Latest news with #DANNYPATA
GMA Network
2 days ago
- Business
- GMA Network
DOLE says 'convergence' key to addressing unemployment
Jobseekers, most of them fresh college graduates, line up at a job fair organized by the Public Employment Service Office of Manila and the Department of Labor and Employment at a shopping mall in Ermita, Manila, during the 454th Manila Day on Tuesday, June 24, 2025. DANNY PATA The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) on Wednesday underscored the importance of coordination among all government agencies in creating high-quality jobs for Filipinos. DOLE Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma made the statement during the second day of the post-State of the Nation Address (SONA) discussions in San Juan City, where he also stressed the role of employers and the private sector in job creation. 'Ang pagbanggit ng ating Pangulo sa mga specific na departamento at mga ahensya kaugnay sa usapin ng hanapbuhay at larangan ng paggawa ay sumasalamin sa mahalagang hallmark o characteristic ng pangkasalukuyang administration. Ang aking tinutukoy ay ang katagang convergence — pagsasama-sama, pagtatagpo, pagkakaisa, pagsasanib ng pwersa ng mga departamento dahil halos lahat naman ng mga departments ay may kaugnayan sa usapin ng paggawa at hanapbuhay,' said Laguesma. (The President's mentioning of the specific departments and agencies related to workers and livelihood reflects the hallmark or characteristics of the present administration. I am talking about convergence—the coming together of all departments because almost all departments are related to livelihood.) 'Sa bahagi ng DOLE at aking kasamahan sa gabinete ng Pangulo, mahalaga samin ang collaboration, cooperation ng private sector. Nabanggit ko nga — ang napakahalagang bahagi ng manggagawa at namumuhunan — 'yun ang matibay na pundasyon ng mga gawain ng DOLE,' he said. (For DOLE and other Cabinet members, our collaboration with the private sector is also important. Like I mentioned before, our foundation for our work in DOLE is the employees and employers.) During his fourth SONA on Monday, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said the DOLE, Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), and other related agencies will persevere to create more employment opportunities and fill the unemployment gaps for Filipino workers. Laguesma said the DOLE is implementing various 'employment facilitation activities' to promote jobs, including holding monthly job fairs. He also said the DOLE is strengthening its labor market information system and information dissemination by coordinating with the media, as well as through its website, The DOLE is also collaborating with local government units (LGUs) through the Public Employment Service Office (PESO) program. 'Napakahalaga rin ng coordination sa LGUs dahil nakikita na sa kanilang matapat at maayos na pakikipag-ugnayan sa DOLE, nahihikayat natin ang mga negosyante na existing na palakasin pa at magdagdag ng puhunan,' Laguesma said. (Our coordination with LGUs is also important. We saw that their cooperation with DOLE strengthens existing employers.) The number of unemployed Filipinos went down to 2.03 million in May from 2.06 million in April this year, the Philippine Statistics Authority said earlier this month. This means the unemployment rate dropped to 3.9% in May 2025 from the 4.1% recorded in both April 2025 and May 2024. —VBL, GMA Integrated News
GMA Network
4 days ago
- Sport
- GMA Network
SONA 2025: Marcos allows public to exercise on PSC track ovals
People enjoy strolling, jogging and biking along carless Roxas Boulevard from Padre Burgos Avenue to Quirino Avenue in Manila on Sunday, May 12, 2024. Having part of Roxas Boulevard go carless on Sundays will boost the city's environmental protection program and help the community be fit and healthy, the local government says. DANNY PATA President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos, Jr., in his fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Monday, said the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) will open its track ovals as part of the government's efforts for a healthier citizenry. Marcos said this as he promoted a more active lifestyle for Filipinos. "Bilang pagsuporta dito, simula ngayon, bubuksan ng Philippine Sports Commission sa publiko ang kanilang mga track and field oval sa Pasig, Maynila, at Baguio, upang makapag-jogging na kayo nang libre," Marcos said. (In support of this initiative, starting today, the Philippine Sports Commission will open its track and field ovals in Pasig, Manila, and Baguio to the public, so you can jog for free.) Before this, the president mentioned that more people in their 20s and older are being classified as overweight. "Sa kabilang banda naman, nakikita natin ang sobrang pagtaas ng timbang ng ating mga kababayang edad dalawampu at pataas. Kaya, sikapin nating maging mas aktibo ang ating pamumuhay araw-araw," Marcos said. (On the other hand, we are seeing excessive weight gain among our countrymen aged 20 and above. So, let's try to be more active in our daily lives.) "Ipalaganap natin ang pagsasagawa ng mga palaro at mga paliga, mga fun runs at fun walks, pati na mga pa-aerobics at pa-zumba." (Let's promote the hosting of games and competitions, fun runs and fun walks, as well as aerobics and Zumba.) Marcos encouraged local government units to have open spaces where people can engage in physical activities. "Para sa mga LGU, buksan at gawing maaliwalas ang mga park at mga plaza, kung saan makakapag-ensayo ang ating mga mamamayan, bata man o matanda. Magpatupad tayo ng mga 'Car-Free Sundays,' tulad ng ginagawa sa ilang lungsod dito sa Metro Manila, sa Baguio, Cebu, Iloilo, at Davao,'' he said. (For the LGUs, open and make parks and plazas clear, where our citizens, young and old, can exercise. Let's implement ''Car-Free Sundays," as is being done in several cities here in Metro Manila, in Baguio, Cebu, Iloilo, and Davao.) Marcos also recognized Filipino athletes making their names on the global stage, such as Manny Pacquiao, Hidilyn Diaz, Carlos Yulo, and EJ Obiena. He also called PNP chief Police General Nicolas Torre III a "champion" after being declared winner by default in his supposed match against Acting Davao City Mayor Sebastian Duterte on Sunday. Torre won, as Duterte did not appear at the charity boxing event, which raised P300,000 in ticket sales alone. —VBL, GMA Integrated News
GMA Network
4 days ago
- Politics
- GMA Network
Where is PH now in terms of learning recovery?
Pupils line up at Aurora Quezon Elementary School in San Andres, Manila, on Monday, June 16, 2025, as School Year 2025-2026 opens. DANNY PATA When President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. delivered his third State of the Nation Address (SONA) in 2024, he made a clear order to address the gaps in the Philippine education system as he lamented the 'poor reality' hounding young learners. Back then, the President cited international assessments revealing that more than half of students in Grades 6, 10, and 12 failed to reach the ideal proficiency levels, faring low in information literacy, problem-solving, and critical thinking skills. Marcos thus declared that the national learning recovery program must proceed 'without the slightest disruption,' especially in basic education. 'Our system of education must be strategically calibrated to make sure that our youth are not only taught to become literate. But, it must also consciously develop them into problem-solvers, and into critical thinkers—hungry for success, ready for the future,' he said in his third presidential address. This was a resounding call to address the country's persistent learning crisis, one deepened by years of lockdowns due to the pandemic, and underinvestment despite the education sector being given the highest budgetary priority as mandated by the 1987 Constitution. A year later, Marcos is set to return to Batasang Pambansa to deliver his fourth SONA which marks the middle of his term as president. Where does the country stand now in terms of implementing the learning recovery program? In its year two report released in January, the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM 2) pointed out that the Department of Education's (DepEd) own National Learning Recovery Program (NLRP) faces 'significant criticism and is in need of massive reforms' due to certain flaws in its design. To recall, the DepEd adopted the NLRP in 2023 under the leadership of then-Education Secretary, Vice President Sara Duterte, to address the learning gaps that were heightened by school closures and disruption amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The NLRP also aims to deal with the low performance of Filipino learners in international large-scale and national assessments. EDCOM 2, a congressional body tasked to make a comprehensive assessment and evaluation of the performance of the Philippine education sector, recommended that the NLRP be revamped to ensure proper targeting, prompt support, and proper assessment of students that require urgent intervention—with a focus on those lacking foundational competencies. This call for reforms was welcomed by Duterte's successor as DepEd chief, Sonny Angara. ARAL Law One notable move made by the Marcos administration since the 2024 SONA was signing into law the Academic Recovery and Accessible Learning (ARAL) Act, which establishes a national learning intervention program for struggling learners to meet grade-level standards. Led by DepEd, the ARAL program is a free project that would focus on improving students' competencies in essential learning areas, including reading and mathematics for Grades 1 to 10, and science for Grades 3 to 10. As for the Kindergarten learners, the program would focus on building foundational skills to strengthen their literacy and numeracy competencies. Tutorial sessions would also be conducted either through a face-to-face, online, or a blended learning approach to help ensure the effectiveness and accessibility of learning. Angara said he believes that this new law would significantly improve Filipino students' performance in international assessments, like the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), in the long term. He, however, admitted that immediate results might not be evident in time for the 2025 PISA, which was held from March to April this year. Marcos had directed DepEd to prioritize improvements in the country's PISA scores after the 2022 results reflected Filipino learners' poor performance in mathematics, science, and reading. That time, the Philippines ranked sixth from the bottom among 81 participating countries and economies. A separate 2022 PISA report also revealed that Filipino students placed second to the last when it comes to creative thinking. These results mirrored the findings of the EDCOM 2, which noted that even after a decade of implementing the K to 12 system, Filipino students continue to fall behind regional and global peers in key academic competencies. Revised SHS curriculum Another key highlight in education since the previous SONA was the pilot implementation of the revised Senior High School (SHS) curriculum this School Year 2025-2026. Among the salient features of this new curriculum is the reduction of core subjects from the 15 being offered per semester, to just five that will be offered for a full year in Grade 11. These five new subjects are: Effective Communication (Mabisang Komunikasyon), Life Skills, General Mathematics, General Science, and Pag-aaral ng Kasaysayan at Lipunang Pilipino. This development came after Marcos, in August 2024, directed the rationalization of the SHS curriculum as he wanted to ensure that SHS graduates could acquire high-quality jobs. But calls for education reforms further escalated when it was revealed in congressional hearings earlier this year that approximately 5.58 million high school graduates, including junior high school completers aged 10 to 64, were considered "functionally illiterate" because of lack of comprehension skill. Angara said that the DepEd has been taking action to address the issue in order to prepare the children for a better future. Among the agency's interventions, he said, are intensifying remedial and literacy programs and the use of data in schools. He said teaching and assessment methods have also been improved, and the students are being honed to be critical thinkers and have 21st-century skills, instead of merely memorizing lessons. DepEd also revised its class suspension protocols, allowing schools and local government units (LGUs) to have more discretion when it comes to the declaration depending on real-time conditions. Before, classes were automatically canceled under any public storm signals. Angara thus reminded school officials and LGUs to be prudent in declaring class suspensions, emphasizing the need for learning continuity and to minimize learning loss. Also included in the agency's interventions in times of calamity is the rollout of durable and mobile modular classrooms that will replace temporary learning spaces in disaster-hit areas. Digitalization, connectivity Aside from addressing the classroom gap, Marcos in his last SONA, said that the digital gap should also be addressed with as much intensity. The President then expressed hope that all students will be equipped with computers, smart TVs, essential programs, digital books, and access to reliable power and internet connection. 'Digitalization and solar-powered electricity must now be standard features in our schools and in our classrooms. Simply put, this is educational reform through technology,' he said. To realize this vision, DepEd began implementing several digitalization initiatives. Through a public-private partnership approach, the agency has been pursuing smart classrooms, ICT equipment, and upgraded e-learning materials, while aiming to improve digital connectivity nationwide. DepEd has also deployed smart TVs, laptops, and other devices to public schools to support digital learning and reduce reliance on printed modules. These tools are expected to enhance interactive and blended learning delivery in classrooms. Teachers and students in geographically isolated and underserved public schools are likewise expected to benefit from improved internet connectivity under the government's ongoing "Free WiFi for All" initiative. The road to full recovery remains steep. While the Marcos administration has made progress in addressing learning gaps, the scale of the education crisis in the country demands faster execution, deeper investments, and stronger accountability. With millions of students needing help and an entire generation at risk of being left behind, eyes and ears are now turned for Marcos' next SONA to know his next moves to improve the quality of education in the country. — BM, GMA Integrated News
GMA Network
4 days ago
- Business
- GMA Network
Inflation, economy, price of rice: Where PH stands since SONA 2024
A resident of San Andres in Malate, Manila, purchases P20 per kilo rice at a Kadiwa center in the Bureau of Animal Industry on May 15, 2025. DANNY PATA Around this time last year, President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. opened his third State of the Nation Address (SONA) not with his administration's feats, but with the daunting reality check that the fruits of economic progress were not felt by ordinary Filipinos faced with the rising prices of commodities—particularly rice. 'The hard lesson of this last year has made it very clear that whatever current data proudly bannering our country as among the best-performing in Asia, means nothing to a Filipino, who is confronted by the price of rice at 45 to 65 pesos per kilo," Marcos said in his report to the nation on Monday, July 22, 2024. "Bagamat maganda ang mga istatistikang ito, wala itong kabuluhan sa ating kababayan na hinaharap ang realidad na mataas ang presyo ng mga bilihin, lalo na ang pagkain—lalo't higit, ng bigas," the President said. (Although the statistics are good, these mean nothing to our countrymen who face the reality of high prices of goods, especially food, and most especially, rice.) With this, Marcos declared 'hindi tayo titigil sa paglalaban sa kahirapan, at sa paghahanap ng lunas upang maibalik sa normal ang presyo ng bilihin—lalo na ang bigas [we will not stop in battling poverty and finding solutions to normalize the prices of goods—especially rice.]' IBON Foundation executive director Sonny Africa told GMA News Online that the President opened his 2024 SONA 'well, with the acknowledgement that the majority of Filipinos aren't feeling any benefits from hyped economic growth.' 'If sincere, this could've signaled a reorientation of economic policy to favor poor and middle-class Filipinos instead of the narrowest slice of rich families and large corporations at the very top,' Africa said. The President will once again face the nation to deliver his report on July 28, 2025—halfway through his term. GMA News Online looked at what the Marcos administration has so far accomplished in terms of fulfilling the chief executive's promise to lower inflation and rice prices. Inflation Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed that inflation—which measures the rate of growth in consumer goods and services costs—slowed down to 3.2%, well within the government's ceiling of 2% to 4%, from 6% in 2023. The PSA attributed the full-year 2024 inflation decline to the downtrend in food and non-alcoholic beverages at 4.4% from 7.9% in 2023 as well as the lower print seen in electricity, gas and other fuels at 1.7% from 4.9% year-on-year. As of end-June 2025, inflation rate cooled down further to 1.8%. Also in June this year, food inflation—which tracks the price movements of food items in a "basket" commonly purchased by households—eased to 0.1% from 0.7% in May and from 6.5% in June of last year. This was on the back of a steeper deflation in rice at -14.3% from -12.8% in May. Rice prices Rice inflation has been contracting for six months in a row and is seen to end the year at a 'negative inflation' print, consistent with the PSA's expectation that it would begin easing towards the second half of 2024 due to base effects, particularly when it began its uptrend in August 2023, as well as the impact of lower rice import tariff which took effect early July last year. In the third year of his presidency, Marcos was able to fulfill his campaign promise of lowering the price of rice to P20 per kilo in a bid to ease the burden of consumers on the increasing price of one of Filipinos' basic food commodities. Initially launched in the Visayas region last April, at least 162 locations across the country have been offering the cheaper subsidized rice, according to the Department of Agriculture. Members of the vulnerable sectors are on the priority list of who can avail the P20 per kilo of rice. The P20-per-kilo rice initiative operates primarily through KADIWA ng Pangulo outlets. The rice is being sourced from stocks of the National Food Authority, which are procured directly from local farmers. The subsidized rice program not only ensures affordable food staple for consumers but also helps decongest NFA warehouses. Moreover, this will make space to purchase more palay at prices higher than those offered by private traders. Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said the target is to serve 15 million households or about 60 million people by the end of 2026. The DA also vowed to intensify the implementation of industry recovery and expansion programs, such as the Swine Industry Recovery Project (SIRP) and Livestock Economic Enterprise Development, to strengthen food supply chains. IBON Foundation's Africa, however, said programs of the administration 'will all be tokenistic and exaggerated public relations efforts if the government does not commit budgets, resources and energy commensurate to the magnitude of the problems at hand.' 'The President spoke about supporting agriculture but, if anything, the smaller share of the sector in the 2025 budget to 3.9% of the total from 4.1% in 2024 indicates a deprioritization of interventions that were already inadequate to begin with,' he said. GDP target missed As far as economic targets are concerned, the Marcos administration still has a far way to go, missing its GDP growth target for the second straight year. In 2024, the economy only grew by 5.7%, revised from earlier reported 5.6% growth, below the 6.0% to 7.0% target for the year. Growth surpassed the target ceiling in 2022 at 7.6%. As of the first quarter of 2025, the country's GDP grew by 5.4%, faster than the upwardly revised growth rate of 5.3% in the last quarter of 2024. With missed targets, the Development Budget Coordination Committee has slashed again the growth goals for 2025 to 5.5% to 6.5% range from the previous target of 6.0% to 8.0%. The economic team cited heightened global uncertainties, such as the unforeseen escalation of tensions in the Middle East and the imposition of US tariffs as considerations for adjusting the growth targets. Nonetheless, the administration's aspiration to elevate the Philippines to upper-middle-income country (UMIC) seems to be getting closer, as it missed the minimum for entering the UMIC bracket under the World Bank's classification by $26. The country remained a lower-middle-income economy as its GNI per capita in 2024 stood at $4,470, while the required GNI per capita to enter the UMIC roster was at $4,496 to $13,935. — BM/NB, GMA Integrated News
GMA Network
14-07-2025
- Politics
- GMA Network
Legarda urges countries prone to climate change to update policies
A fishpond owner walks on a dried fishpond in Laur, Nueva Ecija on Saturday, April 27, 2024, as extreme heat brought about by El Niño caused some owners to stop operations. The Department of Agriculture earlier said that damage from El Niño has reached around P3.34 billion. DANNY PATA Senator Loren Legarda on Monday called on climate-vulnerable countries, including the Philippines, to update their laws and policies and push for better actions towards climate action and cultural preservation. At a high-level meeting of the Climate Vulnerable Forum and V20 Finance Ministers (CVF-V20), Legarda said extreme heat alone could cost the Philippines an estimated P466 billion annually by 2030. 'Climate change endangers all that you see and so much more. Climate change imperils not only lives and livelihoods, it threatens to erase who we are,' the senator said. 'It is this understanding that demands we broaden our definition of risk to fully encompass the cultural well-being of our people,' she added. Legarda further pointed out policymakers must ensure that laws in their country reflect their commitment to both climate action and cultural preservation. She also called on colleagues in the Philippine Congress to fully implement the climate prosperity plan. 'Let our collective efforts safeguard our precious cultural treasures, empower our resilient communities, and build a sustainable future for all Filipinos,' Legarda said. The CVF-V20 is a coalition of 74 countries highly vulnerable to a warming planet, including Bangladesh, Ghana, Sri Lanka, Barbados, and the Philippines. — LA, GMA Integrated News
