office--created some 1.5 million jobs, including some 44,000 manufacturing jobs, and some 777,000 jobs in the manufacturing sector. 

"The President’s policies and his signaling have restored confidence in the private sector. Business expectations are upbeat and more or less where it was prior to the pandemic. The production index in November 2023, just before the jobs survey would have been conducted, was also the highest it had ever been since the pandemic," he said. 

"All in all, it seems that the private sector–especially industry–views this administration as a government they can work well with–and has reflected it in their appetite to hire new workers," added the Bicolano. 

Salceda said the industry sector grew by 869,000 jobs year-on-year, "a sign that businesses in capital-intensive sectors are digging in and producing more'. 

The agriculture, forestry, and fisheries sectors grew by a combined 555,000 jobs, he noted. 

What are they basin this on? A huge chunk of the Philippine economy is not based on jobs that can be tracked!

The PSA is doing a survey in North Mindanao. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1218704

The Philippine Statistics Agency (PSA) on Monday started here a survey on information technology and post-coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) in the Northern Mindanao region.

In a statement, PSA Region 10 (Northern Mindanao) officer-in-charge, Dr. Janith Aves, said the effort forms part of the 2023 National Information and Communications Technology Household Survey (NICTHS) from Feb. 5 to March 6.

According to the PSA website, the survey will generate updated benchmarks for key Information and Communications Technology (ICT) indicators that have seen a surge during the pandemic, as accelerated use of ICTs has been widely observed by households, individuals, government, and the private sector.

Aves said 2,612 sample households will be interviewed by 20 statistical researchers for the household and individual questionnaires, while selected barangays in the region will be interviewed by seven team supervisors.

"The PSA is asking for the support of the public for the successful conduct of the survey. The office also assures the respondents that the data which will be collected by the statistical researchers will be held strictly confidential," she said.

PSA field personnel were trained on the concepts and administration of questionnaires through computer-aided personal interviewing, field operation guidelines, and the use of Android operating system tablets to ensure quality data collection, she added.

The NICTHS is commissioned by PSA and aims to provide data on household and individual indicators in the post-recovery period following the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.

It is part of the Digital Philippines initiative of the Department of Information and Communications Technology that provides Filipinos with access to crucial ICT infrastructure and services.

It seems this survey is all about how Filipinos are using technology.

Tourism is recovering but now La Union says tourism recovery is up!

https://www.bworldonline.com/the-nation/2024/02/12/575254/la-union-posts-tourism-recovery/

LA UNION tourism has gained momentum since the pandemic, welcoming 550,359 tourists in 2023, marking an 11-percent increase from the previous year’s 494,387, the provincial government said on Monday.

Governor Raphaelle Veronica “Rafy” Ortega-David hailed the upswing, attributing it to tourists rebounding from the pandemic slump. The figures, based on overnight visitors reported by local tourism offices to the Department of Tourism, do not include tourists passing through. The influx also fueled a 16% rise in tourism revenue, reaching over P1 billion in 2023 from P897 million in 2022.

Of the visitors, 6,450 were international tourists, and 543,909 were domestic. April saw the highest arrival rate, with 68,567 visitors.

Urbiztondo beach in San Juan topped the list with 257,559 day visitors, followed by Namacpacan Church in Luna town and Macho Temple in the City of San Fernando.

Other attractions included Tangadan Falls, Bauang’s grape farms, Baluarte Watch Tower, and private-owned destinations like Halo-Halo De Iloko and Pugo Adventure.

A visitor satisfaction survey, La Union Wonders and Adventure, revealed a 57% repeat visitor rate. Most tourists came from Manila, Central Luzon, CALABARZON, and the Cordillera Administrative Region.

Governor Ortega-David expressed gratitude for the province’s growth and pledged to position La Union as the Heart of Agri-Tourism in Northern Luzon by 2025.

That is good but that is what is everyone is saying!

Healthcare expenses are going up!

https://business.inquirer.net/445015/expensive-health-care-feared-as-hospitals-deal-with-rising-costs

The country’s hospitals fear rising labor costs and operating expenses could make health care more expensive.

“Expenses are increasing now,” Philippine Hospital Association president Jose P. Santiago said, noting that these could be attributed to rising costs of utilities, such as water and electricity.

“[And you] really have to upgrade your machines and to keep it really compatible with the times … The old machine that you have before? You have to upgrade. And that will be very expensive on our part,” he told reporters last week on the sidelines of the press conference for the Philippine Pharma and Healthcare Expo that will be held at SMX Convention Center on Feb. 14 to Feb. 16.

Santiago, whose group is composed of around 2,000 private and government hospitals, noted revenues of private hospitals alone have gone down annually by an average 5 percent to 10 percent since the pandemic hit.

“If your operational costs—such as salaries of workers—go up, the hospital will need to draw it from somewhere. It could mean increasing the rates for laboratory tests, ancillary procedures and accommodations. So health costs should also increase,” he said.

He noted, however, that they were “conservative” in hiking rates so as not to unduly burden patients. “Hopefully, we can come up with a solution in the increasing costs of hospitals.”

According to Santiago, health-care professionals choosing to go abroad is still an ever-present problem in the industry. A shortfall in the number of nurses remained in the “thousands,” he added.

“Europe, North America, even in Asia, [as well] as New Zealand and Australia. They are attracting nurses from the Philippines,” he said.He noted local hospitals could not compete with the salary offered by other countries.

“Here, the [monthly] salary is about P30,000 to P35,000. I think in Europe, they are offered P90,000 to P100,000,” he said. Nurses are also provided additional benefits abroad, such as free education, lodging and monetary incentives for the first six months or one year of work, he noted.

The obvious solution is to increase pay.  But it is not so easy.

We all knew the COVID lockdowns destroyed education but now it is official. 

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1903176/world-bank-adviser-on-duration-of-school-closures-during-covid-19-inflicted-the-most-learning-losses

The duration of school closures emerged as the primary factor behind the learning losses incurred by countries due the COVID-19 pandemic, World Bank Senior Adviser for Education Harry Patrinos said  after presenting his study findings to the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS). 

In his study, Patrinos noted that school closures caused by the COVID-19 lockdowns resulted in significant learning losses on students, with those from disadvantaged backgrounds experiencing the greatest effects.

“For every week of closure, learning levels decline by almost 1 percent,” Patrinos said in a statement.

“Twenty weeks closed translates to losing almost a year’s worth of learning,” he added.

In fact, the study found that various factors such as income, school quality, Internet access, existence of private schools, or the severity of the COVID-19 outbreak itself, had no significant impact on learning losses.

According to Patrinos, the long-term consequences of the said losses potentially translate to reduced human capital development and earnings.

“Younger and disadvantaged students are expected to be hit the hardest, exacerbating existing inequalities,” he said.

Due to this, Patrinos urged governments — especially in low- and middle-income countries — to focus on education for marginalized populations, and address the learning setbacks and financial burdens resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We need to improve on what we do on [national] assessment and make that [data] available for teachers and policymakers,” he emphasized. 

He also said the governments should provide direct support like tutoring and extended school hours, alongside protecting education budgets, as well as to prepare for future disruptions by investing in resilient education systems and measuring learning outcomes.

Anyone paying attention will know this is not news.