GSIS e-Cards top 800,000

More than 60 percent of the 1.3 million Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) members now have their own GSIS e-Cards. According to the latest e-Card committee report, as of March this year, the GSIS has distributed a total of 800,199 government employees all over the country. GSIS President and General Manager Winston Garcia said the GSIS expects to distribute one million e-Cards in less than two month, especially with the state pension fund’s plan to open nine new e-Card centers this month. "If this trend continues, we are optimistic that we would be able to more than meet our target of full e-Card distribution by the end of the year. The GSIS is just thankful that the interest of our members for the e-Card never waned," he said. The GSIS has already opened two of the nine e-Card centers slated to be inaugurated this month: One in Bacolod and another in Dipolog.

ASEAN looks for charter models

MACTAN Cebu (DPA) — The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is looking to the European Union and the United Nations as possible models for a planned charter aimed at giving the regional group a "legal personality," officials said Friday. The need for a charter has been agreed upon by ASEAN leaders two years ago, and senior officials will be holding their first meeting on it over the weekend ahead of a foreign ministers’ retreat on Mactan island, 600 kilometers south of Manila. The first meeting on the charter comes amid mounting pressure on ASEAN to get Myanmar (Burma) to fullfill its commitments to institute democratic reforms before it is allowed to assume the group’s rotating chairmanship in 2006. "There is common agreement that there is already a need for ASEAN to have a legal personality ... so that whatever agreements ASEAN will be making will have a binding effect," said Philippine Assistant Foreign Secretary Susan Castrence. But Castrence noted that the process would be long and cannot be done overnight since ASEAN would have to take into consideration the different national laws and political systems of its 10 member countries. "There may be some contentious matters which some member countries may find sensitive," she said. "Because if you create a charter, at some point you may have to give up a portion of your national sovereignty." Castrence said the senior officials studying the plan would be looking at the charters of various world organizations for leads on the key elements that must be put into ASEAN’s constitution.

NDA eyes $362,000 FAO grant

The National Dairy Authority (NDA) is awaiting the National Economic Development Authority’s (NDA) approval for a $362,000 grant by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) for milk quality upgrading in the provinces. Delia Gomez, NDA planning officer-in-charge, said the FAO grant has become pertinent in light of NDA’s increasing fresh milk production target set at 27,000 liters per day in 2005 from 20,000 liters in 2004, or higher by 35 percent. "Given the trend on increasing milk production, developing quality systems for milk is very significant," she said in an interview. In a letter to Economic Planning Secretary Romulo L. Neri, Agriculture (DA) Secretary Arthur C. Yap said that even FAORome has noted the "vibrant dairy activities in the local field" which prompted them to extend the grant. Already free-of-charge, the grant has still so far taken at least two years to process. "This project will assist local producers in enhancing market access for local produce. Its value added in dairy development in systems installation and testing equipment is well identified and would require no additional cost to government," Yap said.

CFIP warns of wood shortage

The Chamber of Furniture Industries of the Philippines (CFIP) today bewailed the worsening shortage of stocks of wood and timber products for the use by the nation’s 15,000 furniture makers serving both the domestic and international markets. The furniture-makers’ group said the government has in fact stopped the wood supply chain first with the prolonged log ban and the continuing scarcity of wood inspite of the ban’s lifting. CFIP Chairperson Nick de Lange said that wood supplies are fast dwindling, prices are rising and the furniture firms’ own inventories have virtually dried up, adding that "the industry has begun losing market opportunities."

"We call on government to undertake all necessary measures to ease the strain on the furniture industry," said de Lange. The chamber estimates the total annual wood requirements of the furniture industry at 364,000 cubic meters.

Grepalife Fund hikes capital

iBank to pay cash dividend

DTI confiscates LPG cylinders

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has confiscated a total of 143 uncertified LPG cylinders as campaigns against unsafe gas tanks intensified during the fire prevention month. DTI assistant secretary for consumer welfare and trade regulation Norman R. Hocson said that of the 143 uncertified LPG tanks, 95 were confiscated from A. Ang Marketing and 48 tanks from Calaanan Gas & Petroleum Supply, both located in Novaliches. Owners of the said establishments are facing administrative charges under Department Administrative Order 2, Series of 2002, for violation of Republic Acts 4109 and 7394, or the Standards Law and Consumer Act respectively. "The DTI does not tolerate such illegal business practices that compromise the welfare of consumers. LPG tanks without the PS Mark may be uncertified and hazardous to life, health and safety," Hocson said. A certified LPG cylinder has undergone and passed inspection based on quality and safety requirements of Philippine National Standard (PNS) for LPG Steel cylinders. Its manufacturer has been granted the PS License that provides him a legal right to sell his products in the market. LPG cylinders are among the 91 products listed under mandatory certification by the BPS. DTI-BPS Director Jesus L. Motoomull added that many of the reported fire cases in the country have been attributed to defective LPG cylinders.

Indonesia gets $81.2 M ADB grant

The Asian Development Bank has approved a total of $81.2 million in loans and grant for clean water and sanitation facilities projects in Indonesia, a bank statement said Friday. The Manila-based ADB said some 1,500 communities, including those affected by the December 2004 earthquake and tsunami disaster in Aceh and NiasNorth Sumatra, will benefit from the programme. The ADB said at least 1.2 million poor Indonesians will benefit from this program. "Although Indonesia has made progress in providing water and sanitation to its people, standards remain below those of its neighboring southeast Asian countries," the bank said in a statement. "Only about 15 per cent of rural households and just 13 per cent of poorest households obtained water from pipe or pump sources in 2002," it added. "The great majority rely on shallow ground water abstraction, rainwater collection or use of water from nearby rivers or springs," the ADB said. The bank said that the inadequate access to safe drinking water and poor sanitation facilities "combined with poor hygiene have resulted in high rates of diseases" such as diarrhea, intestinal worms, skin diseases and other water-related afflictions. "Poor people in remote rural areas, particularly women, children and the elderly, suffer the most," the ADB said. Peter Fedon, ADB director of social sectors division in Southeast Asia, said the project will give the local governments the capacity to plan sustainable investments in providing clean potable water and sanitation facilities. Fedon said the project will also fund hygiene promotion at schools, religious facilities and among communities, in order to maximize the health impact of the program. The project will be financed by two loans totaling $64.7 million and a grant amounting to $16.5 million. It will be managed by the Ministry of Health and will be due for completion around June 2011.

AyalaLand targets 10% profit hike

Ayala Land Inc said it is aiming for an increase of at least 10 percent in net profit this year from 3.0 billion in 2004, taking into account a positive outlook for the property sector and its new projects. "Taking into consideration the improving market prospects and our project launches this year, coupled with progress in our ongoing asset rationalization and receivable sales program, we hope to achieve a moderate growth of at least 10 percent in our net income for 2005," the Philippines’ largest property developer said in a statement to the stock exchange. However, the company said its performance, as well as that of the entire property sector, is "highly dependent on the macro environment, including but not limited to interest and inflation rate movements." Ayala Land posted an 11 percent increase in 2004 net profit from the previous year, backed by strong growth across its businesses. Among projects in the pipeline are a high-end residential resort community on a 320-hectare property in Bataan, north of Manila, owned by Subic Bay Development & Industrial Estate Corp. It has also increased its stake in North Triangle Depot Commercial Corp NTDCC, the owner of a shopping center to be constructed in the depot of the Light Rail Transit Project 3 in Quezon City, to 49 pct after it acquired the Fil-Estate Group’s 30.89 percent interest at the end of 2004.

BDO delcares cash devidiends

Banco de Oro Universal Bank said its board of directors has declared semi-annual cash dividends on its Series B preferred shares at a rate of 6.5 percent per annum. The dividend declaration is subject to central bank approval, Banco de Oro told the stock exchange.

Kirin pharma products out soon