PGMA campaigns for RP bet in New 7 Wonders of Nature search
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PUERTO PRINCESA, Palawan — President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo campaigned hard here today, not for any
candidate in the May elections, but for the Philippines’ entry in the Search for the New Seven Wonders of Nature,
now being voted worldwide in the internet online.
She urged all Filipinos here and abroad to cast their votes through the internet for the St. Paul Subterranean
River National Park, a world-renowned site about 91 kilometers from the city proper, which has already made it
to the shortlist of 28 New Seven Wonders.
The President flew in here today and did a 45-minute paddle boat tour of the underground river on the second
day of her week-long swing of the Central Philippines Tourism Super Region, of the five growth areas identified
in her 2006 strategic development plan.
She was accompanied in the boat ride by City Mayor Edward Hagedorn, Palawan Gov. Joel Reyes, Tourism
Secretary Joseph Durano, Press Secretary Crispulo Icban Jr., and members of the Palawan media.
She enjoined everybody to persuade friends and relatives to take part in the internet poll “so that our own
cherished underground river will ultimately be included in the magic circle of the New Seven Wonders of Nature.”
The winners, to be announced next year, will share the glory of the Seven Man-made Wonders chosen in 2008.
Over a billion people are expected to join the online voting which is expected to gain momentum with the
ongoing Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada.
Results of weekly ranking, copyright owned and released by ©NOWC, unfortunately, showed the Philippine
subterranean river slipping down from 4th place in July last year to 24th as of this month.
In May last year, the President had made similar calls when three Philippine tourist spots—the Puerto Princesa
underground river, the Tubbataha Reef which is also here in Palawan, and Chocolate Hills in Bohol province—
were initially nominated for the worldwide search.
“We really need all the Filipinos who are listening here and abroad to vote for the underground river,” the
President said.
The river runs through a deep cavern below rugged limestone and marble cliffs, flowing for some eight
kilometers before emptying into an underground lagoon with crystalline waters. The tunnel is bedecked
overhead and on both sides with huge stalactites, grotesque rock formations, and domed amphitheaters.
The Central Philippines Super Region which comprises Regions 4B, 5, 6, 7 8, Camiguin, and Siargao Island,
are endowed with rich natural wonders and cultural heritage. Complemented by the extraordinary hospitality and
warmth of their people, these places are potential world-class tourist destinations.
The regions are beneficiaries of the massive investment and infrastructure development initiatives by the Arroyo
administration to maximize the country’s economic potentials, especially tourism.
As a tourist destination, the Central Philippines Super Region aims for a bigger share of the fast-growing global
tourism market, which is said to equal or even surpass that of oil exports, food products or automobiles,
according to the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).
With the expected recovery of the global economy in 2010, the UNWTO expects tourist arrivals to grow between
three percent and four percent this year.
The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) estimated that travel and tourism contributed 9.4 percent to
global GDP (gross domestic product), 7.6 percent to worldwide employment, and 10.9 percent to global exports
in 2009. The UNWTO also noted that tourism “produced economic and employment benefits in many related
sectors, from construction to agriculture and telecommunications".
While worldwide tourism arrivals went down by four percent in 2009 to 880 million due to the global economic
crisis, aggravated by the threat of the influenza A(H1N1), international tourist arrivals still reached its highest
level of over 922 million in 2008 with international tourism receipts growing by 1.8 percent from $857 billion in
2007 to $944 billion in 2008.
Based on UNWTO data, the Philippines cornered 0.5 percent of foreign tourist arrivals and 0.3 percent of
international tourism receipts in 2008. Philippine tourism showed resilience: posting a six percent growth in
tourists in the top 16 destinations the first half of 2009 even as tourist arrivals declined by 8.5 percent worldwide
and 6.7 percent in the Asia Pacific region.
The Philippines showed strength in the areas of few visa requirements (3rd), price competitiveness (16th),
number of World Heritage natural sites (23rd), comparatively open bilateral Air Services Agreements (28th), and
number of known species (40th).
At the same time, the government also introduced reforms and made significant improvements along three
competitiveness areas: protection of property rights of foreign investors and difficulty in starting a business,
safety and security; health and hygiene; and transport, tourism and ICT infrastructure to further achieve
sustainable tourism development objectives.
Under the 2004-2010 Updated Medium-Term Philippine Development Plan (MTPDP), the government targets
the following by 2010:
• 3.27 million tourist arrivals
• $3.31 billion in visitor receipts
• 3.99 million in jobs generated
• $17 billion contribution of tourism to the GDP or 13.6 percent of the GDP
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Palace happy with $1.1B raised via samurai bonds
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Malacanang today expressed satisfaction at the pricing of the 100-billion yen ($1.1 billion) samurai bonds,
which showed the foreign markets’ confidence in the Philippines.
“We congratulate Secretary Margarito Teves and his team at the Department of Finance for a successful offering
of 10-year samurai yen bonds today. This landmark issue, which realized substantial savings on both credit and
currency costs, reconfirmed our credit strength relative to benchmark sovereign borrowers like Indonesia and
improved liquidity by widening our market presence abroad. The market is always the best judge of
fundamentals and the success of this issue is a clear vote of approval over and above the campaign noise for
the economic record of this presidency,” said Deputy Presidential Spokesman Gary Olivar.
The country’s 2.32 percent 10-year notes compares favorably with the 2.73 percent that Indonesia paid in July
last year on 35-billion yen bonds. In November, Colombia paid a 2.42 percent coupon on a similar-maturity debt.
Mexico paid a lower 2.22 percent for its samurai bonds in December but its foreign currency long-term rating by
Standard and Poor’s was four levels higher than the Philippines’ BB minus.
The samurai bonds, which were 95 percent guaranteed by the Japan Bank for International Cooperation,
completes the country’s plan to raise $2.5 billion overseas this year. Early in January this year, the country
raised $1.5 billion in dollar-denominated bonds, also at better than expected market rates.
Borrowings raised from abroad will help narrow the country’s budget deficit, which stood at P293 billion ($6.3
billion) last year.
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DA to farmers: Grow veggies, other cash crops while El Nino dries up rice, corn lands
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PUERTO PRINCESA CITY—The Department of Agriculture (DA) today urged rice and corn farmers all over the
country to shift to vegetables and other cash crops to cushion the impact of the El Nino weather phenomenon on
their livelihood.
Agriculture Undersecretary Bernie Fondevilla hinted that vegetable cultivation could be a lucrative endeavor for
farmers who might be affected by the protracted dry spell called El Nino.
“Our country’s consumption of vegetables is still very low,” Fondevilla told reporters covering President Gloria
Macapagal Arroyo’s visit here to a major tourist site, adding there is much room for expansion.
Emerging from a Cabinet meeting being held at a beach resort in Barangay Sabang in this city, Fondevilla said
“there is enough room for expansion for farmers likely to be hit by the drought.”
President Arroyo presided at the Cabinet meeting after touring the world-renowned St. Paul Subterranean River
National Park on a canoe, escorted by local government officials and Palawan-based journalists. The meeting
tackled the Arroyo administration’s economic and anti-poverty policies.
The DA official disclosed that the government, for its part, has mapped out a contingency plan that includes
subsidies to the farmers in terms of seeds and other farming inputs.
As early as July last year, Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap directed all DA officials in charge of various
commodities like palay and corn to draw up their respective contingency plans in preparation for El Niño.
The order was given to the heads of the different Ginintuang Masaganang Ani (GMA) programs.
The heads of the various commodity groups were instructed to craft their respective contingency plans designed
to mitigate the adverse impact of El Nino on the farmers.
The DA official also said his department would streamline its budget program to ensure that a lion’s share of
DA funds go to funding programs meant for the country to attain food security and sufficiency in the medium term
despite challenges such as climate change and globalize trade.
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