Legazpi City advances to 10 next wave cities list

LEGAZPI CITY, Feb 14 (PIA) -- This city has advanced to the 10 next wave cities in the country’s Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry list of the Business Processing Association of the Philippines (BPAP).

Considered by the BPAP as a feeder city for providing highly qualified manpower to other outsourcing centers across the country, Legazpi tied with Dagupan and Dumaguete Cities in the 10th place, a statement released here over the weekend by BPAP chief executive officer Oscar Sañez.

The city, the government’s regional center for Bicol, also scored high in the cost of doing business and availability of needed physical information and technology (IT) infrastructures to support the outsourcing industry according to Sañez.

Its accessibility by land, air, and sea transport from Manila, Cebu, and other areas of the country plus the fact that it has reliable telecommunications providers like Smart, Globe, Bayantel, and PLDT were important factors that attracted BPO investors to locate in the city, he added.

With these, this city became the newest entrant to the class to join the top listed Davao City and other early entrants such as Bacolod, Baguio, Malolos, Iloilo, Cavite, Lipa and Cagayan de Oro.

Being a New Wave City, Sañez said provides a great avenue for local empowerment as it increases talent pool and stems salary and rental inflation.

The BPAP, he said is seeing to it that the Philippines maintains its position as one of the world's top outsourcing destination, generating an annual revenue of $25 billion. "More companies are expected to sub-contract service to companies in the Philippines as a way to cut costs," he added.

BPAP said the Philippines is expected to maintain its market share of around 10 percent, despite emerging competitors like Vietnam and other countries in South America that are also joining the race for more clients. The country's BPO industry currently employs around 600,000 people.

City Mayor Geraldine Rosal welcomed this development saying “our efforts to make Legazpi a leading investment hub is now paying off.”

She said the city currently has two IT park-- the Embarcadero de Legazpi and the Legazpi Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Park that are both highly conducive for outsourcing businesses.The two facilities offer about 8,000 call center seats that could provide jobs to some 24,000 agents in three-shifts.

Pioneering the business here is the Incubation Center of Southern Luzon Technological College Foundation Inc. (SLTCFI) which is an extension of Embarcadero’s P1.8-billion IT Park, the very first IT ecozone in the Bicol region inaugurated in July 2009.

SLTCFI's 600 square meter facility seats around 200 employees forming as part of its IT projects. It also serves as the training center in developing a pool of qualified manpower for the industry and various BPO services for web development and design, online copywriting, Search Engine Optimization, Auto CADD with 2D and 3D animation, cataloging and legal transcription among others.

The BPAP recognition, Rosal said inspires the city government to be more aggressive in promoting Legazpi as among the next wave city and “we are aiming to be among the three top cities in this field given the fact that one of the sectors that keep our competitiveness high is no doubt the outsourcing industry”.

“Our hospitality is known worldwide as one of a kind, even going overboard just to please others. Legazpeñas on the other hand have that special charm that by their mere voice could win clients without difficulties,” she said.

This city, being considered Bicol’s center for higher educational produces every year over 4,000 college graduates that are highly competent. Attesting to this is the fact that BPO firms from all over the country have been coming here to recruit call center agents, according to Rosal.

We are seeing the trail towards our destiny and dared to accomplish an ambitious vision of creating a "City Within a City" in our new investment hub. And being service-oriented economy, the city regards the BPO sector a vital ally and partner in accomplishing its dream for its people,” she added. (MAL/DOC/LGU Legazpi City)

Sorsogon City now a "Learning Site to Visit," shares success implementation of climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies

By Irma A. Guhit

SORSOGON CITY, Feb. 14 PIA) -- A number of visitors from a neighboring country are in town not to see the sights but to learn how a Philippine province is readying itseIf for any natural disaster. They are representatives from several local governments in Cambodia to immerse and learn the strategies implemented by the local government of Sorsogon in terms of Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation (CCAM).

Recommended by the UN Habitat as one of the places here in Asia whose strategies for Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation (CCAMs) are well in place, Sorsogon City is now among those under the CCAM- assisted cities considered as a "Learning Site to Visit" as a local government in Asia.

The representatives from Cambodia who arrived yesterday will be exposed to the different CCAMs' human and infrastructure initiatives stategies that had been instituted here in this city, assisted by several global funding agencies working on disaster risk reduction mechanisms and strategies to adapt and mitigate effects of climate change.

Sorsogon City Mayor Leovic R. Dioneda said that the representatives from Cambodia will be shown the implementation of programs under the CCAMs starting from the practice of the city's Ecological Solid Waste Management program, the establishment of their Materials Recovery Facilities; the installation of the Light Emitting Diode (LED) using solar energy in the city vicinity and street lights ; the School Mitigating Adapting Risk and Threat (SMART) schools used as evacuation centers; the retrofitting program of houses exposed to highly vulnerable areas and the establishment of the city's CCAM office where equipment and devices are installed to include the automatic weather station.

The city will also share the implementation of the Executive Order 3, s 2011 local scheme/policy/programme on the conversion of 2-stroke tricycle motors to the more efficient and emission reducing 4-stroke motors developed and adopted by the city government.

He will also explain to them the city's contingency plan in Disaster Risk Reduction Management as he had been usually invited in foreign countries to share the success story of the city in terms of creating an aware and enlightened citizenry when it comes to managing natural calamities and becoming a resilient community.

He will expose these visitors to the organizational structure of the CCAM starting from the barangays, the schools, non-governmental organizations and other government entities on how they harmonize efforts to implement a resilient community with regards to disaster risk reduction management.

Mayor Dioneda will also share the communication strategies being implemented in the city and the use of the comprehensive land use plan to ensure safety mechanism of infrastructure development following the CCMA scheme.

The Cambodian visitors will in the same manner share their experience in the implementation of their CCAM strategies but according to Manny Daep, city information officer, Sorsogon City has been now highlighted as a "Learning site to visit " since last year 2011, a lot of visitors from local and international communities have been here and to see and learn from the city's CCAM strategy projects. ( MAL/IAG, PIA Sorsogon)

Tañada: Sa piso pa lang, huli na!

MANILA -- Deputy Speaker Lorenzo "Erin" Tañada III expressed disappointment with, but respects and accepts the decision of the impeachment court to hold in abeyance the enforcement of the subpoena on the dollar accounts of Chief Justice Corona.

Tañada said that there are concerns that the Foreign Currency Deposit Act (FCDA) can be misconstrued as a sanctuary for monies of corrupt impeachable officials.

Tañada expounded, “Although we are confident in that we can convict CJ Renato Corona just on his peso accounts and undisclosed properties, his dollar account must still be opened as a matter of principle. Kumpiyansa po kami sa prosecution na sa piso pa lang, huli na is CJ Corona. At kung payag din naman pala silang pabuksan ang kanyang dollar account, sabi nila, ‘in due time’ bakit hindi ngayon na?"

The FCDA or Republic Act 6426 was approved in 1974 during the height of Martial Law. There are questions pertaining to the process of its enactment especially because there was no Senate nor House of Representatives to deliberate and enact laws.

The first amendment of the law through Presidential Decree 1035 dated 30 September 1976 just attributed the conditions of secrecy and exemptions of the R.A. 1405 otherwise known as the Bank Secrecy Law. However, the second amendment through Presidential Decree 1246 dated 24 June 1977, the late Martial Law President Ferdinand E. Marcos made the secrecy absolute.

"It is no wonder then that we could not get through much of the Marcos wealth. Now this Marcosian law is likewise protecting CJ Corona. I am glad that this impeachment trial somehow brings to light the need to replace this absurd law so that we can exact greater transparency and accountability from public officials," Tañada ended. (Office of House DS Tanada)