Manila, 15 October 2020 — As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, the world turns to a simple age-old solution to reduce the risk of disease transmission – handwashing with soap and water.
On October 15, 2020, this year’s celebration of Global Handwashing Day will be its most significant yet. For the first time, two of the most crucial government agencies in shaping the future and well-being of a generation are coming together to mark the beginning of a stronger partnership.
“DepEd has been celebrating Global Handwashing Day in schools since 2008, in recognition of the importance of building the habit of handwashing among children to ensure their health. Through our WASH in Schools Program, DepEd has institutionalized actions to improve handwashing facilities and instill handwashing behavior among learners. And now under the new normal, our Basic Education-Learning Continuity Plan also integrates handwashing practice as part of the required health standards. With the children continuing their learning at home because of the pandemic, we call on families to make their homes a safe environment to live and learn; and teach their children to make handwashing a habit. And when we do return to school, handwashing will be key in ensuring safety of our children,” says DepEd Secretary Leonor Briones.
With the theme “Clean Hands For All”,the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Department of Health (DOH), with support from UNICEF, unite various development partners, sector representatives and local chief executives in an online symposium on October 15 and 16, 2020. The event aims to identify key directions for sustaining the handwashing habit beyond the COVID-19 pandemic and promote sustainable proper hand hygiene culture in the Philippines.
“The DOH Bida Solusyon sa COVID-19 campaign aims to reinforce and enable four key preventive behaviors. One of these is hand hygiene or cleaning of hands through handwashing with soap and water or sanitizing with alcohol-based hand rub. Together with DepEd, we are calling on everyone to do their share to beat the COVID-19 virus today and ensure better health outcomes beyond the pandemic. To achieve our objectives, we need all sectors to renew our efforts and commitment – local officials and authorities, local health workers, teachers, parents and community members. To save lives and reduce illness, it is vital that we combine our expertise in health, education, communication and community knowledge to raise awareness and promote hygienic and safe practices,”says DOH Secretary Francisco Duque III.
Handwashing with soap is key in the fight against COVID-19. It destroys the outer membrane of the virus and thereby inactivates it. One study found that regular handwashing with soap can reduce the likelihood of common coronavirus infection by 36%. However, based on 2019 data, over 7 million Filipinos are unable to wash their hands due to lack of access to a handwashing facility, water, and/or soap. This is found to be highest among poorest households and those living in rural areas. From school year 2018-2019 data, only half of schools have at least one group handwashing facility with soap.
“Handwashing is critical to children’s health and development. Yet, handwashing is still out of reach for so many children and families—especially the most vulnerable. Sustained investments are needed to make hand hygiene a practice beyond the pandemic. The partnership of DepEd and DOH in bringing together a national handwashing roadmap is a critical step towards a safer future for children in the Philippines,” says UNICEF Philippines Representative Oyunsaikhan Dendevnorov.
The lack of access to hand hygiene facilities is not just in homes and schools but can also be found in workplaces, healthcare facilities, and public spaces as well. Even when awareness and knowledge around handwashing is high – actual practice is often found to be much lower. In a study in 2018 by the Department of Education and UNICEF among school children, observations demonstrated that less than 8% did actually wash their hands after using the toilet even when a handwashing facility with soap and water was available. The issue is a detriment to public health and safety and requires structural change from the whole of society and the government, acting together.
The Clean Hands for All: Learning and Partnership Symposium will be streaming for free on October 15 and October 16, 2020, from 9:30AM to 12NN. Held entirely online, various organizations will be sharing new and innovative ideas that can spark behavioral change as well as sustain handwashing practice in various sectors and settings. This activity is part of the support of UNICEF to the Philippine Government in developing a National Handwashing Campaign that will be rolled out in 2021.
Ang mandate ng Optical Media Board ay tiyakin na ang mga ginagamit sa bansa na mga optical media devices ay nakuha na legal at hindi nalabag ang karapatan ng mga nagmamay ari nito.
Sa panayam ng DZMJ Online sa bagong talagang Chairperson nito na si dating Malolos, Bulacan Mayor Atty. Christian D. Natividad mas naging malawak ang sakop nang trabaho ng OMB buhat nuong kasama pa lamang sila ng Movie and Television Review Classification Board (MTRCB) bilang Videogram Regulatory Board (VRB).
Isang seryosong bagay ang pamimirata, malaking pera ang nauubos dahil sa krimen na ito lalo na at napakaraming trabaho ang nauugnay sa mga produktong pinipirata.
Sa paggawa pa lamang ng pelikula ay marami ng nabubuhay kaya kung pipiratahin ang isang nagawang pelikula ay hindi mabibigyan ng royalty ang mga naghirap para mabuo ito.
Nasasakupan rin ng mandato ng OMB ang mga iba pang optical devices at pati ang mga streaming sa internet at mga may kaugnayan sa intellectual property.
Mahalaga ang papel na ginagampanan ng OMB upang maprotektahan ang mga consumer ng makabagong produkto, dahil sa internet of things bahagi ng 4th industrial revolution, nagagawang maabuso ng ilang may malawak na kaalaman sa internet technology ang mga mabuting maipagkakaloob ng kasalukuyang teknolohiya.
Sa pagkakataong ito, ang mga nagmamay ari ng nasabing mga produkto ay nararapat na ma proteksyunan at hindi maibasura ng kanilang mga pinaghirapan.
Kabilang sa mga naging biktima ng pamimirata at counterfeiting ay ang record industry o ang musika, software technology, consumer devices gaya ng cellular phones, laptops, tablets at PC’s at ang storage devices gaya ng DVD.///Michael Balaguer. 09262261791, diaryongtagalog@gmail.com
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37 PH colleges and universities to train on research project development for Agriculture 4.0
The Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) and the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) have jointly organized an online “Higher Education Institutions’ Training-Workshop on Research Project Development for Agriculture 4.0” to be held on October 12-13, 2020.
A total of 88 faculty members from 37 colleges and universities across the country and key staff of CHED and the Department of Science and Technology-Philippine Nuclear Research Institute (DOST-PNRI) will participate in the training-workshop.
The training will be conducted via the SEARCA Online Learning and Virtual Engagement (SOLVE) platform, which will be livestreamed via Zoom and Facebook.
The sessions on the first day will be open to the public. SEARCA enjoins faculty members, researchers, and staff involved in research and extension in higher education institutions (HEIs) to join the online event. Interested graduate students with ongoing manuscript writing may also attend. Participation is free of charge.
The second day will be devoted to a workshop that includes exercises to practice the concepts learned and the actual writing of a research proposal related to agriculture.
SEARCA Director Dr. Glenn B. Gregorio said SEARCA is advocating for adoption of Agriculture 4.0—a concept of the future of agriculture focusing on the use of big data, Internet of Things (IoT), precision farming, and disruptive agriculture for increased business efficiency.
He said HEIs are well-positioned to translate academic knowledge into research proposals to provide solutions for current and emerging issues and challenges.
Th training-workshop aims to enable HEI faculty members, researchers, and extension staff to imbibe in-depth understanding and working knowledge on the concepts, tools, and process of project development.
At the end of the training-workshop, the participants would have developed proposals related to Agriculture 4.0 that their college or university may submit for external funding and eventual implementation.
Dr. Gregorio said collaborating with CHED on this training aligns with SEARCA’s priority thrust on transformational leadership for agricultural and rural development.
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New SEARCA program calls for innovation, collaboration
The Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) is unveiling its new program called Emerging Innovation for Growth (EIG) on 14 October 2020 via the SEARCA Online Learning and Virtual Engagement (SOLVE) platform in a public event titled “Launching ATTAIN AGRi 4.0.”
SEARCA Director Dr. Glenn Gregorio said the EIG Program is powered by the SEARCA innovEIGhts Model of open collaboration with academe-industry-government partnerships.
“The Emerging Innovation for Growth is our flagship program in the SEARCA 11th Five-Year Plan that is focused on Accelerating Transformation through Agricultural Innovation or ATTAIN,” Dr. Gregorio explained.
He emphasized that “the challenging task of ushering our farmers from obsolete ways of farming that is limited to a production perspective towards an agribusiness mindset in an innovative agriculture ecology called Agriculture 4.0 requires working together with partners and organizations who share this goal.”
Keynote speakers during the launch of SEARCA innovEIGhts are big-name personalities in agribusiness incubation and agri-technology transfer. Ms. Ana Margarita ‘Ginggay’ Hontiveros-Malvar is Senior Adviser for GoNegosyo AgriPreneurship and Mr. Paco Magsaysay is CEO of Carmen’s Best Ice Cream.
“The SEARCA innovEIGhts Model calls for institutional partnerships across the Southeast Asia region and beyond to foster an open collaboration culture that harnesses the power of engaged minds to co-create innovative solutions transforming the lives of our farmers and farming families,” said SEARCA Emerging Innovation for Growth Program lead Dr. Rico C. Ancog.
Dr. Ancog revealed that the SEARCA innovEIGhts model consists of six component tools that partners can draw upon for designing initiatives and scaling them up and out to “ATTAIN AGRi 4.0.”
“INDEX” is the research and information arm to measure and ensure the impact of innovation initiatives on the wellbeing of farming families.
“SERVES” provides hands-on technical advisory for farming community livelihood projects and practical innovative solutions to persistent farming challenges.
“iDEATES” focuses on agri-innovation competitions engaging the youth, children, students, and brilliant minds to modernize agriculture and build local rural innovation ecosystems.
“BLOCKS” is an open shared service hub promoting locally adaptable agri-technologies, prototypes and practices for small farmers and rural communities.
“A4LIFE” builds local and community-based innovation ecosystem and inclusive agribusiness value chains to produce a generation of green startups and agripreneurs.
“SPACE” is a powerful innovation and open collaboration regional gateway for agri-incubation and technology transfer information, programs, resources, and networks in the world.