Japan and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) have exchanged diplomatic notes for a USD4.2 million (approximately PHP215.9 million) project that would provide shelter kits, health clinic support, and medical equipment to provinces heavily affected by Typhoon Odette that battered several parts of the Philippines last year. “Japan, in light of the amicable relations with the Philippines, intends to closely coordinate with the Philippines for the earliest recovery of the affected areas,” the Embassy said Thursday. The project is part of Tokyo’s USD13 million (approximately PHP663 million) Emergency Grant Aid for Typhoon Odette humanitarian assistance activities in the country. Under

A leader of the House of Representatives on Thursday called for a moratorium on the collection of online bank transfer fees amid the surge of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) cases. Deputy Speaker Bernadette Herrera said the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) and banking community should work together to help Filipinos affected by the surge in new infections, which prompted some banks to close or limit operating hours and the public to resort to electronic banking. Herrera said it is only proper for banks to continue providing relief to their distressed customers by extending their waiver of fees for online fund transfers

Health authorities in Negros Oriental are appealing to residents, especially senior citizens and young children, to stay at home to stem the transmission of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) as cases in Negros Oriental have risen exponentially in the past three weeks. Assistant Provincial Health Officer, Dr. Liland Estacion, in a virtual presser on Wednesday afternoon, said the rapid increase in active infections is becoming a concern in the province and is most likely due to the highly-transmissible Omicron variant. “From a low of 24 active cases at the start of the year, we now have a total of 434,

Eastern Visayas recorded 879 new confirmed coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) cases with a positivity rate of 69 percent, the highest single-day spike since the pandemic broke out, the Department of Health (DOH) reported on Thursday. Of the 1,275 samples examined by three laboratories in the region, 879 turned positive for Covid-19. This city, the regional capital, has the most number of new cases at 180, followed by Eastern Samar with 121. The number of cases, according to the Department of Health Eastern Visayas regional information officer Jelyn Lopez-Malibago, has been going up since they accommodate all requests for testing such

Fewer Filipinos are seeing a decline in household income in the future amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic, according to a TransUnion survey released Thursday. Based on the TransUnion Philippines Consumer Pulse Study for the fourth quarter of 2021, the number of respondents that expect lower household income in the future declined by 8 percentage points to 46 percent. “There is a belief that vaccinations are a possible contributing factor to a growing optimistic economic outlook,” TransUnion said in a statement. With a total of 1,089 Filipinos surveyed from Nov. 1 to 8, 2021, 59 percent of the respondents