MANILA, Philippines — Malacañang on Saturday expressed elation over the favorable findings for the Philippines in the 2012 Index of World Economic Freedom (IWEF) by the Heritage Foundation and The Wall Street Journal and the HSBC Expat Explorer Survey, which it said are fair third party assessments "from those who have no axes to grind against the administration." The 2012 Index of Economic Freedom, published by The Wall Street Journal and The Heritage Foundation gave the Philippines a 57.1 score for economic freedom, making its economy the 107th freest in the 2012 Index. The score is 0.9 point higher than last year. (JC Bello Ruiz)

Not affected

Demand for overseas Filipino workers in Saudi Arabia will not be affected by the kingdom’s “saudization” program this year, the International Labor Organization (ILO) said. ILO Director Lawrence Johnson made the statement in an interview amid fears from migrant groups that the labor policy will lead to the mass displacement of OFWs in Saudi Arabia, which is among the country’s biggest market for OFWs. Under the saudization program, Saudi-based firms are required to allot some of their migrant-dependent work force to Saudi nationals. (Samuel Medenilla)

New homes

Vice President Jejomar C. Binay on Saturday said the SM Development Corporation (SMDC) will build an additional 100 houses for families whose homes were swept by floods during the onslaught of Storm “Sendong.” “SM was kind enough to donate 100 housing units to the OVP (Office of the Vice President) for the relocation of families affected by typhoon Sendong,” said Binay, the chairman of the Housing and Urban Develoment Coordinating Council (HUDCC). The housing units will be turned over to Binay on April. He earlier vowed to deliver an initial 6,000 housing units by that month. (JC Bello Ruiz)

Donations

A donation facility team was created by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) that will ensure smooth entry of foreign donations, as well as acceptance of local donation for victims of Storm “Sendong.” The team will be headed by DSWD Assistant Secretary Vilma Cabrera with five technical and administrative support staff to assist and facilitate the systematic entry of donation. DSWD Secretary Dinky Soliman said the DSWD also participates in the one-stop-shop processing of donations at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport-Bureau of Customs (BoC) District Office in Cagayan de Oro and Davao City to facilitate the entry and release from the BoC of incoming donations. (Ellalyn B. De Vera)

Indigenous education

The Senate cultural communities committee lauded Saturday the Department of Education (DepEd) for bringing education closer to indigenous cultural communities (ICCs) by creating the Indigenous Peoples Education Office (IPsEO). “I am glad that DepEd came up with the idea of creating the IP Education Office to help effectively implement education programs for Indigenous peoples (IPs). I hope that this will ensure not only the delivery of quality education to our IPs but also the preservation and promotion of their culture and heritage,” Sen. Loren Legarda, committee chairperson, said. As a basic right, education should be made accessible to all Filipinos, including members of ICCs most of which live in far-flung areas, she pointed out. (Mario B. Casayuran)