REALPOLITIKBy Benjie Alejandro The Bureau of Animal Industry’s recent approval of Vietnam’s AVAC Live Vaccine against African Swine Fever (ASF) is undeniably a welcome relief for Filipino hog raisers. After seven years of crippling economic losses, devastated livelihoods, and skyrocketing pork prices, a light at the end of the tunnel has finally emerged. The Department of Agriculture (DA), led by …
Read More »EBITDABy DIEGO C. CAGAHASTIAN The Department of Agriculture (DA) under Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. should be commended for keeping an open mind and welcoming novel and tested ideas and technologies in the farm sector. Even if other government officials and elected senators and congressmen are vehemently against China, thus effectively prohibiting the Philippines from sharing in the economic benefits …
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President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has vowed to further cut the grip of middlemen on the country’s agricultural supply chain, saying farmers and producers should capture more value from what they grow and produce. Marcos made the commitment during his visit to the Batangas Egg Producers Multipurpose Cooperative (BEPCO), where he inspected the cooperative’s ₱300-million egg processing facility in Barangay …
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By Vito Barcelo Jr. Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon and NLEX Corporation President and General Manager Luis S. Reñon announced plans to construct a retarding basin beneath the cloverleaf section of the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) to help mitigate flooding in the Balintawak area. The proposed facility will temporarily store excess rainwater during heavy downpours, reducing the volume of water …
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The government is putting tighter safeguards around its proposed ₱1.47-trillion infrastructure spending program for 2027, with the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) assuring the public that projects must clear a series of evaluations before receiving funding. The DBM said last week that infrastructure proposals included in the 2027 National Expenditure Program (NEP) underwent evaluation and validation to determine whether …
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The economic toll of tropical cyclones Luis, Maymay and Neneng, together with the southwest monsoon or habagat, has climbed beyond ₱7.8 billion, with infrastructure and agricultural losses mounting across several regions, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC). The latest assessment released last week placed infrastructure damage at approximately ₱5.95 billion, while agricultural losses reached around …
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Millions of elderly Filipinos could receive a bigger and more reliable financial lifeline under a Senate proposal seeking to expand the coverage of the Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2010 and raise the monthly social pension for qualified beneficiaries to ₱1,000. Senate Bill 269, filed by Senator Bam Aquino, proposes a ₱1,000 monthly social pension for senior citizens who are …
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The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) is turning to artificial intelligence to help its tax personnel navigate the country’s complex tax rules faster, with Ayala Corporation providing funding and technical support for a new AI-powered assistance tool. Dubbed Terry The Tax AI Assistant, the system is being developed to help BIR employees quickly retrieve, cross-reference and analyze tax regulations, rulings, …
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The Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) is putting a substantial portion of its increased 2026 funding into artificial intelligence (AI), as it strengthens its capacity to detect and track suspicious financial activity amid heightened scrutiny of large cash transactions. Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor and AMLC Chairman Eli Remolona Jr. said Thursday that ₱125 million of the council’s additional ₱162.9 …
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The Marcos administration is moving to speed up the procurement and implementation of government projects, particularly infrastructure, while insisting that faster spending will not come at the expense of safeguards protecting public funds. During a Senate Committee on Finance briefing on the 2027 National Expenditure Program (NEP) Thursday, Department of Budget and Management (DBM) Acting Secretary Kim Robert de Leon …
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