BULAKAN, Bulacan—In the waning heat of the day, 57-year-old Reneboy Ybañez would begin raking salt from clay-lined salt ponds in Barangay San Nicolas in Bulakan town. By 3 p. m., most of the seawater in the ponds had evaporated, leaving salt crystals that he and the other workers would harvest. Reneboy and his wife May,...
Tag: economy
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Forced to move, coastal communities in Bacoor struggle with relocation
(Last of two parts) Bert Cabornay, who at 56 has been fishing for three decades, used to farm clams and mussels in the area now occupied by the Manila-Cavite Expressway or Cavitex. Forced to move farther out, he now takes 20 minutes in his boat to reach his mussel farm in Bacoor Bay. Building his...
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Bacoor rezones waters for reclamation, reducing fishing grounds
(First of two parts) While he still can, Bert Cabornay continues to fish in the sea off Bacoor City, Cavite. He rows farther than usual, towards clearer waters and away from his mussel farm that is barely operating. Cabornay, 56, noticed in 2020 that the waters around his farm had become turbid. It was during...
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Marcos Jr.’s Sona and great expectations
As many as 23,000 cops are to be deployed for security during President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s State of the Nation Address on July 22. Maj. Gen. Jose Nartatez Jr., the chief of the National Capital Region Police Office, rejects criticisms of “overkill.” He mentions a number of protesters; it’s uncertain if the number includes those...
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Is the American empire unraveling?
We are not witnessing the last days of the American empire. Its crisis is real, but its trajectory of decline is likely to be protracted and uneven. After the fall of the Soviet bloc in the early 1990s, the United States stood at the apex of the unipolar world, unrivalled both politically and economically. Some...
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‘Economic Cha-cha’ is sweeping the political dance floor
The plot thickens with the Senate announcing full participation in the planned activity of the moment: the amendment of the Constitution. Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri’s surprise filing on Jan. 15 of Resolution of Both Houses (RBH) No. 6 proposing the amendment of certain economic provisions represents a stronger than usual push for Charter change....
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Challenge to Congress: Easing of bank secrecy is necessary for economic Charter change
With calls for Charter change (Cha-cha) once more gaining traction, the Foundation for Economic Freedom issued this statement last Jan. 4: “Economic Cha-cha is necessary but not enough. Other conditions, such as rule of law, good infrastructure and ease of doing business, among others, must be present to compete with other countries in attracting foreign...
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Christmas food and agricultural productivity
What do Filipino households spend most on during Christmas? You guessed it: food. The Philippines is also the country that proportionately spends the most on Christmas food, according to a 2023 worldwide survey of 23 countries by WorldRemit. The survey classified Christmas spending according to three categories: food, decorations and gifts. A Filipino household on...
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Boracay feels economic pinch despite 1.8M tourist arrivals
BORACAY ISLAND—John Neil Gregorio, 22, had just completed a four-year computer science course when an uncle prodded him to take on the job of a service crew member in an Indian restaurant in Boracay last August. Despite the meager starting daily wage of P300, with free meals and board, he bit the bullet, seeing a...
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‘What could have been, what can be done’
If given a three-minute audience with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., said former health secretary Jaime Galvez Tan, he will make a strong case for the development of the young population to make the Philippines at par with the fast-growing economies in Southeast Asia. This will be his recommendation to the President: Synergize education, health, agriculture,...