More news about how the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines is being handled by the public and the government.
Diplomacy was put on hold during the pandemic. Now it's back on.
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| https://philstar.com/headlines/2025/02/21/2423176/palau-president-surangel-whipps-jr-visit-philippines |
Palau President Surangel Whipps Jr. is scheduled to visit the Philippines from Sunday to Monday, February 23 to 24, for an official visit, the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) announced on Friday, February 21.
Palau is an island country in the Pacific Ocean, within the region of Micronesia. It is part of the continent of Oceania.
Whipps is set to visit President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
“At their bilateral meeting, President Marcos is expected to exchange views with his Palau counterpart on expanding existing bilateral cooperation on fisheries, trade, investment, connectivity and people-to-people ties as well as exploring new avenues of collaboration such as on health and labor. The two leaders will also discuss South-South cooperation, regional concerns and common advocacies at the multilateral arena,” the PCO said in a statement.
The PCO said that there are 3,000 Filipinos who live and work in Palau, which is already 17% of the island country’s population. Palau has a meager population of 18,000 as of 2024, according to the BBC.
The Philippines and Palau will celebrate 30 years of diplomatic relations in 2027.
Both countries have overlapping claims in maritime territories, which they have both bowed to resolve in 2021. Such talks were, however, delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Philippines also previously had an embassy in Palau but was shut down in 2012 due to budget constraints.
According to a Philippine Daily Inquirer report, then-Palau President Johnson Toribiong had appealed to the late president Benigno Aquino III not to close the embassy in Palau, as many of the migrant workers in Palau are from the Philippines.
Thankfully the two nations are diplomatically discussing thier maritime claims rather than being aggressive as China is doing.
Foreign tourism is Boracay is not yet at pre-pandemic levels. They are investigating ways to attract more foreigners.
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| https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1244647 |
Tourism-related fees in Boracay Island, Malay, Aklan, are currently under review to ensure competitiveness with other top destinations like Bohol and Palawan, aiming to attract more foreign visitors and sustain the industry.
Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Western Visayas Regional Director engineer Juan Jovian Ingeniero said he recently participated in discussions with the Department of Tourism, officials of Aklan provincial and Malay municipal governments, and other stakeholders to address the issue.
“They are now studying the fees of Boracay because the rates have to be competitive with the other resorts like the Bohol, the Palawan to sustain the tourism there,” he said in a media interview on Friday.
Further meetings will determine whether amendments to Malay’s existing ordinance are necessary to lower fees and encourage more foreign tourists.
Aklan Governor Joen Miraflores has expressed support for government initiatives aimed at sustaining the island’s tourism sector, according to Ingeniero.
Before the pandemic, Boracay’s tourist arrivals were evenly split between domestic and foreign visitors.
However, the current trend leans heavily toward local travelers, and efforts are underway to restore the 50-50 ratio, Ingeniero added.
Currently, visitors to Boracay pay PHP150 each in terminal and environmental fees, plus an additional environmental fee upon departure, alongside boat fare costs.
According to the Malay Municipal Tourism Office, 92,254 tourists arrived in Boracay from Feb. 1-15, comprising 65,230 domestic visitors, 24,905 foreign tourists, and the remainder overseas Filipino workers and returning Filipinos.
Maybe there are other factors besides fees to take into consideration.
Pilar, Cebu is still reeling from the economic lockdowns during the pandemic. A new solar-powered ice plant might change their fortunes.
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| https://philstar.com/the-freeman/cebu-news/2025/02/23/2423557/solar-powered-ice-plant-launched-pilar-cebu |
A new solar-powered ice block machine is set to launch for the fishing industry in Pilar, Cebu to provide sustainable and cost-efficient solutions to preserve marine products and drive economic growth.
The Department of Agriculture’s Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization (PHilMech) formally turned over the facility to local fisherfolk on Wednesday, February 19, as part of the government’s post-pandemic recovery efforts. The initiative falls under the Establishment of Agricultural and Fisheries Post harvest Facilities project, spearheaded by Senator Cynthia A. Villar, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Agriculture.
According to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), Pilar’s poverty rate nearly doubled in 2021, surging to 45.3 percent from 23.5 percent in 2018 largely due to the economic downturn brought by the COVID-19 pandemic. Fishing and tourism remain the town’s main sources of livelihood, making the new ice plant a crucial addition to its economic infrastructure.
Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel Jr. has emphasized the importance of ice plants in improving food security and income stability for fishing communities.
“Building ice plants will extend the shelf life of agricultural products, especially fish,” he said. “With proper icing, fish can remain fresh for up to seven days, allowing fishermen to transport their catch to markets where demand is higher,” he added.
Perhaps more fishing communities will now be getting solar-powered ice factories.
Makati City has fully recovered from the pandemic as evidenced by the collection of 61% of targeted revenue for 2025.
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| https://philstar.com/nation/2025/02/23/2423522/makatihits-61-percent-target-revenue-2025 |
Makati City took only one month to hit over half of its target revenue for 2025, based on figures released by the city treasury office.
The financial center of the Philippines collected P11.77 billion in revenues as of Jan. 31, P7 billion of which came from business taxes.
Makati aims to collect P19 billion this year. The P11.77 billion it already collected represents 61 percent of this target.
The city treasury office reported that real property taxes added P4.2 billion to Makati’s coffers, nearing its full-year target of P5.1 billion. Roughly P400 million of other revenues come from local fees and charges, economic enterprises and interest earnings.
Over 34,000 businesses in Makati, 439 of which were newly registered this year, amassed a combined gross sale of P2.05 trillion.
In a statement on Friday, Makati Mayor Abby Binay, who is running for the Senate, lauded businesses for fully bouncing back from the pandemic.
“We are off to an excellent start this year and we owe this largely to our business community that has been steadfast in its support and confidence in the city government throughout my term as Makati Mayor,” Binay said.
“It is really heartening to see that the local economy has fully recovered from the pandemic and is even stronger and more vibrant than ever,” she added.
Too bad the same cannot be said for every other city in the Philippines.
A cultural shift is causing more Filipinos to adopt a You Only Live Once mindset.
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| https://philstar.com/headlines/climate-and-environment/2025/02/24/2423844/80-filipinos-adopt-yolo-mindset-amid-uncertainties-study |
The unpredictable nature of life has sparked a cultural shift among Filipinos, with most adopting the “you only live once” (YOLO) mindset.
A 2024 study by global research firm Ipsos found that eight in 10 Filipinos prioritize living in the moment due to uncertainties about the future.
This figure surpasses the global average of 64% who share the YOLO mindset, with the Philippines ranking third, following Hong Kong and Thailand.
This aligns with another finding that people worldwide highly value personal control over their lives, seeing it as the “ultimate sign of success.”
The study, which surveyed about 1,000 respondents from each of the 50 countries, described this global trend as “nouveau nihilism” — a modern take on nihilism, the belief that life has no inherent meaning.
Survey results suggest that as the future feels increasingly uncertain, more people are choosing to focus on the present, seeing it as more rewarding than long-term planning.
“There is now a generational disconnect when it comes to milestones like buying homes, getting married and starting families,” the study said, attributing this shift to financial hardships.
This trend is also linked to hedonism, a form of happiness driven by pleasure-seeking and avoiding discomfort, often resulting in short-term gratification.
It is frequently contrasted with eudaimonia, where happiness stems from self-fulfillment and living a life perceived as meaningful.
When combined with declining trust in government, hedonism fuels a new form of nihilism that erodes public support, Ipsos said.
According to the study, this implies that people are increasingly driven to assert personal autonomy to counter feelings of helplessness amid an unpredictable future.
Key factors affecting this trend include climate change, escalating geopolitical conflicts, persistent inequality and fears of another pandemic.
It's hard to believe that anyone in this very religious nation is a nihilist.
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