DOH, partners to ink MOA on 'Adopt a Hospital'
program in Surigao del Sur
By Nida Grace B. Tranquilan
TANDAG CITY, Surigao del Sur, July 22 (PIA) --
The Department of Health (DOH) will enter into a memorandum of agreement (MOA)
with Surigao del Sur, Montero Medical Missions (MMM), and other public and
private corporate groups as partners for “Adopt a Hospital” program slated on
July 23, to be held at the Provincial Social Hall, this city.
The Adopt a Hospital program where Adela Serra
Ty Memorial Medical Center (ASTMMC) is the recipient hospital will be the first
to be implemented in the region.
The MOA aims to strengthen the delivery of
health services of the recipient hospital - the ASTMMC, while the partners will
provide assistance in the form of voluntary health services; capacity
enhancement for the staff and technology transfer; and to have opportunities
for observation visits in foreign hospitals; and donations of required
medicines, supplies, equipment and devices; and technical support for
information dissemination.
Also in the MOA, the provincial government
through the Provincial Eyesight Board will mobilize local finance and in-kind
resources to complement, aid, and improve infrastructure and equipment needs of
the recipient hospital and provide transportation and accommodations to partner
mission groups during the conduct of local or foreign surgical missions.
The program, started in 2011, was implemented
locally by the provincial government through Vision 2020-Surigao del Sur-the
Right to Sight and has been regularly conducting cataract/pteryguim surgical
mission once every year.
The program implementation is in support to the
National Program under the Universal Health Care of the DOH. (FEA/NGBT/PIA-Surigao
del Sur)
Surigao Norte projects, 2014 budget presented to
DILG, DBM
By Catherine A. Balomaga
SURIGAO CITY, July 22 (PIA) -- The provincial
government of Surigao del Norte presented recently its 2013 Bottom-Up Budget
(BUB) project implementation and 2014 BUB proposed budget to the officials of
the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and Department of Budget
and Management (DBM) held at the Provincial Convention Center, this city.
The said presentation was in line with the Joint
Memorandum Circular of DBM, DILG, DSWD, and NAPC, that requires all local
government units (LGUs) to give 30 percent cash counterpart in every BUB
project cost for highly urbanized cities, 20 percent in other cities, 15
percent for first and third-class municipalities, and 5 percent for fourth- and
sixth-class municipalities.
The funding will be taken from the approved 2014
Annual Investment Plan (AIP) and Annual Budget of LGUs.
Surigao del Norte Governor Sol F. Matugas in her
message delivered by Vice Governor Arturo Carlos Egay Jr. said that the BUB
program is a manifestation that Surigao Norte gives emphasis on transparency,
accountability, and full disclosure of all projects implemented that prioritize
the needs of the people.
On her part, DILG Regional Director Lilibeth
Famacion emphasized that this in line with Aquino administration's program to
reduce if not to eliminate poverty.
DBM Director Achilles Gerard C. Bravo, meanwhile
talked about DBM’s 2014 BUB programs and its validity period of implementation.
Bravo said that in 2013, out of 609 LGU-beneficiaries nationwide, 45 were from
Caraga Region; and for next year’s target of 1,233 LGUs nationwide, 65 LGUs
will be from Caraga.
Municipal mayors, SP members, Municipal Planning
& Development Coordinators, civil society organizations, national line
agencies, and other concerned agencies participated in the activity. (SDR/PIC/PIA-Surigao
del Norte)
Agusan Norte guv leads outreach program in
Mimbahandi
By Brian Ceballos
NASIPIT, Agusan del Norte, July 22 (PIA) -- To
bring services closer to the people, Gov. Ma. Angelica Rosedell M. Amante-Matba
led an ''Outreach program'' in Sitio Mimbahandi recently.
Mimbahandi is a sitio in Barangay Camagong,
Nasipit town which is an hour and 30-minute ride from the barangay center, and
accessible only by habal-habal or four-wheel drive vehicles.
The Outreach Program is one of the priority
programs of the governor, which is a province-needs based program to provide
social services to the areas which needs it most. It provided households with
medical and dental services and other goods vital for their everyday lives.
“I will task the Provincial Social Welfare and
Development (PSWD) Office to arrange a detailed itinerary of the places that we
will do an outreach program, and I will prioritize the areas that I haven’t
been too especially the farthest ones,” a statement from Matba on her first day
as governor.
The Outreach Program is composed of doctors,
nurses, and dentists with the PSWD staff led by Daisybiel O. Demavivas; it has
accommodated 115 households.
A total of 205 clients were provided free
medical consultations and 35 dental extractions. School supplies were given to
225 schoolchildren (kindergarten to grade six) together with packs of food
supplies consisting of rice, sardines, and noodles. (NCLM/LGU-Agusan del
Norte/PIA-Agusan del Norte)
Economy to Butuan to be robust in 2023
By Noel Najarro
BUTUAN CITY, July 22 (PIA) -- The head of the
Chamber of Commerce here expressed optimistic outlook during a business forum
on Thursday that "Butuan can potentially be another Cebu in the next 10
years," as center of commerce, trade, and tourism in Caraga Region.
Butuan Business Chamber of Commerce and Industry
Foundation, Inc. (BCCFI) President Joseph Omar O. Andaya said, "Butuan
City has a big potential to become another Cebu City in 2023."
"Butuan City has a very big potential to
become another Cebu City in the next 10 years, not only because of its people,
its natural resources, and the fact that it is the regional center of the whole
Caraga Region," Andaya said in an interview.
He added that with all the projects in the
pipeline discussed during the business forum such as the renewable energy,
responsible mining development in the Surigao province, eco-tourism, and other
tourism projects will all contribute to such possibility.
Supporting Andaya's statement, city Mayor
Ferdinand M. Amante Jr. said, "If the city government and its people will
do their very best, we may make it in five, 10 or 15 years," and added,
"The city can well make it through unity and cooperation of both the local
government and its constituents.
"We can even be there within a shorter
time," said Amante as he added that it may entail the openness, vision,
and transparency of the city leadership and the support of the people.
Earlier, the Eastern Petroleum Corp's
subsidiary, Caraga Renewable Energy Corp. (CaRE), revealed that it plans to
build a 20 megawatt biogas power plant and industrial tree plantation in the
municipalities of Sibagat in Agusan del Sur and Buenavista in Agusan del Norte.
Engr. Valentin E. Velasco, CaRe managing
director, said the firm chose places not far from Butuan for accessibility and
marketing purposes as the city has the potential to be the next Cebu in 10
years.
He also cited Caraga as the fastest growing
economy among the country's 17 regions with an accelerated rate of 9.6 percent
in 2011 from 7.4 percent in 2010.
Aside from the region's land resources and
climate conducive to energy farming, Velasco said the two Agusan provinces and
Butuan City have enacted economic policies which are business friendly.
He said the local government units strongly
sustainable and renewable energy development aside from having an established
culture of industrial tree cultivation, harvesting and processing. (NCLM/PIA-Caraga)
