PCARRD Supply Chain Program Assists in Improving Agriculture Competitiveness

“In other countries, supply chain management application in agriculture is very much popular. Here in the Philippines, it is used mostly in the manufacturing industry”, said Dr. Ernesto O. Brown in an interview over “Bago Yan Ah”, a DZMM teleradio program.

Brown is PCARRD’s Socio-Economics Research Division assistant director and coordinator of the program “Supply chain improvement (SCI) for selected commodities in AFNR (agriculture, forestry and natural resources)”.

“The Philippines is basically an agricultural country. However, the agriculture sector of the country is generally not competitive because of the weak supply chains”, Brown added.

Supply chain is a chain of different players and processes of the industry, from the source of raw materials to production, marketing, and consumption.

The weak supply chain is a development issue that the SCI program is addressing. The program conducts a thorough examination of every stage and process along the supply chain in relation to the various influencing factors: institutional, sociological, economic, etc. This approach includes analysis of the chain performance in terms of efficiency, effectiveness, and responsiveness.

Dr. Brown cites the case of SCI projects for abaca industry which are being implemented in Manambrag, Catanduanes; Valencia, Negros Oriental; Liloan, Leyte; and Cabadbaran City, Agusan del Norte.

“The Philippines has been producing abaca for a long time. Yet up to this time, abaca production has not been posing any significant increase in productivity. This is attributed to the ‘all-in’ selling of abaca fibers which the farmers harvest through hand-stripping. Consequently, farmers fail to reap any premium for the fibers sold and therefore are not enticed to adopt improved production practices“, Brown explained.

Dr. Brown also shared that, through the SCI project for abaca, farmers are capacitated with trainings on good agricultural practices, grading and classification, and entrepreneurship.

“The Fiber Industry Development Authority’s improved stripping devices are also provided to aid the farmers harvest better quality fibers. The project is also working on linking the farmers directly to the exporters, processors, and grader, baler, and establishments (GBEs),” Brown said in closing.

Written by Mia Barbara D. Aranas, S&T Media Service
Monday, 03 January 2011 06:02
Source: www.pcarrd.dost.gov.ph

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ASEAN Eyes Becoming World Class Tourist Destination

PHNOM PENH (Xinhua) - The 30th ASEAN Tourism Forum opened here on Tuesday evening, aiming at promoting ASEAN as the world class tourist destination by 2015.

Interview with Mr. Benito C. Bengzon Jr., Assistant Secretary, International Tourism Promotions, Department of Tourism - Philippines

The event under the theme of "ASEAN: A World of Wonders and Diversity" was attended by about 3,000 participants, who are government's top officials, ASEAN tourism ministers, tourism delegates from China, Japan, Korea, India and Russia, diplomatic corps, exhibitors and buyers from around the world.

Speaking during the opening ceremony on Tuesday evening, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen said that the ATF 2011 will not only help promote tourism products of Cambodia and ASEAN to the whole world, but also show the importance of tourism in contributing to socio-economic development and in achieving the United Nations Millennium Development Goals and poverty alleviation of the people in the region and the world.

"ASEAN is seen as a captivating and highly competitive tourist destination for development, based on the uniqueness of its potentials and diversity of historical cultural relics and tremendous natural resources," he said.

"I hope that all related stakeholders in public and private sectors will jointly cooperate to develop ASEAN tourism in order to fulfill ASEAN vision as the world class tourist destination by 2015."

The 30th ASEAN Tourism Forum kicked off from Jan. 15 and will last until 21, Cambodian Tourism Minister Thong Khon said during the opening ceremony.

During the event from Jan. 15-18, there had been a series of meetings of ASEAN tourism ministers, ASEAN tourism ministers plus 3 (China, Japan and South Korea) and ASEAN tourism ministers plus India and Russia.

And from Jan. 19-21, there will be the ASEAN Travel Exchange held at Diamond Island Convention and Exhibition Center. "It will be the biggest gathering--up to 1,500 sellers with 512 booths from hotels, airline companies, tour operators and travel agencies of ASEAN countries and 466 buyers from ASEAN, Asia, Europe and the United States of America," he said.

ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Source: Philstar.com
Video Credits: Asia Travel Tips

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Residents from 11 Catanduanes Towns Plant 11,000 Trees for 1.11.11

VIRAC, Catanduanes, Jan. 11 (PNA) -– Thousands of school children, barangay residents and town officials from 11 municipalities in this province went out in the field and to plant 11,000 trees during the 1.11.11 Catanduanes Synchronized Tree Planting Project on Tuesday.

Local offices of national government agencies like the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), Department of Education (DepEd) and Department of Environment and Natural Resource s (DENR) were mobilized in the undertaking organized by Rep. Cesar Sarmiento of the province’s lone congressional district.

The DPWH and the Catanduanes Contractors Association were tasked in the hauling and deliveries of the planting materials to the planting site in 11 selected school grounds across the province. On the other hand, the DepEd has directed all public elementary and secondary schools to extend full support to the project.


View Reforestation 2011 in a larger map
The Catanduanes State College (SSC) the lone higher education institution run by the government in the province is among the participants with most of its students planting trees on selected areas including its vast complex here.

Assisting the DENR, who guided the participants in identifying suitable planting sites, was the Mountain Care & Hikers Association, a private organization of environmentalists here led by its president Ruben Geromo.

As a precursor of the big 1.11.11 event, the association, led several other groups last Dec. 31 in a tree planting activity around the provincial capital.

Geromo said that pre-New Year’s Day activity also served as the launching of their year-long commitment to plant trees all over the province until 11.11.11 or Nov. 11, 2011.

“We will be out to a municipality every 11th day of the month and hold tree planting programs up to the 11th month of the year that would see us completing the tour of the entire 11 towns covered by the island province,” Geromo said.

According to Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Officer (PENRO) Benjamin Medel they taught participants the proper techniques in tree planting like choosing the right spot to plant, correct digging of the pit for the seedling and protecting the growing tree.

The DENR provincial office also provided some of the planting materials of forest and orchard trees. Malunggay, coconut, pili and other fruit tree seedlings were also given to participants wishing to grow them in their backyards or farms, Medel said.

In his recent privilege speech in Congress, Sarmiento encouraged all the 13 other Bicolano congressmen to duplicate the project in their respective districts.

Sarmiento said it is the people’s turn to give back to the forest what they had taken from it, noting that a measly forest cover of only 12 percent, or even less, now remains from the once lush forest of Catanduanes.

Sarmiento said he conceptualized the tree planting project after having seen during the course of the recent poll campaign the effect of declining forest cover on the province’s environment as evidenced by massive landslides, floods and decreasing water supply during summer.

Medel supported the congressman’s statement saying that the closed canopy forest of the island province now stands at about five percent of the 151,150 hectare land area or less than 5,000 hectares.

Last year, the DENR launched a project to reforest 208 hectares here and in areas covered by the towns of Viga, San Miguel and San Andres with its agro-forest development project raising some 493,000 seedlings, Medel said.

Cong. Rene Velarde of the Buhay party list, the DENR provincial chief said, also provided P4 million in funds for 303 farmers to reforest 303 hectares under the Upland Development Program whose implementation is now ongoing.

“We also have sufficient reforestation materials with our 213,000 seedlings, mostly of narra, cupang and acacia trees awaiting disposal within this year, Medel said.

Sarmiento also challenged the youth sector especially students in every community to join him in his campaign. “Unlike other congressmen, I may not be inclined on bringing in infrastructure projects to the province because that could be just a waste of people’s money when destroyed by floods and landslides due to forest degradation,” he said.

“We restore first the forest that would enable us to fortify our defense against these disasters then we go ahead with infrastructure development with peace of mind that they are protected by our forests from destruction,” Sarmiento added.

Meanwhile, Catanduanes Governor Joseph Cua has reiterated his reminders for the strict compliance of the executive order he issued last November that prohibits the cutting of trees on titled private lands in the municipalities of Viga, Caramoran, San Miguel and Pandan.

Citing the provincial government’s policy to address environmental issues and problems, the order states that the “cutting of naturally growing trees on private titled lands in areas considered as hot spot of illegal tree cutting such as the Municipalities of Viga, Caramoran, San Miguel and Pandan shall be discouraged”.

"Only utilization of typhoon-damaged trees for personal use will be allowed in those areas subject to verification," Cua said.

Cua reportedly issued the order in the wake of the alleged widespread abuse of the Private Land Timber Permit (PLTP) system by lumber smugglers and furniture makers, who have been using private landowners as fronts in applying for the permit and then buying the lumber, mostly premium hardwood such as narra.

The entire province of Catanduanes is under the total log ban policy being enforced by the DENR across the Bicol thus making illegal the cutting of trees for lumber and any other purposes in areas considered as forest and timber lands.

Cutting of trees in privately-owned lands however are allowed under the PLTP system.(PNA)

by Danny O Calleja
Source: PIA Bicol

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Gigapan: Metro Manila, Philippines 2011

Here is a sample of a Gigapan photo I mentioned on my previous post. This was taken in Antipolo city, overlooking the metropolitan area last January 1st (New Year) of this year. To navigate on the photo, just double click on the spot where you want to zoom-in, drag to move the photo or just click the navigation keys on the left.

Below is the (geolocated on Google Earth) spot where the photo was taken, on the info window you can see the attribution tags (photographer, links etc.).

By the way if you want to contact the author of the featured photo or wanting to view more Gigapan photos, just click here.

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