POPCOM urges Pantawid Pamilya couples to attend family dev’t sessions
By Rachelle M. Nessia
DUMAGUETE CITY, Aug 16 (PIA) -- Couples whose families are benefitting from the national government’s conditional cash transfer (CCT) program are urged to religiously attend the family development sessions to learn more about responsible parenthood.
Commission on Population (POPCOM) 7 Director Bruce Ragas made the appeal during a Kapihan forum held Wednesday to mark the local celebration of the annual National Family Planning Month in the city.
Attendance to the monthly family development sessions is one of the conditions set for the beneficiaries of Pantawid Pamilya, the CCT program spearheaded by the Department of Social Welfare and Development.
According to Ragas, POPCOM through an agreement, was tasked to conduct said sessions which discuss responsible parenthood and family planning.
“The only other time that couples were able to listen to these discussions was during pre-marriage counseling. After that, there are no other opportunities for them to learn about responsible parenthood,” said Ragas.
Pre-marriage counseling is a requirement before a marriage license is issued to Filipino couples who plan to get married.
Ragas said the sessions are designed for couples to learn and re-learn the concepts of responsible parenthood and how to better manage their families, particularly those from the marginalized sectors. (RMN-PIA7 Negros Oriental)
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Support services key to agrarian reform success says DAR official
By Rachelle M. Nessia
DUMAGUETE CITY, Aug 16 (PIA) -- The success of agrarian reform in the country lies in its support services.
This was the statement issued by Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) Undersecretary for Support Services Jerry Pacturan during the 5th ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) meeting held in Bais City last August 9.
“Agrarian reform can be successful if there are support services,” said Pacturan in his speech.
He highlighted the different support services offered by DAR and its partner agencies for beneficiaries of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP), such as production credit, farm mechanization and sugar block farms.
Support services help CARP’s farmers-beneficiaries of lands to become productive.
He encouraged all sectors to come together for a wider scope of services to be made available for CARP beneficiaries.
The AFTA meeting was sponsored by the Department of Trade and Industry through Philippine Trade Training Center, Bureau of Export Trade Promotion, Negros Oriental Chamber of Commerce, Inc. and the Bais City government. (RMN-PIA7 Negros Oriental with reports from Gherelene Mae Rafols)
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901 interviewers needed for agri census in Negros Oriental
By Rachelle M. Nessia
DUMAGUETE CITY, Aug 16 (PIA) -- The National Statistics Office in Negros Oriental is in need of 901 field interviewers for the Registry System for Basic Sectors in Agriculture (RSBSA) data gathering in the province.
Interested applicants may submit their applications to their respective barangay captains not later than September 7, according to a statement from the Capitol.
Qualifications for interviewers are, namely: preferably a resident of the barangay, not more than 45 years old, college graduate or must have completed at least two years of college education, physically fit and able to travel, good moral character, legible handwriting skills, can speak the local dialect and can operate a global positioning system (GPS) device.
Hired interviewers will receive a daily wage of P286 and a P50-fixed allowance.
They will gather data on the socio-economic profile of farmers, farm laborers and fishermen in the barangays they are residing.
The interviewers will conduct house-to-house visits in the barangays where they will list all households and hold face-to-face interviews with farmers, farm laborers and fishermen.
The RSBSA registration will start from September 17 and ends on November 9 this year.
The creation of the RSBSA database is in compliance to the directive signed by Pres. Benigno S. Aquino III to address the need for a comprehensive and systematic information system on the basic sectors in agriculture and fisheries.
The data gathered will be used to effectively formulate vital programs, policies and laws for the development of these sectors.
The RSBSA is an offshoot of the government’s effort to promote transparency, accountability, participatory governance and strengthening of public relations.
Negros Oriental is part of the second batch of provinces whose database will be completed by July 2013. (RMN-PIA7 Negros Oriental with reports from Elgie Magallano)
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Silliman University faculty wins second prize in Palanca awards
By Rachelle M. Nessia
DUMAGUETE CITY, Aug 16 (PIA) -- A faculty of Silliman University’s English and Literature Department bagged second prize in the English category of the 62nd Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature.
Ian R. Casocot won the award for his story entitled “It Always Breaks My Heart A Little to See You Go,” a chronicle of a mother dealing with an autistic child.
This is the fifth Palanca award earned by Casocot. He garnered first place in the same category in 2008. He also won the NVM Gonzalez Prize, a PBBY Salanga Writers Prize Honorable Mention and Fully Booked/Neil Gaiman Philippine Graphic/Fiction Prize for his work in fiction.
Casocot teaches literature, creative writing, graphic design and film at Silliman University. He also sits as coordinator of the Edilberto and Edith Tiempo Creative Writing Center.
In 2010, he was Writer in Residence for the International Writers Program of the University of Iowa.
The Palanca Awards is the Philippines’ best-known award giving-body for literature. Awarding ceremonies will be held at the Rigodon Ballroom of the Peninsula Manila on September 1. (RMN-PIA7 Negros Oriental with reports from SU-OIP)
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SU graduate is Top 10 in PT licensure test
By Rachelle M. Nessia
DUMAGUETE CITY, Aug 16 (PIA) -- A fresh graduate of Silliman University ranked 10th in the recent licensure test on Physical Therapy and Occupational Therapy.
Lovely April Camelle A. Dy received a rating of 83.20 percent, earning her a slot on the roster of top ten passers, said Silliman University Office of Information and Publications (SU-OIP) Director Mark Raygan Garcia in a statement.
The licensure exam was administered on August 4 and 5.
Dy led eight other passers from Silliman University’s Institute of Rehabilitative Sciences, namely: Alolod, Julliane Dean G.; Demerre, Jerald John D.; Martin, Melissa Anne M.; Menguito, Zoe Emilea A.; Omandam, Val Tyrone N.; Quinain, Millecent Hope S.; Tantengco, Arrabella R. and Te, Marie Febra Claire E.
According to Garcia, Silliman University registered a passing rate of 90 percent, higher than the national passing average of 53.05. (RMN-PIA7 Negros Oriental)