COVID-19 fallout will not hurt Philippine president

2020 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Economic Cost ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Federal Constitution ◽  
Metro Manila ◽  
One Act

Subject Philippine government's handling of the COVID-19 crisis. Significance Metro Manila and some other areas of the Philippines effectively remain under a lockdown, first imposed in March as part of efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The restrictions have had a high economic cost. Impacts Congress could extend the 'Bayanihan To Heal as One Act', which gives the president additional powers to respond to the COVID-19 crisis. The economic fallout from the pandemic will set back Duterte's 'Build, Build, Build' infrastructure programme. Duterte will come under pressure to end his push for a federal constitution.

Online privacy behavior among youth in the Global South

2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-30
Author(s):  
Jan Michael Alexandre Cortez Bernadas ◽  
Cheryll Ruth Soriano
Keyword(s):  
Information Literacy ◽  
Urban Poor ◽  
Global South ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Online Privacy ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Online Information ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Metro Manila ◽  
Indirect Relationship

Purpose The purpose of this paper is two-fold. First, it explores the extent to which diversity of connectivity or the connection through multiple internet access points may facilitate online privacy behavior. Second, it explains the diversity of connectivity-online privacy behavior link in terms of information literacy. Design/methodology/approach Situated in the context of urban poor youth in the Philippines (n = 300), this paper used a quantitative approach, specifically an interview-administered survey technique. Respondents were from three cities in Metro Manila. To test for indirect relationship, survey data were analyzed using bootstrapping technique via SPSS macro PROCESS (Hayes, 2013). Findings Urban poor youth with diversified connection to the internet engaged in online privacy behavior. The more the youth are connected to the internet through diverse modalities, the more this fosters cautious online privacy behavior. In addition, information literacy explained how diversity of connectivity facilitated online privacy behavior. It suggests that differences in online privacy behavior may result from the extent of basic know-how of navigating online information. In the context of the urban poor in the Global South, the youth are constantly negotiating ways to not only connect to the internet but also acquire digital skills necessary for protective online behaviors. Originality/value To date, this is one of the few papers to contribute to conversations about online privacy among youth in the Global South. It broadens the literature on social determinants of online privacy behavior that is crucial for designing policy interventions for those in the margins.

Philippines infrastructure needs more private money

2017 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
The Philippines ◽  
Infrastructure Development ◽  
Internal Security ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Price Increases ◽  
Emergency Powers ◽  
Infrastructure Policy ◽  
Private Money ◽  
Metro Manila ◽  
Bidding Process

Subject Infrastructure policy under the Duterte administration in the Philippines. Significance President Rodrigo Duterte’s economic team met their Japanese counterparts in Tokyo on March 27-28 to discuss infrastructure cooperation. Duterte is planning greater fiscal spending, seeking official development assistance and accepting unsolicited private sector proposals for infrastructure development. Meanwhile, he wants emergency powers to expedite the bidding process in Metro Manila and, ambitiously, to tackle simultaneously the different infrastructure problems of the Mega Manila area and the rest of the country. Impacts Congress will probably rebuff the executive push for emergency powers. Construction-related labour and supply shortages, and price increases are likely. Chinese construction on Scarborough Shoal could derail China-Philippine infrastructure cooperation. Land rights and access issues will bedevil Duterte’s infrastructure push. Internal security dangers in the south, including terrorism and guerrillas, could hit infrastructure projects.

Philippines tourism investment opportunities to grow

2016 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
The Philippines ◽  
Internal Security ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Car Traffic ◽  
Tourism Sector ◽  
Investment Opportunities ◽  
Metro Manila ◽  
Development Plans ◽  
Slow Progress ◽  
The Government

Significance President Rodrigo Duterte's term ends in 2022; his administration is prioritising the development of the Philippines tourism sector. However, internal security could pose difficulties. Impacts Any infrastructure spending bottlenecks could undermine tourism development plans. New hotel construction will further concentrate tourist expenditure in Metro Manila, potentially worsening car traffic woes. The government is pushing for pro-foreign-investor constitutional reforms, but progress will likely be slow. The construction and ancillary sectors stand to gain from government tourism-sector spending. The Duterte tourism plans will likely achieve slow progress at best, partly over security concerns.

scholarly journals “Unforgotten” informal communities and the COVID-19 pandemic: Sitio San Roque under Metro Manila’s lockdown

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Christianne France Collantes
Keyword(s):  
Urban Studies ◽  
Urban Poor ◽  
Informal Settlement ◽  
Development Planning ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Vulnerable Communities ◽  
Metro Manila ◽  
Informal Communities

Purpose This paper aims to offer Sitio San Roque, an informal settlement in the Philippines as a case study to explore long-term "forgetful" urban development planning in the Philippines, and the renewed visibility of the urban poor under COVID-19 lockdown. It connects scholarship on informality to issues of housing and political rights in Metro Manila to further investigate how vulnerable communities in the Global South are faring in the pandemic. Design/methodology/approach This is an exploration of Sitio San Roque, an informal settler community in Metropolitan "Metro" Manila, Philippines. This paper refers to recent journalistic reports pertaining to the community's ongoing evictions and arrests while under Metro Manila's "enhanced community quarantine." Furthermore, it converses with literature from disciplines including health-care policy, urban studies and recent studies on COVID-19 and vulnerable communities to critically discuss the plight of the urban poor in the pandemic-stricken Metro Manila. Findings The urban poor and members of informal communities such as Sitio San Roque are especially vulnerable to contracting COVID-19 because of precarious livelihoods and housing instability. The creation of informality in Metro Manila can be traced to political tensions, economic agendas and development planning since the time of Marcos' administration and also to global restructuring during the 1990s. However, also important to note is that under Metro Manila's lockdown, informal settlers are further disenfranchised and stigmatized via ongoing demolitions and evictions, as well as by processes of policing and criminalization by the state. The use of military and police personnel as a way to enforce lockdown in the metropolis further impedes on the rights of informal settlers and the urban poor. Originality/value Recent scholarship and reports discuss the challenges for informal communities and the urban poor in navigating the COVID-19 pandemic, mainly due to their housing conditions and loss of economic stability. This paper contributes to a critical understanding of these issues by adding the dimensions of political and housing rights. It refers to the case study of members of Sitio San Roque, who have experienced continuous threats of demolitions and arrests by state police for protesting the lack of government aid under lockdown. Both military approaches of governance and housing informality work in tandem to expose the vulnerabilities of the urban poor in Metro Manila's pandemic. Finally, this paper extends on urban studies scholar Gavin Shatkin's concept of “forgetful planning” (2004) by applying his discussions to the current context. Informal settlers have long been “forgotten” by the state's development plans, but are now remembered and deemed more visible in Metro Manila's ECQ.

scholarly journals Comparative Analysis of Leptospira Strains Isolated from Environmental Soil and Water in the Philippines and Japan

2012 ◽  
Vol 79 (2) ◽  
pp. 601-609 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mitsumasa Saito ◽  
Sharon Y. A. M. Villanueva ◽  
Antara Chakraborty ◽  
Satoshi Miyahara ◽  
Takaya Segawa ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Phylogenetic Trees ◽  
Antimicrobial Agents ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Rrna Gene ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Pathogenic Species ◽  
Epidemiological Analysis ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Metro Manila ◽  
Soil And Water

ABSTRACTThere have been few reports on the epidemiological analysis of environmentalLeptospiraisolates. This is probably because the isolation of leptospires from the environment was usually unsuccessful due to the overgrowth of contaminants and the slow growth ofLeptospira. In this study, we collected a total of 88 samples of soil and water from three sites: Metro Manila and Nueva Ecija, Philippines (an area whereLeptospirais now endemic), and Fukuoka, Japan (an area whereLeptospirawas once endemic). We succeeded in isolatingLeptospirafrom 37 samples by using the novel combination of five antimicrobial agents reported in 2011. The frequencies of positive isolation ofLeptospirain the Philippines and Japan were 40 and 46%, respectively. ForLeptospira-positive samples, five colonies from each sample were isolated and analyzed by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). The isolates from each area showed their respective characteristics in phylogenetic trees based on the PFGE patterns. Some isolates were closely related to each other across borders. Based on 16S rRNA gene-based phylogenetic analysis, four isolates in Fukuoka were identified as a pathogenic species,L. alstonii; however, its virulence had been lost. One isolate from Nueva Ecija was identified as the intermediate pathogenic speciesLeptospira licerasiae. Most of the isolates from the environment belonged to nonpathogenicLeptospiraspecies. We also investigated the strain variation among the isolates in a puddle over 5 months. We demonstrated, using PFGE analysis, thatLeptospirasurvived in the wet soil on dry days and appeared in the surface water on rainy days. These results showed that the soil could be a reservoir of leptospires in the environment.

Of stories that matter

2018 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 87-101
Author(s):  
Juhn Chris Espia ◽  
Alma Maria Salvador
Keyword(s):  
Disaster Risk ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Central Position ◽  
San Jose ◽  
Group Discussions ◽  
Management Planning ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Proactive Approach ◽  
Socially Constructed ◽  
Risk Discourse

Purpose The recent shift in the Philippine Government’s emphasis from response to a more proactive approach came with the recognition that different stakeholders play important roles in the governance of disaster risk. The purpose of this paper is to look beyond the question as to whether all stakeholders are involved in disaster risk management planning and examines the extent by which the narratives of risk of actors at the margins shape how risk is framed in municipal DRM planning in Antique, Philippines. Design/methodology/approach This paper is based on a field study carried out in San Jose de Buenavista, Antique Province, Philippines. Data were gathered through key informant interviews and focus group discussions as well as a review of archival records and documents. Findings The narratives of CSOs and communities, which revolve around livelihoods and community life are conspicuously absent from the plans whereas that of government actors occupy a central position in the risk discourse. The study highlights the power-saturated process of defining and addressing risk to disasters, where knowledge is intimately linked to power as some voices shape plans and policies, whereas, others are excluded because their knowledge is socially constructed as less reliable and therefore irrelevant. Originality/value There is a dearth of studies that examine disaster risk as social constructions in the context of planning in the Philippines and in other disaster-prone countries.

scholarly journals Epidemiological and clinical characteristics of the first 500 confirmed COVID-19 inpatients in a tertiary infectious disease referral hospital in Manila, Philippines

2021 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristal An Agrupis ◽  
Chris Smith ◽  
Shuichi Suzuki ◽  
Annavi Marie Villanueva ◽  
Koya Ariyoshi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Healthcare Workers ◽  
Clinical Characteristics ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Underlying Disease ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Referral Hospital ◽  
Limited Data ◽  
Metro Manila ◽  
Related Mortality

Abstract Background The Philippines has been one of the most affected COVID-19 countries in the Western Pacific region, but there are limited data on COVID-19-related mortality and associated factors from this setting. We aimed to describe the epidemiological and clinical characteristics and associations with mortality among COVID-19-confirmed individuals admitted to an infectious diseases referral hospital in Metro Manila. Main text This was a single-centre retrospective analysis including the first 500 laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 individuals admitted to San Lazaro Hospital, Metro Manila, Philippines, from January to October 2020. We extracted clinical data and examined epidemiological and clinical characteristics and factors associated with in-hospital mortality. Of the 500 individuals, 133 (26.6%) were healthcare workers (HCW) and 367 (73.4%) were non-HCW, with HCW more likely presenting with milder symptoms. Non-HCW admissions were more likely to have at least one underlying disease (51.6% vs. 40.0%; p = 0.002), with hypertension (35.4%), diabetes (17.4%), and tuberculosis (8.2%) being the most common. Sixty-one (12.2%) died, comprising 1 HCW and 60 non-HCW (0.7% vs. 16.3%; p < 0.001). Among the non-HCW, no death occurred for the 0–10 years age group, but deaths were recorded across all other age groups. Compared to those who recovered, individuals who died were more likely to be older (p < 0.001), male (p = 0.015), report difficulty of breathing (p < 0.001), be HIV positive (p = 0.008), be intubated (p < 0.001), categorised as severe or critical (p < 0.001), have a shorter mean hospital stay (p < 0.001), or have an additional diagnosis of pneumonia (p < 0.001) or ARDS (p < 0.001). Conclusion Our analysis reflected significant differences in characteristics, symptomatology, and outcomes between healthcare and non-healthcare workers. Despite the unique mix of cohorts, our results support the country’s national guideline on COVID-19 vaccination which prioritises healthcare workers, the elderly, and people with comorbidities and immunodeficiency states.

Bataan-Cavite Interlink Bridge, Philippines – a new 32 km sea crossing

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sammy Yip ◽  
Steve Kite ◽  
Paresh Vishnoi ◽  
Vikas Venkatesha
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Feasibility Study ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Preliminary Design ◽  
The Road ◽  
Metro Manila ◽  
To Come ◽  
Optimum Solution

<p>Bataan-Cavite Interlink Bridge (BCIB) in the Philippines is a proposed 32km sea-crossing which will connect Bataan to Cavite, to unlock opportunity for economic growth and expansion outside Metro Manila. A Feasibility Study was carried out to plan the road link, which would involve two major navigation bridges, long marine viaducts, and interchange connections. This paper outlines the Feasibility Study and the preliminary design of the crossing, and highlights how the bridge options were assessed in order to come up with an optimum solution.</p>

Overcoming and Penalizing Precarity: Narratives of Drug Personalities Arrested in the Philippine War on Drugs

2022 ◽  
pp. 089692052110702
Author(s):  
Filomin C. Gutierrez
Keyword(s):  
Drug Use ◽  
Trade Liberalization ◽  
War On Drugs ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
The State ◽  
Individual Choice ◽  
Drug Problem ◽  
Productive Work ◽  
Authoritarian Populism ◽  
Metro Manila

The article problematizes state penality as a mechanism of repression of precarious workers through a war on drugs in the Philippines. The narratives of 27 arrested ‘drug personalities’ in Metro Manila tell of how methamphetamine energizes bodies and motivates minds for productive work. Bidding to be classified as willing and able workers and family men, the study’s participants orient to a moral stratification that pits the ‘moral versus immoral’ and the ‘hardworking versus lazy’. Qualifying their drug use as strategic and calculated, they uphold the neoliberal values of individual choice and accountability. Their support for the anti-drug campaign stems from their recognition of a drug problem and the socioemotional toll of the dysfunctions of living in the slums. While trade liberalization facilitates methamphetamine inflow, a war on drugs fuels an authoritarian populism. As the state reaffirms symbolic mission to protect its citizens, it blames precarity to a problem population.

Coping mechanisms of Philippine tourism and hospitality family businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic: a non-parametric approach

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Santiago ◽  
Fernando Martin Roxas ◽  
John Paolo Rivera ◽  
Eylla Laire Gutierrez
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
Family Firms ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Academic Community ◽  
Family Businesses ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Family Enterprises ◽  
Tourism And Hospitality ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Non Parametric

PurposeFamily businesses (FB), mostly small-sized, dominate the tourism and hospitality industry (THI), especially in the rural areas. While many would have been used to the impact of demand seasonality, it is unknown how these businesses would have survived through the restrictions imposed to contain the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic as compared to non-family business (NFB) counterparts. This study aims to determine if there were differences on how family and non-family enterprises in the THI coped with government restrictions.Design/methodology/approachBy subjecting the survey data from tourism enterprises to non-parametric techniques, the authors establish empirical evidence on similarities and differences of coping strategies adopted by FBs and NFBs; their required support from government and their perceptions of a post-pandemic THI.FindingsThe analysis revealed that family-owned tourism and hospitality businesses in the Philippines tended to collaborate with other businesses to manage the impact of the pandemic restrictions. Since they hired more seasonal workers prior to the restrictions, they tended to avoid hiring workers during the restricted period. NFBs, on the other hand, that were generally larger in size and more professionally managed with more regular employees, tended to streamline operations for greater efficiency.Research limitations/implicationsThe study relied on survey results distributed and collected online. There is an innate bias against those firms that did not have access to the survey links.Practical implicationsThe comparative study suggests that interventions to assist firms in the THI should consider the differences in firm ownership as “one size does not fit all.”Social implicationsThe study provides evidence about how environmental factors impact the operations of family firms. Thus, it provides valuable insights for both the academic community and industry practitioners.Originality/valueThis is the first study in the Philippines that was able to capture response of family and non-family firms in the THI during the COVID-19 lockdown.

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