Private sector, Canadian Chamber hail Palace “cyber czar”
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The advances in the government’s information and communication technology (ICT) program drew private
sector recognition when Secretary Ray Anthony Roxas-Chua III, chairman of the Commission on Information
and Communications Technology (CITC), was recently conferred with a prestigious award as top individual
achiever in the field of business process outsourcing (BPO).
The CITC is the government’s ICT arm which operates under the Office of the President.
The Business Processing Association of the Philippines (BPAP) and the Canadian Chamber of Commerce
which jointly spearhead the national search for top individual and corporate achievers in BPO cited Roxas-Chua
for championing the growth of the ICT industry in the Philippines.
“Secretary Roxas-Chua has led the effort for all the marketing missions the industry embarked across six
different international markets last year,” BPAP president and CEO Oscar Sanez said.
Roxas-Chua has also been cited for “creating strategic partnerships with the private sector as the Philippines
has emerged as one of the world’s top BPO destinations.”
Apart from his functions as CITC chair, Roxas-Chua is also the “development champion” of President Gloria
Macapagal Arroyo’s Cyber Corridor SuperRegion, a grouping of urban centers from Luzon to Mindanao where
massive improvements in ICT have been seen in the past few years.
He is also sometimes called the Philippines “outsourcing czar.”
Roxas-Chua was credited for vigorously pushing President Arroyo’s Next Wave Cities program designed to
transform certain key urban areas outside Metro Manila and Metro Cebu into alternative destinations for BPO
investments. These areas are Metro Laguna, Metro Cavite, Iloilo, Davao, Bacolod, Metro Pampanga, Metro
Bulacan, Cagayan de Oro, Central Bulacan and Lipa City in Batangas.
The hefty growth of the local BPO sector has put the Philippines in the world map of business outsourcing. Last
year, the National Outsourcing of the United Kingdom named the Philippines as “Offshoring Destination of the
Year.” It was the second time in three years that the Philippines earned such distinction.
More importantly, the BPO industry has created over 442,000 jobs, and generated annual export revenues of
$7.2 billion as of end-2009.
The CITC has also launched the iSchools project which provides computer laboratories with internet access to
public high schools. The computerization program has so far covered 680 public high schools, with additional
193 still in the process of being connected through satellite broadband, and 320 more schools scheduled to
receive their computer labs during the year.
Other recipients of this year’s International ICT Awards were: Convergys Philippines Services Corp. as BPO of
the Year; Telus International Philippines, BPO Employer of the Year; Deutsche Knowledge Services, Shared
Services Excellence of the Year; Sutherland Global Services, Fastest Growing BPO Company of the Year; WNS
Philippines, Inc., Best New BPO Locator of the Year; SPi Global Solutions, Non-voice Excellence of the Year; and
Northgatearinso, Most Innovative BPO Company of the Year.
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PGMA signs climate change framework
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Puerto Princesa City (28 April) -- President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo signed this afternoon the National
Framework Strategy for Climate Change in a no-fuss ceremony at the regular meeting of the National Climate
Change Commission at the Asturias Hotel.
The signing of the Framework came a month early from the deadline specified by the Republic Act 9729 better
known as Climate Change Act of 2009. The Framework shall serve as the basis for a program for climate
change planning, research and development, extension, and monitoring of activities to protect vulnerable
communities from the adverse effects of climate change.
In an interview, Secretary Heherson Alvarez of the Climate Change Commission said that the Philippines is the
first country in Asia with an approved framework strategy to address climate change.
He said that the signing of the Framework is a positive development amidst the extreme heat and drought in the
country brought about by the El Niño phenomenon.
He said that the Phillippines is identified as one of the top countries that is vulnerable to the impacts of climate
change such as extreme heat and longer hot season, drought, heavy rains and flashfloods. He expressed
alarm at the many catastrophes that hit the country recently which he said were brought about by climate change.
With the approval of the Framework, the Commission will begin work to draft the National Climate Change
Action Plan which will be formulated in accordance with the National Framework Strategy for Climate Change.
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo presided over the meeting of the Climate Change Commission after
presentations conducted by Mr. Lorenzo Tan, President of World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Philippines and DOT
Secretary Ace Durano who presented major tourism projects in Central Philippines.
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Gov't employs 140 nurses in Capiz
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Roxas City (28 April) -- The government was able to provide training and employment to 140 registered nurses
in Capiz.
Capiz Labor and Employment Provincial Director Ricardo Monegro disclosed that a total of 140 Capiceño
nurses have availed of the government's training cum employment under the Nurses Assigned in Rural Service
(NARS) program.
The NARS program is part of the government's initiatives under President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, particularly
on Comprehensive Livelihood and Emergency Employment Program (CLEEP) to mitigate the impacts of the
global economic meltdown.
Monegro said that some 55 registered nurses in the province benefited from said program during the first batch
of implementation which started in April last year, while the 85 Capiceño nurses also availed in the second
batch of the program implementation last October.
NARS is a training-cum employment scheme wherein the hired nurses would be deployed to their hometowns
in rural areas to undergo six-month training in providing public health services and in performing clinical
functions under the guidance of participating nearby hospitals and other medical facilities.
President Arroyo launched the collaborative undertaking of the DOLE, the Department of Health (DOH), and the
Professional Regulations Commission's Board of Nursing (PRC-BON) during the Multi-Sectoral Summit on
"Joining Hands Against the Global Crisis" held in Malacanan Palace.
Earlier, DOLE Secretary Marianito Roque said that the Project NARS had not only provided training and
employment to unemployed nurses but also triumphantly assisted in uplifting the essential health services in
the country's 1,000 poorest municipalities.
He revealed during the formal culmination of the one-year Project NARS on April 15,2010 that the government
and the social partners are pleased that more than 10,000 registered Filipino nurses have productively
participated in the nationwide endeavor, in the process serving as noble warriors of wellness in the country's
disadvantaged rural areas.
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FILIPINO HERITAGE HIGHLIGHTED AT GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY
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Members of George Washington University’s Philippine Cultural Society perform the Singkil at Tandaan X which
marked 10 years of promoting Filipino heritage at the University. With the theme, Homeland of Heroes,
Tandaan X featured the diverse dances and songs from the Philippines and historic vignettes that reflected the
Filipinos deep respect for the values of independence and democracy. END
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AMBASSADOR GAA LEADS INAUGURATION OF US FIRM INVESTING IN MEDICAL
TOURISM IN THE PHILIPPINES
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Ambassador Willy C. Gaa leads ribbon cutting ceremonies during the inauguration of Medical Tour Experts, Inc.
(MTE) in Nevada. MTE’s focus is in directing medical tourism clients in the United States to the Philippines. In
his remarks, Ambassador Gaa pointed out that medical tourism is one of the 10 priority areas for investment
and development in the Philippines, with investments already recorded at 1.5 billion pesos in 2008. The
Philippines’ Department of Tourism projects that by 2015, the Philippines will have as many as 200,000
customers of the global medical tourism industry. END
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AMBASSADOR GAA GRACES VA BEACH GOLF INVITATIONAL; LAUDS SOCIO-CIVIC
COMMITMENT OF FILCOM
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Ambassador Willy C. Gaa poses with members of the winning team of the Golf Invitational organized by the
Philippine American Chamber of Commerce in Virginia Beach. Part of the proceeds of the invitational golf is to
be donated to victims of typhoons in the Philippines as well as to a Filipino scholarship program for Old
Dominion University Business Rising Seniors 2010/2011. During the awarding ceremonies, Ambassador Gaa
underscored the importance of the continued socio-civic involvement of Filipino-American organizations and
stressed the positive impact the projects of these organizations in local communities and in the Philippines
(photo courtesy of Bing Branigin) END.
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GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY’S CLUB FILIPINO CELEBRATES FILIPINO HERITAGE WITH
CULTURAL SHOWCASE
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Members of Georgetown University’s Club Filipino perform the Tinikling, a Filipino folk dance during Bayanihan.
An annual cultural presentation highlighting Filipino heritage, Bayanihan has become a much-awaited event that
showcases the diverse cultures of students in the Georgetown University campus. Club Filipino too has been
involved in outreach cultural programs in the Greater Metro DC. Last year, upon the invitation of the Philippine
Embassy, Club Filipino and its dancers were featured performers in the Organization of American State’s Food
and Cultural Festival. END
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