MAKE OR BREAK

The National Organizing Committee (NOC) of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations has reportedly picked Panglao in Bohol as among the few places in the country where Asian ministers and officials meet.

This is a rare opportunity for Bohol to be seen again by the investors and the prospecting financiers of the strong block of Asian power which has the reach to control the large trade and commerce the world is being fed.

Bohol’s tourism potential is definitely getting a big boost, although Bohol has already laid down the tracks upon which its tourism development must get railed.

And since the meetings in Panglao would be largely about trade and investment, Bohol would have the courtside chance of learning from the regional trade and investment policies agreed at the meetings with the 10 country’s most senior trade officials.

When several people still could not readily make the tie on how the ASEAN can bring good news to Bohol tables, tourism officials simply count the least of the number of guests coming in. Multiply it with the possible and reasonable daily spending for the three days of stay in Bohol, and lo, you have a ballpark figure in your hands.

At 200, or some 20 delegates per country, the province would get as much cash flowing in and out of the pockets of hotels, bus and van drivers, tour guides, restaurants and souvenir markets to stimulate the local economy.

The stimulus fund even goes exponentially when the Asian guests get home and start telling their moneyed to take a look and invest in Bohol. This isn’t far-fetched as the ASEAN integration also opens up the boundaries of member states to ease out business in the region.

That is why, we believe Govenor Edgar Chatto is on track when he issued the call for Bohol to fully prepare for the investment opportunity.

Roll out the red carpet, just like fiestas, we clean up our surroundings, we fix our potholed streets, string the banners, pick up and properly manage our garbage and leash our dogs, the governor called.

As the governors call resounds, many see this ASEAN welcome call as a make or break proof or how the governor can command the barangays and the puroks as he claimed his successes in Bohol’s anti drug campaigns are.

So we wait for the puroks, and the barangays to deliver the grand ASEAN welcome. Let’s see how these units which has been flooded with awards and recognitions enough to be called bribes work its way, not to make a huge mess making us come out as a huge embarrassment.

 

 

 

 

Shipyard to rise in B’vista

By JUNE S. BLANCO

RESIDENTS of Buenavista and nearby towns better learn welding now.
This after Rep. Erico Aristotle Aumentado (Bohol, 2nd District) met with the top henchman of a company that plans to establish a shipyard in Buenavista town.
The company executive, Aumentado and Buenvavista Mayor Ronald Lowell “Sample” Tirol discussed possibilities and scouted around the district for the ideal location until the former settled for Buenavista.
Aumentado took the former’s decision as a good omen where employment opportunities for his constituents are concerned.
The shipyard, he said, is expected to attract other investors to the town.
This means job opportunities that will bring in money to increase the buying power or consumer spending of residents and visitors alike.
On top of skilled welders, the shipyard will also need workers for parallel industries and businesses like food prepararion for the workers.
Thus, he said, money circulation in the town, the district and the province will expectedly increase.
He vowed to continue looking for similar opportunities for his constituents so that their respective breadwinners need not go to bigger cities or even abroad for the proverbial greener pastures.
It is best, he observed, that families stay together.

AirAsia is Bohol’s official airline partner

 

New tourism campaign aims to take Bohol to dazzling new heights with more flights

Promo fares from as low as P1,599 are up for grabs now at airasia.com

 

MANILA, 9 February 2017 – AirAsia and Provincial Government of Bohol in partnership with USAID-COMPLETE today formally signed a partnership agreement to promote Bohol as a premiere tourist destination for travelers in the Philippines, in the whole of ASEAN region and in greater Asia where the world’s best low cost carrier by Skytrax provide unparalleled connectivity.

 

Philippines AirAsia CEO Captain Dexter Comendador said, “Our partnership is a another step forward in an ongoing journey towards providing connectivity and convenience with fresh new approach and experience to engage guests and increase passenger traffic to and from Bohol.”

 

To celebrate the partnership, AirAsia is increasing its 3x daily flights between Manila and Bohol (Tagbilaran) to 4x daily starting March 1 with promo fares from as low as P1,599 only and up for grabs now at airasia.com for travel period betweenJuly 1 to November 30, 2017.

 

 

 

“Our collaboration is built on a foundation that values a strong and innovative service culture which are the hallmarks of AirAsia’s brand of service. We value the community that we serve and as your official airline partner we are committed to connect Bohol and the Philippines to Asean and beyond,” Comendador added.

 

“Following the success of our alliance especially after the 2013 earthquake with the LGUs, USAID-Compete and tourism partners, it would be exciting to see Bohol connect to giant markets in Asia not only for tourism but to engage and promote stronger social and economic ties,”  he said.

 

Bohol Provincial Governor Edgar Chatto, Deputy Head of Program Office for US-AID Philippines Christopher Foley, NEDA Director General Dr. Ernesto Pernia, Department of Tourism Undersecretary Alma Rita Jimenez and Philippines AirAsia CEO Captain Dexter Comendador led the signing ceremony which coincided with the formal launch of Bohol’s newest tourism campaign titled Behold Bohol.

 

AirAsia, the leading and largest low-cost carrier in Asia, services the most extensive network with over 120 destinations. Within 15 years of operations, AirAsia has carried over 330 million guests and grown its fleet from just two aircraft to over 170. The airline is proud to be a truly Asean (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) airline with established operations based in Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, India and Japan. AirAsia was named the World’s Best Low Cost Airline in the annual World Airline Survey by Skytrax for eighth consecutive years from 2009 – 2016.

From trash to treasure: An upcycling project rises in Bohol to help impoverished communities

 

The wallets, fans, and key holder samples were created by Rowena, Telyz, and Angelita — all members of a women’s group in Barangay Cogon in Tagbilaran, Bohol.

The souvenir items were made from used plastic shopping bags and snack wrappers.

The women were trained by a 27-year old Japanese volunteer Chisato Kanno dispatched under the Japan International Cooperation Agency’s (JICA) Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers (JOCV) Program.

“Bohol has a thriving tourism industry, but waste management is a challenge. I am introducing a system to the community on recycling plastic, and creating products that they can sell for income,” said Kanno.

With help from JICA, Bohol’s local government, Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Department of Education (DepEd), and barangay Cogon, an upcycling facility project was launched in Tagbilaran, the first of its kind in the Philippines to use digital fabrication equipment.

“Upcyling” is converting unwanted objects like plastics into usable ones without degrading its quality.

In Tagbilaran City, about 10 tons of waste materials, particularly plastic shopping bags are discarded on average.

Through upcycling, waste materials like plastic are collected then washed and cleaned. The plastic materials are cut and pressed using a machine to form new plastic sheets that are then transformed into new products.

The heat press machine was designed by another Japanese volunteer dispatched in Bohol’s Department of Trade and Industry, Shiro Takaki. Takaki assembled the upcycling equipment using a previous JICA-assisted project and the country’s first fabrication laboratory in Bohol.

Through the project, women of Barangay Cogon saw how trash could be redesigned to become someone else’s treasure, while helping low-income families.

“My husband has no fixed salary so I’m happy to help support our household by being part of this project,” said Rowena, 37 years old.

“My role is to link the city hall, provincial government, barangays, and other institutions to support these women in sustaining the project and marketing the products,” added Kanno.

Kanno, who graduated from a cross cultural communication degree in Senshu University in Kanagawa Prefecture in Japan, said, “Japan and the Philippines are different in lifestyle and in the way we work, but we can overcome the cultural differences by working together as one.”

“The women in the barangay participate in the design process and they are proud to create something new that can also help uplift their lives,” she said.

$19-B financial deals, dala ni Duterte gikan Japan

MANILA, October 28 (PIA)–Mokabat sa 19 ka bilyong dolyar sa mga loans ug investments ang gidala paule ni Presidente Rodirgo Duterte sa iyang pagbalik gikan sa tulo ka adlaw nga pagbisita sa Japan.
Dakong parte niini o naa sa $17.2 bilyon ang gitanyag sa Pilipinas sa Marubeni Corp., usa sa pinakadakong integrated trading ug investment business conglomerate sa Japan.
Pagpalig-on sa ekonomiya, maritime ug air capabilities ang pipila lamang sa produktibong nahisgotan ni Presidente Duterte ug Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe sa maong pagbisita niya sa maong nasod.

Sa iyang mensahe sa pag-abot sa Davao International Airport (DIA), miingon ang Presidente nga dako ang matabang sa Japan sa maritime ug air capabilties sa Pilipinas.

Gihulagway pa sa Presidente nga “excellent” ang relasyon sa Pilipinas ug Japan.

Human sa iyang pakigpulong kang Abe, nanawagan si Presidente Duterte sa mga private business sa Japan nga mamuhonan pa sa ilang negosyo sa Pilipinas.

Gipasigarbo usab ni Duterte ang mga natabang sa mga Hapon sa Pilipinas ilabi na ang pagpatuman sa mga proyekto ubos sa Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) ug usa sa giingong mga nag-unang partner sa nasod ang Overseas Development Assistance (ODA).

Gibarugan usab ni Presidente Duterte nga magpabiling suod nga higala ang Japan ug Pilipinas. (ecb/PIA7-Bohol)

Miss Bohol 2015 ‘Darling of Social Media’ Voting Starts

missbohol2015One of the minor yet exciting awards for the Miss Bohol 2015 pageant is the “Darling of the Social Media” award.  It officially started on July 10, 2015 after being announced by the organizing committee of the pageant.  The criteria is the number of shares of the official web page of the candidate on the official Bohol Sandugo Festival website at www.boholsandugofestival.com.

One of the purposes of this minor award is to help promote the official Sandugo Festival website and by sharing the official web pages of the candidates, the main website itself is promoted.

Fans, friends, family and handlers of the candidates are reminded that the criteria is the number of shares on Facebook and Google+.  “Likes” on Facebook are not included.  To help promote your favorite candidate, please go to www.boholsandugofestival.com/miss-bohol-2015 then click the picture of the candidate then share the page using the buttons below the picture.

The award is officiated by Auza.Net and will be tallied at 12:00NN on July 18, 2015.