Go Vismin Go!
THE billboard on the way to the Bacolod Silay International airport proclaims this battlecry in red. It reflects the rise in southern Philippine regional economies (the Visayas-Mindanao or Vismin) as regional economic data show much promise for growth outside Metro Manila.
Western Visayas particularly clocked impressive growth at 8.4%, almost two full points higher than the nation’s 6.7%.
Gross Regional Domestic Product rates are looking good for other regions in the Visayas and Mindanao, exceeding national levels. To know where your region stands, click on this link: https://psa.gov.ph/regionalaccounts/grdp
The growth is seen in the rise in private infrastructure as new large hospitals, condominiums, and malls dot their growing skyline of major cities in the Vismin area.
Other regions though, still lag, and fall below the national average of 6.7%. This should be a concern for regional planners at NEDA and Regional Development Councils.
They will need to work together to get programs going that can spur the kind of job generating and inclusive growth needed to boost their local economies. Beating the nation’s average is a lofty yet necessary goal as local efforts build up to create a collective drive that will achieve better results for all.
Media and the legion of social media observers and commentators in key cities will need to look at these numbers and push growth by monitoring programs intended to achieve that.
At this point, people are paying more attention to regional growth data rather than simply looking at national figures. It seems our yardsticks to measure growth are going local.
An important measure is the growth in regional agriculture. This is because growth in this sector can indicate that development is reaching the hinterlands of the regions.
We need better figures than what government agencies like the Department of Agriculture currently provide to track the growth in this sector at the regional level so that we can gauge the effectiveness of new agricredit programs that aim to boost production of food crops like rice and vegetables.
With proposals for a federal shift currently under discussion, preparing regional economies for this change will be something the governnment and their private sector counterparts such as local chambers of commerce at the regional level will need to undertake.
They will need to ask themselves the following questions: How do we push growth figures up? What works and what does not? Likewise a good suggestion is to work with neighboring regions to create synergies to develop production capacities to meet the demand of common markets.
Congrats on Amanah Bank’s return to Marawi
Amanah Bank returns to Marawi to serve the banking needs of residents. As the city starts rebuilding, the need for financial services to help entrepreneurs restart is critical.
The new Al Amanah branch, located inside the main campus of the Mindanao State University (MSU) here, is equipped with two Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) is compliant with Islamic banking practices. This will definitely boost trading activities as Marawi rebuilds. CPD law needs review A number of professional groups are up in arms over Republic Act 10912, the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Act, reportedly authored by Senator Antonio Trillanes.
I do not necessarily disagree with continuing education, but there is a need to ensure that the required CPD course offerings truly bring the professions up to a global standard and should be affordable for practitioners.
Professionals must thus be vigilant against unscrupulous entities using the CPD requirement just to make money.
They must take a stand against those groups just out to make money off them and petition the cancellation of their accreditation. As ammendments to this law are being discussed, it is time for them to make their voices heard to make sure that the above fears are addressed. For reactions: