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Saturday, August 16, 2025 Vol. 20 No. 307
6-MO REMITTANCES BY PINOYS UP 3.1% TO $16.7B
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RUNWAY TO DIPLOMACY FOR HISTORIC TRUMP-PUTIN MEET
AN F-22 Raptor from the 3rd Wing taxis along the runway at Joint Base ElmendorfRichardson (JBER), passing in front of the base’s 1967-built, 2018-modernized air traffic control tower and a Cold War-era hangar whose arched roof dates back to the post-World War II years. TROI SANTOS
By Troi Santos
YAROSLAF | DREAMSTIME.COM
O
R
By Cai U. Ordinario
EMITTANCES sent by Filipinos abroad rose 3.1 percent in the first six months of the year, according to the latest data released by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). The data showed cash remittances increased to $16.75 billion in the January to June period this year from the $16.25 billion recorded in the same period last year. In June 2025, BSP data showed cash remittances increased 3.7 percent to $2.99 billion from the $2.88 billion in June 2024. “The increase in cash remittances drove an increase in personal remittances as well. Personal remittances include cash sent through banks and informal channels as well as remittances in kind,” BSP said. The data showed personal remittances increased 3.1 percent to $18.67 billion in January-June
2025 from $18.1 billion recorded in January-June 2024. In June 2025, personal remittances increased 3.7 percent to $3.33 billion from $3.21 billion in June 2024. Meanwhile, the growth of cash remittances marked the second fastest growth in remittances in 2025. For the year, the fastest growth was recorded at 4.1 percent in April 2025. In terms of level, the cash remittances received were the highest since the $3.38 billion posted in December 2024. The BSP said in June, landbased overseas Filipinos (OFs) accounted for $2.43 billion or a 3.7-percent year-on-year growth.
Sea-based OFs accounted for the smaller share of $555 million or a growth of 3.5 percent in June 2025. BSP said remittances from the United States remained the top source of remittances to the Philippines during January-June 2025, followed by Singapore, and Saudi Arabia. Remittances from the US accounted for 40.1 percent of cash sent from abroad by Filipinos overseas. This was followed by Singapore with 7.1 percent; Saudi Arabia, 6.2 percent; Japan, 5 percent; and the United Kingdom, 4.9 percent. It can be noted that Other Places taken together accounted for 20.6 percent of total cash remittances during the period. The Central Bank noted that there are limitations to the remittance data such that remittance centers in various cities globally are routed through corresponding banks located in the US. “Also, remittances coursed through money couriers cannot be disaggregated by actual country source and are lodged under the
country where the main offices are located, which, in many cases, is in the US,” BSP said. “Therefore, the US would appear to be the main source of OF remittances because banks attribute the origin of funds to the most immediate source. The countries are listed in order of their share of cash remittances, i.e., from highest to lowest,” it added. Earlier, banks said Filipinos remain the greatest asset of the economy and banks stressed the importance of harnessing human capital to catapult the Philippines into high-income country status. At the forum of the Economic Journalists Association of the Philippines (EJAP) on Monday, banks stressed that the country’s young population provides the economy a window of opportunity. East West President Jerry G. Ngo said 64 percent of the country’s population is between the ages of 15 and 64 years old—a demographic sweet spot—that boosts the country’s economic prospects (See: https://businessmirror.com. ph/2025/08/12/pinoys-remain-thegreatest-asset-of-economy-banks/).
ONE YEAR LATER: NJLA-LGU English-Literature project reaches 3,000 junior and senior public high school students at the City of Sto. Tomas, Batangas
I
N 2024, the City of Sto. Tomas, Batangas became the first local government partner of the Nick Joaquin Literary Awards (NJLA)Local Government Unit (LGU) Advocacy for English Proficiency through Literature project. The NJLA-LGU project is the brainchild of Philippines Graphic, initiator of the NJLA and the Philippines Graphic Reader, the only monthly magazine completely devoted to publishing the short stories and poems written in English by budding and veteran Filipino writers and poets. A Memorandum of Agreement was signed between Philippines Graphic and City of San Juan, Batangas Mayor Arth Jhun “AJAM” A. Marasigan, with the project benefitting Grade 9 and Grade 10 students in the city’s five public high schools. Through the Student’s Corner section of the Graphic Reader, students increased their vocabulary, grammar, and understanding of the short stories and poetry fea-
ENGLISH & LITERATURE EMPOWERED ANEW. City of Sto. Tomas, Batangas Mayor
Arth Jhun A. Marasigan signs a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with the Philippines Graphic, renewing the city’s commitment to the NJLA-LGU English Proficiency through Literature Project. (Also from left) Leah Caling-Bonotan, Special Projects Officer, NJLA-LGU Project; Loida S. Virtudazo, Executive Vice President-General Manager, Philippines Graphic; and Olyn Cabrera-Francisco, City of Sto. Tomas, Batangas Information Officer.
tured in the literary magazine.
GRADE 9 & 10 STUDENTS
ONE year later, the project has benefitted over 3,000 Grade 9 and
Grade 10 public high school students in the City of Sto. Tomas, Batangas. “We were able to reach all public secondary schools in Sto. To-
mas, covering Grade 9 and Grade 10 students citywide. In total, this translated to over 3,000 learners who now have access to the Philippines Graphic Reader as part of their academic and literary enrichment,” said Mayor Marasigan. Mayor AJAM further said: “The implementation of this project has been both inspiring and fulfilling. We saw firsthand how engaging literature can be when presented in a way that resonates with our Grade 9 and 10 students.” He noted the “seamless collaboration between the City government, the Department of Education and their partner institutions” resulting in an overwhelmingly positive response. “The passion of our teachers and school heads truly brought the project to life. It also reinforced our belief that education is not only about textbooks; it’s about opening doors to imagination, critical thinking, and lifelong learning,” Mayor AJAM elaborated. Continued on A2
N Friday, August 15, 2025, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson— known simply as JBER to those who call it home—will host a high-stakes encounter between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. It will be their first in-person meeting in more than five years, set against one of the United States’ most strategically positioned military hubs, where the Arctic meets the Pacific and global power dynamics often feel only a runway away. Over a week before the summit was confirmed, the Foreign Press Center’s Arctic Reporting Tour brought journalists to JBER on July 29, 2025. The visit began with a briefing from the 11th Air Force, offering insight into the base’s mission and strategic significance, followed by a windshield tour that revealed both its operational tempo and historical depth. One of the most commanding sights was a runway stretching toward a distant tree line under a muted, overcast sky. Built to handle the heaviest strategic airlifters and the fastest fighter jets, its broad asphalt surface is marked with crisp threshold lines and a centerline, framed by red obstruction lights and navigational aids. Along the right apron, a row of KC-135 Stratotankers, C-17 Globemaster IIIs, and a CP-140 Aurora maritime patrol aircraft sat in readiness, a visual reminder of the base’s capacity to project power from the Arctic to the Pacific. From the runway, the tour passed JBER’s most iconic pairing: the 1967-built air traffic control tower, modernized in 2018, and the Cold Warera arched-roof hangar whose design dates back to the post-World War II Continued on A2
PHL a potential pandemic epicenter, but experts say it’s now ‘better equipped’ By John Eiron R. Francisco
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EGAZPI, ALBAY—The Philippines has been flagged as a possible ground zero for the future pandemic, with global health experts warning that the country’s rich bat diversity, combined with rapid deforestation, could bring humans into closer contact with virus-carrying wildlife. “In the Philippines, there’s always the risk, because we do have one of the highest rates of deforestation in the world, there is hunting,” Dr. Phillip Alviola of the University of the Philippines Los Baños Institute of Biological Sciences’ Animal Biology Division told the BusinessMirror in an online interview. Alviola explained that the bats originally lived deep in the forest, but as human activity encroached on their habitats and these shrank, they began venturing beyond their natural environment and coming into contact with people. This situation, he added, is not limited to bats but also affects other wildlife. Data from Global Forest
Watch shows that in 2024, the Philippines had roughly 13 million hectares of natural forest, about 45 percent of the country’s land area. Between 2001 and 2024, the top regions contributing to forest loss included Palawan, Agusan del Sur, Zamboanga del Norte, Davao Oriental, and Quezon, with Palawan losing the most at about 219,000 hectares. Overall, 62 percent of tree cover loss was linked to permanent deforestation, driven by agriculture, logging, infrastructure development, and other activities. “They’re coming into contact, so there are viruses in wild animals that we people have not encountered before. And hence, [humans] do not have the right arsenal of antibodies to react to. So our antibodies will definitely overreact to these kinds of animals,” Alviola said. He cited instances in Southern Mindanao where active hunting contributed to Nipah virus outbreaks in 2014, affecting two villages and linked to horses. Several cases involved butchering or consuming horse meat, with 17 infections recorded and a mortality rate exceeding 80 percent. Continued on A2
KADAYAWAN FESTIVAL AT SM: A NEW ERA OF CULTURE IN FULL COLOR
SM Supermalls lights up Mindanao with a vibrant Kadayawan celebration—evolving with you and for you—showcasing the rich traditions, dazzling performances, and joyful spirit that keep the region’s culture alive and thriving. SM SUPERMALLS
PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 56.7340 n JAPAN 0.3840 n UK 76.7781 n HK 7.2425 n CHINA 7.9022 n SINGAPORE 44.1819 n AUSTRALIA 36.8601 n EU 66.1065 n KOREA 0.0408 n SAUDI ARABIA 15.1214 Source: BSP (August 15, 2025)