NSO BICOL BEGINS 2010 CENSUS OF POPULATION AND HOUSING
… urges people’s support and cooperation for the success of the census

LEGAZPI CITY — Family households in Albay have been since Monday (May 17) subjected to a statistical survey by the National Statistic Office (NSO).

NSO Albay officer-in-charge Cecil Brondial said Tuesday on PIA Aramon Ta Daw radio program that the census will take an inventory of the total population and housing units in the country and collect information about their characteristics.

She said that the collected data in the census will be useful in the formulation of policies, plans and programs of the government relative to the delivery of basic health and social services to target beneficiaries and the general public.

“It will also determine business opportunities and industry status, in research and development studies,” she added.

The NSO provincial chief explained that data obtained from the census will provide reliable basis for redistricting and apportionment of congressional seats, allocation of resources and revenues, and creation of political and administrative units.

Results of the 2010 Census of Population and Housing (CPH) will be presented to the President who will proclaim the population counts by barangay at the end of the year, she said.

In Sorsogon province, NSO chief Elvira O. Apogñol appeals to every household to spare a few minutes for the census.

Apogñol said that some 545 enumerators, 110 team supervisors, 25 assistant area supervisors and 27 area supervisors are being tapped by NSO Sorsogon to carry out the census.

“Of the 707 census field workers in totality, three-fourths are personnel from the Department of Education and Culture (DepEd) and one-fourth are hired NSO personnel,” she noted.

“They will be covering 541 barangays and some 596 enumeration areas in the province. All enumerators will be wearing an official 2010 CPH ID during their field work,” she added.

Latest census records of NSO dated August 1, 2007, show Sorsogon with a total population of 709,673.

Apogñol explained that data to be gathered were all related to family membership including age, gender, educational attainment and number of household members as well as water sources and waste management, among others.

NSO assures the public that the information gathered will be held in strict confidence as stated in Section 4 of the Commonwealth Act 591 stating that “no information obtained be divulged to anyone except for bona fide NSO personnel”.


Apogñol said that by virtue of the Presidential Proclamation No. 2028, the month of May this year was declared as National Census Month.

“The Census on Population and Housing (CPH), the biggest civilian operation in the country, started on May 17, 2010 with May 1, 2010, 12:01 a.m., as the reference time and will end on June 12, 2010,” she said. (MALoterte and BARecebido, PIA Bicol)

AFP: WE NEED TO CIVILIANIZE THE WAR ON INSURGENCY

LEGAZPI CITY — The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) declared that there is no absolute military solution to insurgency as it exhorts LGUs and other stakeholders to mobilize and take active role.

Brigadier General Francisco N Cruz Jr., chief of the Civil Relations Service (CRS) of the AFP, averred that realities on the ground suggest the severe decline of the CPP-NPA as military efforts have reduced the group’s strength by 78.7% from its peak of 25,200 in 1987. In 2009, its strength is estimated at 4,702.

Cruz elaborated, “from 2001-2009, there has been an annual average of 10.8% consistent decline in NPA strength; while the CPP-NPA is estimated to be in existence at only less than 3% in rural barangays.

“However, considering the multi-dimensional nature of insurgency, there needs more synchronization of government efforts to strategically and categorically defeat the CPP-NPA-NDF insurgency. The best approach is the holistic approach that addresses the root causes of insurgency – injustice, deprivation and ignorance,” he stressed.

AFP cites Executive Order 773 or the “Further Reorganization of the Peace and Order Council”, enacted in 2009, as an effective response to insurgency, aiming to achieve a unity of effort in all levels – strategic, operational, and tactical.

The National Internal Security Plan (NISP) under EO 21, meanwhile, also demands a “strategy of holistic approach”.

“As supported by EO 773 and the NISP, LGU chief executives should be empowered and become more decisive to lead us in our counter-insurgency efforts because it is them that can effectively address the grievances in their localities through the use of their development funds,’ explained Cruz.

“We need to civilianize this war; meaning, we must allow the non-military methods to dominate our strategy with LGU taking the lead role,” conveyed the CRS chief.

AFP alludes to Bohol as an exemplary paradigm of an LGU-led counter-insurgency. Other provinces that have also been declared as insurgency-free are Aurora, Cebu, La Union, Marinduque, Quirino, Guimaras, Siquijor, Biliran, Apayao, Tarlac and Romblon; while more are poised to follow.

Cruz explained that declaration of insurgency-free in an area means that the insurgent’s influence in the mentioned areas is non-existent or too insignificant to affect the lives of the residents.
“We believe that with the proactive participation of the LGUs and other stakeholders, driven by a sense of purpose and urgency, the CPP-NPA can finally be defeated,” he stressed.

AFP avows to uphold its main role to secure communities to allow development to thrive, also sustaining its non-traditional duties such as its engineering civic actions through the National Development and Support Command (NADESCOM) and its Kalayaan Barangay Program (KBP); the deployment of Peace and Development Teams (PDTs) nationwide to fast-track the delivery of government’s basic services and localized dialogues; its support to literacy through the Army Literacy Patrol System (ALPS) and the adopt-a-school projects; among many others.

“Assigning more troops will never be enough to enforce lasting peace and sustainable development. The nation can always depend on our soldiers’ unflinching courage, professionalism, and commitment. But we cannot win this fight alone. We enjoin all stakeholders to join us in this fight. The mobilization of every sector shall serve as a powerful catalyst in securing democracy and ensuring sustainable peace and progress,” concludes BGen Cruz. (Maj. EJCOsias IV, PA GC CRS-AFP/PIA)

SORSOGON TEACHERS TRANSFORM CONFLICT-AREA TO ZONE OF PEACE

CASTILLA, Sorsogon -- The government’s peace education program has paid-off, especially to school children in this conflict-affected area where teachers inculcate the value of peace to ensure a brighter future for their young pupils as law-abiding citizens.

The San Isidro Elementary School here has been selected as one of the pilot areas in the country, where peace education is taught --an initiative of the Bicol Consortium on Peace Education and Development (BCPED), in partnership with the Department of Education (DepEd) in Region V.

The project is fully supported by the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) and funded by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), through its Conflict Prevention and Peace Building Programme. Technical expertise is provided by the United Nations Act for Peace Program.

The program is to train teachers and administrators on how to mainstream peace perspectives into the basic education curriculum as well as into school policies, processes and relationships to make them conflict-sensitive and peace promoting.

Teachers are trained how to reach out to the families of the students and other members of the community for a holistic approach to build a culture of peace.

Emma J. Sario, a grade one teacher, upon returning from a training seminar, set up a corner in her classroom where she posted several ways on how to transform the classroom into a place of peace.

A co-teacher Sandra Aninipot encouraged her 55 students to come up with their own guidelines, many of which focused on respecting, helping and showing compassion towards their fellow students.

Aninipot has also adapted peaceful approaches in dealing with trying circumstances at home.
Barely five months after the implementation of the project, the teachers noticed remarkable changes in the behavior of their pupils, who now refrain from saying bad and hurting words to fellow students.

They also keep their composure and avoided retaliating when provoked by their classmates.
The phrase “Peace be with you” has become the popular saying heard around the campus.
School principal Teddy Jañola cited the importance of training the pupils on the importance of a lasting peace.

Aside from mainstreaming peace perspectives into the school program, Jañola and his teachers have spread the peace virus outside the school premises.

Jañola said a progress report has been submitted to the municipal and provincial officials about the project.

The school is actively working with the parents’ association to be able to reach out to the community more effectively.

Through peace education, the young students will be trained as peace advocates, he said.
With the success of the peace education program, teachers at the San Isidro Elementary School have felt a sense of personal triumph in helping the transformation of their students into peace- loving individuals.

Relationships among fellow teachers and students also have vastly improved.

For teacher Armie G. Buban, the whole experience reminded her of her commitment to become a peace advocate.

She said that being trained under this project has steadily helped her to keep her composure, especially in dealing with hard-headed students.

The school has already received commendations for the early success of the project resulting in the additional support being granted by the Department of Education and the expansion of the project to more schools in the Bicol region. (CBD/PNA Bicol)

BFP TO INTENSIFY INSPECTION ON BOARDING HOUSES, DORMS

SORSOGON CITY — All dormitories and boarding houses in this city will be subjected to a thorough inspection by the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) office here in preparation for the upcoming school opening in June.

Chief Inspector Renato Marcial, BFP Sorsogon City fire marshal, said the inspection intends to ensure the safety of the students, especially that we expect students from distant areas from this city will occupy rented rooms.

Marcial bared that the inspection has since started last May 13, 2010
Marcial has already directed the agency’s fire safety inspectors to all the dormitories and boarding houses to abate fire hazards and other related emergencies.

BFP has also requested the support and cooperation of barangay officials in the implementation of the Fire Code of the Philippines, also appealing to the owners to secure business permits before they operate their own businesses.

“They must comply with fire safety standards as required by law, including provision of fire exits, emergency lights, fire extinguishers and installation of alarm system,” he elaborated.

Marcial appealed to the community to report to their office at 421-6320 that if in case they found out some boarding houses who operate without the necessary permits and do not follow the fire safety standards required by law. (FO1MBDollente/FO1LFuntanares, BFP Sorsogon City/PIA)

DEMAND FOR GOAT PRODUCTS DRAWS MORE FARMERS INTO GOAT FARMING
By Danny O. Calleja

SORSOGON CITY – Farmers here and other parts of Sorsogon province have recognized goat raising as environment friendly and profitable farming venture.

City councilor Roberto Dollison, head of the three-year old Sorsogon Goat Raisers Association (SGRA), on Tuesday said “from backyard raisers, our group is mulling on converting into a cooperative and turn bigtime entrepreneur to take advantage of the demand for goat products like breeders, meat and milk.”

Each of the 25 members of SGRA had an average of 10 heads of goat stocks of various breeds and raising them is already a quite good number to start for bigtime farming, Dollison said.

The country had still a meager number of goats even with the shift in diet preferences and the growing demand and interest for goat meat in the local market. The goat population is presently estimated at 3.3 million and rising continuously, Dollison ,quoting a recent report of the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI), said.

One big problem, he said was the cost of breeder goats that as of the present, a six-month old native female at 10-12 kilograms already commands a price of P2,500. A four-month old meztizo weanling costs P4,000 and bucks for breeding are now at P11,000 to P20,000 per head.
But a recent report of the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCARRD) said that this problem does not stop raisers and breeders from dipping their hands into this low-risk profitable livelihood.

Goats adapt well to any existing farming system and feed on forages and other farm products although raisers also use concentrates, it said.

“Goats are very popular among Filipinos because they require low initial capital investment, fit the small hold farm conditions, and multiply fast,” PCARRD explained in its investment briefer. “Culturally, goats are integral to every special occasion such as birthdays, baptisms, weddings, and fiestas. Hence, they command a higher price compared with other meats in the market.”

These ruminants require low maintenance because they eat tree leaves, grasses, weeds and agricultural by-products. “Goats require less feed than cows and carabaos as about 10 native goats can be fed on the feedstuffs sufficient for one cattle and about seven purebred dairy goats can be fed on the feedstuffs adequate for one dairy cow.

“Although a goat is small, it can produce as much as four liters of milk a day if it is purebred and is given a ration to meet all of its nutritional requirements,” the PCARRD added.

A PCARRD study conducted found out that goats are multi-purpose ruminants producing 58.4 percent milk, 35.6 percent meat, 4.3 percent hide and 1.7 percent fiber. It said that these small ruminants could provide the answer to improve nutritional requirements of the predominantly rural farm families scattered all over the archipelago.

As goat production requires low initial investment and small risks compared to other livestock, it is therefore an attractive undertaking among resource-poor families. In addition, women and children can raise the animals, making it a sound option to augment the country’s programs on livelihood. Goats provide livelihood to about 15 million Filipinos across the country, according to PCARRD.

Despite this, goat farming is still not very popular among Filipinos and no one exactly knows how many goats are there in the country.

PCARRD claims that the total goat inventory is “steadily increasing” at 2 percent per year. This supply is still not enough to meet the current demands. “We expect that the increased demand will last to 2020 when the project supply can meet the demand of the consumers,” PCARRD said.

The optimum potential of goat as one of the main sources of milk and meat has not been fully tapped in the country.

The Bureau of Agricultural Statistics (BAS) of the Department of Agriculture (DA) reported that the total number of goats in the country is about 3,355,574. Most of the goat farms are concentrated in Southern Luzon and various parts of Mindanao.

In Mindanao, Dollison said, goat farming was considered a “sunshine industry.” The country’s second largest island has a large Muslim population and goat meat is considered Halal food. There is also a big demand in the international market, particularly the Middle East.

In Sorsogon, Dollison said more and more people were raising goats in their farms that aside from providing them a steady income from the milk and sales of breeding stocks, they have discovered one thing about the animals.

“Their manure is a good source of fertilizer,” he said. SGRA’s combined stock of about 250 goats provides organic fertilizer for our farms planted to rice, rootcrops, vegetables, coconuts and fruit trees that since fertilizer costs have gone up, more and more farmers are turning to goatraising, Dollison said.

There are at least 12 known goat species in the world but only a relatively small number of breeds are economically useable. The Philippine’s native goat is small but hardy. It weighs about 25 kilograms at maturity and produces only about 350 grams of milk with butterfat content of around 4.6 percent daily.

The Dadiangas goat is common in General Santos City is a mixture of native, Nubian and Jamnapari goats and some animals may even have some Alpine or Saanen blood. The milk production and butterfat content are marginally higher than native goats and they do best in the drier areas of the country.

Of the introduced breeds in the country, Anglo Nubian performs the best along with the newer introduced Boer goats. The dairy breeds such as the Saanen, Toggenburg and French Alpine perform relatively poorly.

For those who cannot afford a purebred stock, starting with the best female goats available in the locality is the best idea and bred them with purebreds or upgraded stock and by selecting th desirable offspring and discarding the undesirable ones, a good stock will emerge later, Dollison said.

For commercial or large-scale operation, the production inputs are aplenty. Fixed investment includes land, goat house, fences, pasture area, water pump, feeding trough, spade, wheelbarrow, and ropes.

“You have to buy breeding does and breeding bucks. Operating expenses include veterinary medicines, drugs, and vaccines; feed supplements and goat rations; and repair and maintenance of goat house, fences, equipment, and pasture. Fixed and seasonal labor is also required,” he said.
PCARRD said, with minimal initial capital investment of about P67,000 for 25-doe level, P174,500 for 60-doe level, or P349,000 for 100-doe level, positive net income and return-on-investment (ROI) are realized, even as early as the first year.

The ROI for five years is 67 percent from a 25-doe level operation under semi-confinement scheme and 60 percent from 50- and 100-doe level operations under pure confinement system. Payback period is two years, the PCARRD added.

Goats have gone a long way from being just poor man’s cows. These animals have proven to be more than just four-legged mammals that generate milk and meat. They survive in almost any kind of environment that is dry and where feed resources are available, making their potential as one of the main sources of farm income.

Given all those advantages, PCARRD said it has picked up on this renewed interest on goats and is now laying various science and technology (S&T) initiatives to continue coming up with better quality stocks, promote goat reproduction techniques and encourage new and fresh approaches to manage goats and the business of raising them.

Along with the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) and the International Fund for Agriculture Development (IFDA), PCARRD has initiated trainings on effective goat management to further promote its competence.

After analyzing the cost and returns of raising goats, they proved that it is a low-risk profitable livelihood. Assuming a goat raiser has five does at P2,500 each, an initial investment of P32,000 can mean extra income of at least P14,800 in sales of goat stock after two business years.

PCARRD has also initiated its 1,000-goat farms program that aims to launch 1,000 smallholder farmers into full-time commercial goat raisers to continue the wave of effect that goat raising has started.

In the end, even with problems on seasonality of demand, fluctuating prices of goats and breeders, high costs of feed, wavering veterinary services and high taxes and business permits to start with, raising goats will continue to flourish and find its optimum potential in the future, it said.

That is because 63 percent of the world’s total meat consumption can be credited to goat meat. According to www.boergoatshome.com, people-from Mideasterners and African to Latin American and Arabs prefer goat meat than any other veal-like meat around the world. (PNA Bicol)

PALACE CALLS FOR HEALING, COOPERATION WITH INCOMING ADMINISTRATION

MANILA — Malacanang on Tuesday (May 18) called on everyone to unite and cooperate with the incoming administration so the Philippines will continue to move forward and achieve further development.

In a press briefing, Press Undersecretary Rogelio Peyuan said that since the elections are over, it is best for everyone —winners and losers alike, to “unite and work together” with the new administration for a better Philippines.

Peyuan also said Malacanang is leaving it to the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to decide on the alleged irregularities during the May 10 polls.

“The first fully automated polls is part of President Arroyo’s legacy so let us leave it to the COMELEC to assess the level of satisfaction on Smartmatic’s delivery of what was expected of them,” he said.

Peyuan said the European community and China, among other nations, have congratulated the Philippines for the conduct of a peaceful elections.

He advised those questioning the credibility of the May 10 polls to go slow and “observe a certain level of decency” in any act they take.

“Let’s leave it to the COMELEC to assess the entire exercise. It is the best authority to do that,” he said.

Peyuan also said it is best to allow the new President to have a freehand in choosing the persons who will help him run the government.

Peyuan praised Senator Benigno Simeon Aquino III, the newly elected President, in saying that he will retain some of the Arroyo administration cabinet members in his official family.

“We take it as a very good sign. That is uniting and healing…We pray the next President will be a listening President,” he said.

Peyuan said there were many deserving officials in the Arroyo administration who could be of help to the next administration.

“It’s a very good sign. Let us now set aside politicking.It will always be an honor to serve the government,” he said. (PIA V Release)

PGMA LEADS CHED’S 16TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

MANILA — President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo graced Tuesday (May 18) the 16th anniversary of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), leading the inauguration and awarding ceremonies at the commission’s headquarters in Diliman, Quezon City.

The President was welcomed by CHED Chairman Emmanuel Angeles and Commissioners Nenalyn Defensor, William Medrano, Nona Ricafort and Luningning Misuarez-Umar at the foyer entrance of the CHED building.

The President was ushered in the second floor where she led ribbon cutting ceremonies marking the inauguration of the commission’s newly constructed auditorium.

The auditorium is just one of the many new features introduced during the administration of Angeles to upgrade the image of the commission.

Aside from housing CHED’s central offices, the Higher Education Development Center, one of the sub-components of the seven investment strategies under the Higher Education Development Project (HEDP), is home to a higher education virtual library, higher education management information system, media room, accreditation rooms, technical panel offices, multi-agency projects management units, training rooms, and accommodation facilities.

The construction of the HDEC was accomplished in two phases: the partial completion of a P 141-million four-storey building with an approximate floor area of 6,752 square meters and the complete construction of the building peripherals including the fourth floor, roof deck and the multi-purpose area from the ground to the third floor and its roofing.

Phase II covers an approximate floor area of 4,390 sq.m. and its contract price is P115-million.

After the ribbon cutting ceremonies, the President led in the distribution of recognition awards to CHED employees who have shown exemplary work in their respective fields of endeavor.

Among those awarded by the President were: Eleanor Fernandez, Charlie Calimlim, Caridad Abuan and Zenaida Gersana as Best Technical Chiefs and Violeta Galo and Juan Purian, Jr. as Best Administrative Chiefs. (PIA V Release)

PGMA CITES SCHOOLS’ ROLE IN STRENGTHENING PHILIPPINE ECONOMY

MANILA — President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo cited Tuesday afternoon (May 18) the significant role the academic community, particularly the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) has played in strengthening the Philippine economy.

In her speech keynoting the commission’s 16th anniversary held at its headquarters in Diliman, Quezon City, the President said the partnership between the government and CHED has resulted in numerous benefits which redound to the people in the form of better delivery of services and quality education for all.

“During my administration, CHED helped me change the Philippine economy significantly and for the better. With the support of CHED and the academic community, the Philippine economy today is far stronger than it was nine years ago,” the President said.

“We are now on a path of sustainable growth after 37 unprecedentedly consecutive quarters of growth. We have created millions of jobs that help keep some of our brightest workers here at home and we have resources to invest in better healthcare and education,” she added.

The President pointed out that these were made possible through “tough and unpopular” implementation of new taxes “which we reinvested in our people through expanded and improved education, social services, infrastructure and salary increases.”

“Education must be at the center of any government development platform. In that regard, we have invested in an education budget that is more than P200 billion this year compared to less than P100 billion when we started nine years ago. So we have more than doubled our budget in the last nine years,” the President said.

Because of the budget increase, CHED has been able to provide college and post-graduate education for over 600,000 scholars including those in the fields of science, technology and engineering.

The President further pointed out that CHED has grown in scope, holding jurisdiction over almost 2,000 higher education institutions (HEIs), 89 percent (over 1,500) of which are private schools, plus 109 state universities and colleges (SUCs), 81 local HEIs and 16 other specialized schools.

“Your policies influence the fields of study and the lives of almost three million students, 600,000 of which over the years have been scholars,” the President said.

However, the President acknowledged that despite having “succeeded on our part to pave the way and build a stronger foundation for sustainable growth, we still have a long way to go.”

The President pointed out the importance of working towards achieving a main education highway towards a knowledge-based economy that will result in a seamless education from pre-school to the tertiary level.

The President also talked about recommendations to improve consultations among the academe and industry and business leaders to determine new skills needs for present and future manpower.

“The main objective of these consultations is to make the skills of our college graduates more relevant to the jobs with high demand, therefore closing the jobs-skills gap and improving the employability of the graduates,” the President said.

“We want a seamless educational highway towards a knowledge-based economy because we are in the knowledge century and I desire to see a brighter future for the hardworking men and women of this nation. I have an abiding interest in seeing your clients and mine, in other words the students of higher education, will come into their own, seize the value of modernity and education and use these tools to advance themselves and the nation,” she added. (PIA V Release)

EU JOINS IMT ON MINDANAO PEACE PROCESS; RP ELATED

MANILA — The European Union (EU) has accepted membership in the International Monitoring Team (IMT) on the Mindanao peace process, a move welcomed by the negotiating panels of both the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) Panel (GRP) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

The EU joins Japan, Brunei, Libya and the group’s head, Malaysia in the monitoring group. The latter is also the Facilitator of the overall peace negotiations.

EU’s participation will be finalized once appropriate terms of reference TOR) have been agreed with the GRP-MILF, according to EU ambassador to Manila, Alistair MacDonald, who informed both sides of the decision.

A revised TOR for the IMT agreed in December 2009 include four components, among them the Humanitarian, Rehabilitation and Development (HRD) aspect which the EU will now lead.

Norway has also been invited and had indicated its willingness to participate in the IMT depending on the TOR. Norway is not a EU member but is closely associated with the Union through its membership in the European Economic Area (EEA).

“The EU’s decision to join the IMT is indeed good news for both GRP and MILF Panels which now endeavor to preserve the gains of the peace talks as we transition from the current administration to the next,” GRP chief negotiator and Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Rafael E. Seguis said in a letter to MacDonald.

MacDonald announced EU’s acceptance at the reception on Tuesday night celebrating the European Union National Day last May 9, as requested by the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton.

“The EU’s presence in the monitoring team would be an unequivocal manifestation of its support and commitment to the peace and development agenda in Mindanao, for which we are thankful,” Seguis added.

MacDonald said the decision was based on its assessment that "Mindanao has a tremendous potential to be a prosperous and peaceful part of the Philippines, for the benefit of all who live there, whether Moros, Christians or Lumads.

”But this potential can only be realized if the vicious cycle of conflict and poverty can be broken, and if local governance can respond to the needs of the people and provide effective services to all."

He added he is “delighted that in addition to our longstanding development and humanitarian cooperation with the Philippines in general and in Mindanao more specifically, the EU will now be able to help more directly in the peace process, joining the efforts of other international and local partners, both in the IMT and in the International Contact Group."

From EU headquarters in Brussels, Catherine Ashton, High Representative (HR) of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission, said “the European Union attaches great importance to helping promote peace and development in Mindanao, and has long been active in providing both development and humanitarian assistance in the conflict-affected areas."

”The EU was honoured to be invited by the Parties to assist further in the peace process, by taking part in the IMT, and I see this as a very important contribution which the EU can make, together with other international partners, to help promote peace, security and prosperity in Mindanao, and to help strengthen the long-term development of the Philippines," HR Ashton said.

She noted that since the end of 2008, the EU and its Member-States had provided more than Euros 14.5 million (about P820 million, at current exchange rates) in humanitarian assistance to help civilians displaced by the conflict in Mindanao.

Peace negotiations bogged down in August 28 when a GRP-MILF provision for a Bangsamoro Juridical Entity was declared unconstitutional by the Philippine Supreme Court. Violence ensued, displacing thousands of civilians in Mindanao. Talks resumed in December 2009.

While last-ditch efforts are exerted to carve a possible interim agreement before a new administration is installed in Malacanang on June 30, “there is still a great need to build confidence, a context in which international support is of great importance,” the EU in Manila said in explaining the rationale of its acceptance.

In addition, an International Contact Group (ICG) was established in September 2009 to assist the GRP and MILF panels and Malaysia as Facilitator in carrying the peace process forward. Its members are Japan, Turkey and the United Kingdom and a number of international non-governmental organizations.

EC development assistance grants to Mindanao since the 1990s have amounted to some Euros 96 million in total (about P5.4 billion, at current exchange rates) focusing on rural development and the environment, agrarian reform, and the health sector.

The EC has also provided some Euros 21 million (P1.2 billion) in grants for livelihood support and rehabilitation for civilian victims of conflict and about Euros23 million (P1.3 billion) in humanitarian assistance, particularly for internally-displaced persons (IDPs).

Separately and on a bilateral basis, a number of EU Member-States, such as Spain, have also been active in providing development and humanitarian assistance in Mindanao. (PIA V Release)