MVP Group still keen on agri investments

 Economy
Feb 232014
 
MVP Group still keen on agri investments

MANILA, Philippines – The group of businessman Manuel V. Pangilinan is still intent on pursuing agriculture investments in the country despite the difficulty in acquiring substantial tracts of land. Interviewed on the sidelines of the launch of new TV 5 program Yaman ng Bayan on Friday night, Panglinan said Hong-Kong based First Pacific Co. Ltd. is still interested in pursuing commercial rice cultivation in the Philippines and bullish about sugar prospects in the country. Pangilinan said the prospective agricultural investments in the Philippines would be carried out by First Pacific’s food unit PT Indofood, the largest food producer in Indonesia. In 2012, Pangilinan and hybrid rice seed grower SL Agritech Corp. engaged in talks for a partnership on large scale rice farming in which First Pacific would provide the tracts of land while SL Agritech will provide the rice seeds. “It’s still under discussion with SL Agritech. But it would still be pursued here,” Pangilinan said. SL Agritech, owned by businessman Henry Lim Bon Liong  is a subsidiary of the Sterling Paper group of companies. It was formed in 1998, performing research work on hybrid rice. At least 10,000 hectares is needed for the project. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Pangilinan said he is interested in the development of agriculture as a major industry in the country because of numerous opportunities and challenges brought about by the implementation of the free trade regime within Southeast Asia in 2015. “We want to go for agriculture as a Read More …

Nido Petroleum bullish on Phl Indonesia prospects

 Economy
Feb 032014
 
Nido Petroleum bullish on Phl Indonesia prospects

MANILA, Philippines –  Nido Petroleum an Australia-listed oil and gas company, is banking on favorable prospects for its projects  this year,  including an exploration venture in the Philippines. In its 2014 outlook published yesterday, Nido managing director Phil Byrne said the company is looking forward to positive results for its projects in Indonesia and the Philippines. “We are very excited about 2014. We have underlying production from the Galoc field produce of about over $50-million net free cash flow which will underpin our work program through 2014,” he said. He said the focus is four well drillings, which will form Nido’s cornerstone of activities for 2014.  “We got three wells in Indonesia and one well in Philippines,” he said, referring to Service Contract 63 in Northwest Palawan. He said Nido hopes to start the drilling program for the four wells within this month. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 For SC 63, Nido has signed a farm-in agreement with Dragon Oil, a United Arab Emirates (UAE)-based company. Under the agreement signed last month, Dragon Oil will acquire a 40-percent participating interest in SC 63 from Nido’s current 50-percent participating interest in the service contract. To earn its 40-percent interest from Nido, Dragon Oil will pay on behalf of Nido, 56 percent of the cost of the Baragatan-1 exploration well based on a $25- million cost cap. For the second stage of the farm-out agreement, Nido will seek to secure an additional 10-percent participating interest in SC 63 Read More …

Landmark pact offers 40M people hope

 News
Nov 022013
 
Landmark pact offers 40M people hope

At least 40 million people depend on the sea in areas bounded by three countries—the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia—that have entered into an agreement to protect and jointly manage the rich marine resources that these areas hold. ORLANDO MALIWANAG DAVAO CITY—On the map, the Sulu and Celebes Seas look like semi-enclosed twin basins separated only by a chain of islands called the Sulu archipelago. Experts from the Sulu-Celebes Sea Sustainable Fisheries Management Project (SCS-SFMP), however, noted that the marine life in these two water basins is not separate: The Pacific Ocean flows into Sulu Sea in Northern Mindanao and between the Sangihe-Talaud archipelago in North Sulawesi. “Surface waters from one basin overflow to the other every two weeks,” SCS-SFMP said. Bounded by the Philippines’ southwest coast, Malaysia’s Sabah island on north Borneo and Indonesia’s Sulawesi island, the Sulu and Celebes seas form the Sulu Sulawesi Marine Ecoregion (SSME), a large marine ecosystem now considered one of the world’s 200 most critical, which over 40 million people depend on for food and livelihood. Food security On Wednesday, Oct. 30, a three-country commitment to protect and manage this common marine area was signed with the hope of ensuring food security for over 40 million people, said Romeo Trono, regional project manager of the SCS-SFMP of the United Nations Office for Special Services. The landmark agreement, which environment and fisheries officials from the three countries signed, called for the implementation of a strategic action plan to deal with the impact of declining resources Read More …

Kerry assures CEOs on US role in Asia-Pacific

 News
Oct 072013
 
Kerry assures CEOs on US role in Asia-Pacific

5:41 pm | Monday, October 7th, 2013 U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry AP PHOTO BALI, Indonesia — U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is seeking to assure Asia-Pacific business leaders that nothing will shake America’s commitment to the region and that the current government shutdown in Washington will soon be over and forgotten. Kerry told executives at an Asian economic summit in Indonesia on Monday that the shutdown is simply a “moment in politics.” He guarantees that America will move beyond it and will come back more resilient than ever. Kerry is filling in for President Barack Obama, who was forced to cancel his participation to deal with shutdown. Kerry joked that he had tried to replace a president when he ran for the White House in 2004 but that standing in for Obama was not what he had in mind. Follow Us Recent Stories: Complete stories on our Digital Edition newsstand for tablets, netbooks and mobile phones; 14-issue free trial. About to step out? Get breaking alerts on your mobile.phone. Text ON INQ BREAKING to 4467, for Globe, Smart and Sun subscribers in the Philippines. Tags: ASEAN , Global Nation , John Kerry , US Factual errors? Contact the Philippine Daily Inquirer’s day desk. Believe this article violates journalistic ethics? Contact the Inquirer’s Reader’s Advocate. Or write The Readers’ Advocate: c/o Philippine Daily Inquirer Chino Roces Avenue corner Yague and Mascardo Streets, Makati City, Metro Manila, Philippines Or fax nos. +63 2 8974793 to 94

With Obama out, other leaders take APEC main stage

 News
Oct 072013
 
With Obama out, other leaders take APEC main stage

BALI — Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and other Asia-Pacific leaders took center stage Monday at a regional summit after President Barack Obama was a no-show due to the U.S. government shutdown. Leaders of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, meeting amid tight security on this tropical island in eastern Indonesia, urged faster work on reforms meant to break down trade barriers and improve competitiveness. But their summit meetings aren’t all work and there are some light moments. Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono took the chance to pick up a guitar and sing his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, a happy 61st birthday. Abe, struggling to extricate Japan from two decades of stagnation, pledged to move ahead with reforms he has promised as part of his “Abenomics” economic strategy. “It’s not easy for a country stuck in deflation for 15 years to get out,” Abe said. He promised measures to ensure that an increase in Japan’s sales tax, which has driven consumer confidence to record lows, does not derail the economic recovery he has nurtured since taking office last December. “Now we can wipe out the doom and gloom atmosphere in the Japanese economy,” Abe said. Speaking to a gathering of business and political leaders, he also sought to reassure other Asian countries, especially those that suffered colonization and invasion before and during World War II, over Japan’s efforts to upgrade its military. “We are aspiring to become a pro-active contributor to stability and security in the world as a country that Read More …

Palace budget for Aquino’s trip to APEC, ASEAN meets: a modest P14.3M

 News
Oct 062013
 
Palace budget for Aquino’s trip to APEC, ASEAN meets: a modest P14.3M

Philippine President Benigno Aquino III smiles upon his arrival at Bali airport, Indonesia, Sunday, Oct. 6, 2013 to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum. AP Photo MANILA, Philippines — Amid the furor over the allocation of additional pork barrel to lawmakers in May 2012, President Aquino is attending two regional summits in Southeast Asia with a budget of P14.3 million. The President left on a chartered flight Sunday morning for Bali, Indonesia to attend the 21st Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Economic Leaders’ Meeting and CEO Summit from Oct. 6 to 8. Joining him was an 84-member delegation, including Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima, Trade Secretary Gregory Domingo, Socio-Economic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan, Cabinet Secretary to the President Jose Rene Almendras, Presidential Management Staff head Julia Andrea Abad, and Presidential Protocol chief Celia Anna Feria. Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario and Strategic Communications Secretary Ramon Carandang flew to the island resort ahead of the delegation. The President and the same delegation would later fly to Brunei Darussalam to attend the 23rd ASEAN Summit and Related Meetings from Oct. 9 to 10. Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr. said the government earmarked P14.3 million for the President’s attendance at the two summits. This would cover expenses for transportation, accommodation, food and equipment, among others, for Mr. Aquino and the delegation, he said. “I think we’ve had lower [budget] but it’s safe to say that this is a lesser amount… considering this is essentially two trips,’’ deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said in Read More …

Organization of Islamic Cooperation offers to help in ending Zamboanga City crisis

 News
Sep 152013
 
Organization of Islamic Cooperation offers to help in ending Zamboanga City crisis

FILE PHOTO ILIGAN CITY, Philippines – The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has offered to mediate in ending the standoff in Zamboanga City between Philippine government troops and forces loyal to Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) founder Nur Misuari. The standoff entered its seventh day Sunday. “The OIC stands ready to offer all possible assistance to ease the tension and resume the peace process,” read a statement attributed to OIC Secretary-General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu. The OIC news release on the Zamboanga siege was posted on its website Saturday. “The Secretary General of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) is deeply disturbed by the reported resumption of violence that occurred in the city of Zamboanga and other places in Mindanao in Southern Philippines. He condemned the loss of innocent lives and called for calm and maximum restraint to avoid further bloodshed and to allow peaceful resolution to these incidents,” the news release stated. “The OIC strongly rejects all unlawful acts and expresses its deep concern at the shortcomings that occurred in the peace process which led to the resumption of violence and unlawful acts,” it added. The pan-Islamic body, the largest international organization outside of the United Nations, has played a key role in bringing peace in Mindanao since the 1970s. It brokered the negotiations between the Philippine government and the MNLF that led to the landmark 1976 Tripoli Agreement of Peace. This same pact was spelled out in details in the 1996 Final Peace Agreement (FPA). The negotiations for that peace Read More …

Efren Peñaflorida’s ‘Kariton Klasrum’ goes to Indonesia

 News
Sep 142013
 
Efren Peñaflorida’s ‘Kariton Klasrum’ goes to Indonesia

Somewhere in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta, out-of-school kids are learning to read and write in the streets through pushcart classrooms– the same unique learning platform that CNN Hero of the Year awardee Efren Peñaflorida and his Dynamic Teen Company (DTC)  use to educate the street children of Cavite. Gerobak Pintar or Smart Cart is a project of the Indonesian nonprofit organization Yayasan Wadah Titian Harapan or Wadah, which partnered with DTC to duplicate the project among the urban poor youths of Jakarta. Inspired by the “Kariton Klasrum”(mobile cart classroom) that made an impact on the lives of underprivileged kids in the Philippines, Wadah founder Anie Hashim Djojohadikusumo approached DTC to help implement the program in Indonesia. Gerobak Pintar was finally launched last July to educate its beneficiary kids and parents in four areas: Education, Health, Extra Food Supplement, and Life Skills. The program will be facilitated by Wadah volunteers, after which it will be turned over to the communities. “Wadah is very grateful for the help and support that DTC has provided to make this project a reality,”  said Anie Hashim Djojohadikusumo. “Indonesia and the Philippines are very similar in the sense that we have the same problems in education and poverty. We hope the Gerobak Pintar here will transform the lives of Indonesian children the same way it changed the lives of many young people in the Philippines,” Djojohadikusumo said. Complete stories on our Digital Edition newsstand for tablets, netbooks and mobile phones; 14-issue free trial. About to Read More …

Asean countries urged to comply with EITI global standards

 Economy
Aug 102013
 
Asean countries urged to comply with EITI global standards

YANGON – ASEAN countries including the Philippines can help protect their oil, gas and mining industries by complying with the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), a global standard that calls for disclosure of payments and receipts, a leading anti-corruption advocate yesterday said. Erry Riyana Hardjapamekas, former chief executive officer of Indonesia’s Tambang Timah PT, the world’s largest tin producer, estimates that in ASEAN countries, at least 10 percent of government revenues from extractive industries are likely lost to corruption.  “One measure to prevent corruption is the EITI because one basic thing in combatting corruption is transparency,” he told Southeast Asian journalists here. He said that without proper disclosure, revenues from extractive industries such as oil, gas and mining, may not be maximized and instead are lost to corruption.  “It’s difficult to measure how much corruption there is in each country but we can feel it. It could be reflected on the quality of public services,” Harjapamekas said. Governments could show they are serious in combatting corruption through the EITI. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 “It shows how serious governments are in combatting corruption in their extractive industries,” he said. In the region, EITI is becoming a big issue with Indonesia, the Philippines, Myanmar and Vietnam which  are all making efforts to hold companies and governments accountable for the revenues they make from extractive industries. Marie Gay Alessandra Ordenes, the national coordinator of Philippines-EITI said in an article posted on the Philippines-EITI website that efforts to join Read More …

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