Limpag: Cebu developer team heads to Silicon Valley

HERE'S yet another great news for Cebu’s tech startup community: NextIX, a technology solutions provider founded by Roberto “Bobby” Suson in Cebu in 2006, is heading to Silicon Valley with two mobile application projects: GroupJump and Miimove.

The two projects are among the 2012 ON3 winners picked by the Science and Technology Council from a nationwide search in four regional competitions in Davao, Cebu, Pangasinan and Manila.

Vegetable garden project to ensure food sufficiency

A FOUNDATION has joined the government and other groups to ensure food sufficiency in areas affected by Typhoon Pablo.

The Villar Foundation, through its managing director senatorial candidate Cunthia Villar, turned over on Thursday a vegetable garden project to at least 150 families, most of whom are still living in tents in Barangay Cabinuangan, New Bataan, Compostela Valley, to help them grow vegetables for their tables and a source of income in the future.

Chamber welcomes new members

THE Davao City Chamber of Commerce Industry Inc. (DCCCII) welcomed three new regular corporate members during its general membership meeting held at the T'nalak Room of Seda Hotel at the Abreeza complex in Davao City on Friday.

DCCCII president Architect Daniel Lim led the oathtaking of the new members, including Guide Distribution International Inc., Trust Management Center and Ana's Breeders Farm Inc.

BIR full automation this year

THE regional office of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR)-Davao is eyeing full automation of its system within this year.

BIR assessment chief Lita Maria Chin, who represented BIR-Davao director Glen Geraldino in the general membership meeting of the Davao City Chamber of Commerce Industry Inc. last Friday, said the agency is presently working for its full automation as part of its priority plan.

Coop to sustain high fiscal feat

TAGUM CITY -- Homegrown billionaire Tagum Cooperative is working its way to sustain exceptional financial performance while empowering its members to achieve economic upliftment.

Newly-installed chair of the Board of Directors, Miriam R. Baloyo has vowed this will be given focus by the cooperative which is turning 46 this year.

Food manufacturers urged to export more to China

FILIPINO producers of agro-food products are encouraged to export more to the huge China market.

Christine dela Cruz, commercial attache at the Philippine Trade and Investment Centre (PTIC) in Beijing, said that apart from goods they are exporting, coffee, high-value added seafood and processed foods have also enormous business potentials there.

EU bolsters ties with Asean in countdown to 2015

THE European Union is bringing its relationship with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to a higher level as Asean moves closer toward economic integration.

The EU-Asean Economic & Policy Forum held earlier this month in Jakarta, Indonesia, focused on how bilateral relations can be further fortified amid the rapidly changing economic and geopolitical landscape in Southeast Asia.

Moving ahead fast

HOMEGROWN real estate developer AboitizLand Inc. launched last Thursday the P417-million Phase 2 development of its high-end project Priveya Hills.

Last year, the firm announced it was going to spend P3.5 billion for the five-phase development of the 60-hectare, lot-only residential project.

Business leaders stay unruffled by Korean situation

ALTHOUGH confident there’s no reason for the local business community to panic, Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) President Lito Maderazo said any untoward event in the Korean Peninsula will have a significant economic impact on the country in general and Cebu in particular.

He said that if the tension between North and South Korea escalates, it will hit Philippine tourism, considering that Korean tourists and language students make up the biggest group of foreign arrivals in the country.

In river tour, Aloguinsan folks prove ‘green’ viable

IT WAS just curiosity at first that prompted some Aloguinsan residents to join environmental protection efforts by the local government, until they realized the potential of their town’s nature reserve.

Batuhan: The power of information

I WENT to school in an age when information was indeed power.

Almirante: Work-related illness of seafarers

Dominador Almirante Labor case digest

RESPONDENT Salvador T. Serna worked since 1989 with petitioners Career Philippines Ship Management, Inc. (Career Phils.) and Societe Anonyme Monegasque Administratio Maritime Ft. Aeriennemonaco (Aeriennemonaco). In his third consecutive contract, he worked as a bosun of M/V Hyde Park, a chemical tanker.

Sri Lanka, Sarangani share micro-enterprise knowledge

ALABEL, Sarangani -- A 26-man delegation from Sri Lanka visited Sarangani on April 23 to 25 for "knowledge sharing" on the implementation of its internationally-funded rural microenterprises program that sought to lessen poverty incidence in the province.

The International Fund for Agricultural Development (Ifad), a specialized agency of the United Nations established in 1977 dedicated to eradicating rural poverty, is supporting this Rural Microenterprise Promotions Programme (Rumepp) in Rome, Italy and Philippines.

Power plant construction logs 1M safe working hours

THE Mindanao power crisis is nearing its long-term resolution as the construction of AboitizPower's 300-megawatt (MW) 24/7 baseload coal power plant in Davao City logged its first one million hours of accident-free work, taking it closer to its 2015 completion date.

The achievement was reached by contractor First Balfour Inc., one of the major contractors working on the project, which aims to bring a long-term solution to the ongoing Mindanao power crisis.

Negros making headways in dairy industry

NEGROS Occidental is making headways in the dairy industry, Governor Alfredo Marañon Jr. said, adding that the province is now Number 4 in dairy production in the country.

The governor said the gains in the local dairy industry, particularly in La Carlota City, is one of the achievements of his Negros First program and leadership, which has been engaged in cattle and livestock dispersal programs.

3 more BPO firms to open in Davao this year

THREE more business process outsourcing companies are set to open in Davao City this year and are expected to generate 20,000 to 25,000 jobs.

Gil Dureza, chief of the Board of Investments-Davao Extension, said these BPO companies announced their intention to expand their operations in the city last year. He refused to identify these BPO firms due to confidentiality.

Farmers receive farm animals

THE farmers, who are into livestock venture, in four towns and two cities of Basilan province got a boost from the Provincial Government.

The Basilan Provincial Government, through the Office of the Provincial Veterinarian, has distributed some 50 heads of livestock to boost the farmers’ livestock productivity.

Bakery owners open new hotel

CEBU’s booming tourism industry has spurred the owners of a homegrown bakery chain to diversify into the hotel business.

Park ‘n Go owner Alicia Rama-Ty announced yesterday their entry into the tourism sector through their flagship boutique hotel Aicila Suites in Nasipit, Talamban, Cebu City.

Jobs bridging program launched in Cebu

A JOBS bridging program for graduates of technical and vocational courses with the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) was brought to Cebu yesterday.

The “Hanapbuhay Para sa Tesda Specialista” program kicked off in Central Visayas in Bohol two days ago. It was launched in Manila last month and is now being replicated in major provinces.

I.Protect: Fundador

Clint Fabiosa & Ana Liza Villamor

HOW can one tell if the Fundador brandy that you buy is genuine or counterfeit?

Ng: Technology and crime

LATEST reports have indicated that Windows 8 tablets have sold over three million units worldwide during the first quarter of 2013, according to market information company Strategy Analytics. Is that high, or low? Well, it came from almost zero, and that is about 7.5 percent of the total market – up from none compared to same period last year.

DOT confident in luring Davao-Korea direct flights

DEPARTMENT of Tourism (DOT)-Davao regional director Art Boncato remains optimistic of luring airline companies to mount Davao-South Korea direct flights.

Boncato, speaking in last Monday's regular "Kapehan sa Dabaw" forum at the SM Annex, said the strengthening of relationship between Davao and South Korea will eventually pave the way for the opening of this new route.

Terranova opens 2nd store in Davao

POPULAR Italian clothing line Terranova on Sunday opened its second store in Davao City at the SM Lanang Premier with top company executives and local city officials gracing the occasion.

The Terranova store located at the ground floor of SM Lanang just near the Atrium and main entrance is much bigger than its branch in Abreeza Mall along J.P. Laurel Avenue.

Iloilo City ripe for P15-B Ayala investments

"THIS southern city is a good area for large scale investments," said Tony T. Aquino, president and CEO of Ayala Land Inc. (ALI), during the launching of ALI's latest project in Iloilo City on Wednesday.

He said “tremendous growth in the past few years showed that Iloilo City is ripe for our P15 billion infusion in the next 10 years.”

Summit to tackle power issues

THE high cost of power and other issues affecting the sector will be discussed by energy stakeholders in the Visayas in a summit this Friday.

Pages: The books that changed my life

Bunny Pages Business is a team sport

I’VE lost count on the number of books that I’ve read these past 30 years. It was a blessing that I used reading as a refuge for my shyness and lack of self-confidence.

Smart ‘helps boost’ tourism in Region 6

SMART Communications, Inc. (Smart) continues to partner with DOT Region 6 through projects that encourage tourists to visit its destinations.

Last year, Smart contributed to the renovation of the Boracay Tourist Information and Assistance Center. The center is managed by the local government unit of Malay.

DTI assists MSMEs in trade exhibits

THE Department of Trade and Industry-Cebu said it is confident local micro, small and medium scale enterprises (MSMEs) have the potential to compete outside Cebu.

DTI-Cebu business development division chief Elias Guia Tecson said they are working to help MSMEs in upcoming trade exhibits nationwide.

Globe sustains leadership in international LTE roaming service

GLOBE Telecom sustains leadership in international LTE roaming service as it strengthens partnership with SK Telecom, South Korea’s largest mobile operator to further expand its LTE international data roaming service coverage.

Baywalk complies with closure order

THE Bacolod Baywalk Restaurant and Entertainment Place said they complied with the order of the City Government of Bacolod to cease and desist from operation due to lack of the mayor's permit.