March 7, 2012
As we observe the International Women’s Day on March 8, I rise to highlight the theme of this year’s celebration: Empower Rural Women, End Hunger and Poverty.
It is reported that in developing countries, 43% of agricultural workers are women, and if they are given access to productive resources, this will result to a 20 to 30% increase in their farm yield; a national agricultural output that is 2.5 to 4% higher; and, a 17% decline in the number of […]
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March 6, 2012
Mr. President, Distinguished Colleagues:
I have the honor to seek approval of Senate Resolution No. 733 under Committee Report No. 131, entitled “Resolution Concurring in the Ratification of the Consular Agreement between the Republic of the Philippines and the People’s Republic of China.”
Protecting Filipinos Overseas
Mr. President,
The protection of the rights and promotion of the welfare and interest of Filipinos overseas is one of the three pillars of our foreign policy.
One of the eight foreign policy realities […]
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March 6, 2012
Mr. President, Distinguished Colleagues:
I have the honor to seek approval of Senate Resolution No. 732 under Committee Report No. 130, entitled “Resolution Concurring in the Ratification of the Treaty on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters between the Republic of the Philippines and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland,” and Senate Resolution No. 734 under Committee Report No. 132, entitled “Resolution Concurring in the Ratification of the Treaty between the Republic of the Philippines and the […]
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March 2, 2012
Allow me to thank the University of Santo Tomas for inviting me in this assembly.
The Philippines is home to a rich biodiversity. It boasts of a plethora of flora and fauna from the mountaintops down to the deepest seas, spread out in the 7,107 islands of the country. About 15.8 million hectares of land, or more than half of the country’s total land area of 30 million hectares, are classified as forestland ; around 3,000 tree species, as well […]
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March 1, 2012
Allow me to thank the Manila Observatory and the Ateneo de Manila University for inviting me to join you in the launch of the Coastal Cities at Risk Project.
An estimated 2.8 billion people, or more than 40% of the total global population, are living in coastal cities.
If we consider locations that are less than 9 meters above sea level, so called “low elevation coastal zones,” then roughly one in every 10 person in the world lives in these […]
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