The government decision to lift restrictions on travelers from 10 countries starting Monday was based on improved risk classification assessment and strict border control measures. In an online media forum, Department of Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said four weeks prior to the lifting of travel restrictions on India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia, the country adapted the guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of the United States. Over the weekend, President Rodrigo Duterte approved the recommendation to lift the travel restrictions. “Aside from this from CDC

Online booking and appointment for Step 2 registration of the Philippine Identification System (PhilSys) is ongoing in Region 11 (Davao). The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) in Davao del Sur, in a Facebook post, stated that online booking for the biometrics process in Davao del Norte, Davao del Sur, and Davao Occidental started on July 8. PSA-Davao del Sur reminded registrants to bring documents proving their name, birthday, and address when going to registration centers for fingerprint and iris scans and front-facing photographs. The appointment slip from the house-to-house Step 1 registration or appointment reference number and QR (quick response) code

Japan Credit Rating Agency (JCRA) on Monday affirmed its A-level credit rating with a stable outlook on the Philippines, citing partly government measures to address the pandemic’s impact on the health system and the economy. “The ratings mainly reflect the country’s high and sustainable economic growth performance underpinned by solid domestic demand, its reliance to external shocks supported by an external debt kept low relative to GDP (gross domestic product) and the accumulation of foreign exchange reserves, the government’s solid fiscal position, and sound banking sector,” it said in a statement. The rating affirmation came nearly 15 months after JCRA

Various charges, including homicide and robbery, were filed Monday by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) against members of the Quezon City Police District (QCPD) and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) involved in a shootout last February 24 at a parking lot in a Commonwealth Avenue mall. A statement issued by the office of Prosecutor General Benedicto Malcontento said the charges filed before the Special Cases Division were for homicide, attempted homicide, direct assault, robbery, falsification of documents, and conniving or consenting to evasion. The incident was initially declared a misencounter but later turned out to be a botched

Canadian teenage tennis player Leylah Fernandez reached her first Grand Slam quarterfinal, eliminating 2016 champion Angelique Kerber in the US Open round four match on Sunday. Fernandez, 19, beat her 33-year-old German opponent 2-1 with sets of 4-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-2 at Louis Armstrong Stadium, New York City. The Canadian player previously eliminated Japanese star Naomi Osaka in the women’s third round. World no. three Osaka is a four-time Grand Slam singles champion. She claimed two Australian Open and two US Open titles. Osaka is the defending winner at the US Open 2020 and the Australian Open 2021. In the

Investors stayed at the sidelines partly ahead of the US Labor Day holiday resulting in the negative close of the main equities gauge on Monday but the peso remained firm against the greenback. The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) shed 0.29 percent, or 20.03 points, to 6,877.10 points. All Shares went down by 0.14 percent, or 5.96 points, to 4,255.73 points. Most of the sectoral indexes ended the trade on positive territory with the Mining and Oil rising 2.15 percent; Financials, 0.46 percent; Property, 0.03 percent; and Industrial, 0.01 percent. On the other hand, the Holding Firms index shed 0.77