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Government

UP TO 78% OF EMPLOYEES ALLOWED TO WORK UNDER MECQ – LOPEZ

Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said more employees can go back to their jobs under a modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ). “So, total around 75 to 78 percent [are] allowed to work under MECQ,” Lopez stressed. “There will be new quarantine status of regions, provinces, and cities starting May 16.” President Rodrigo Duterte announced the new […]

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Government

DA LAUNCHES ‘SEAFOOD KADIWA’ – DAR

To bring quality and affordable fish and aquatic products to residents in Metro Manila and other urban areas in the country amid the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) being enforced to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), the Department of Agriculture (DA) has launched “isDA On-the-Go” and the “Seafood Kadiwa” to complement its […]

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Government

PH EXCLUDED FROM IPR PIRACY WATCHLIST FOR 7TH YEAR – LOPEZ

Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ramon Lopez commended the 12-member National Committee on Intellectual Property Rights (NCIPR), which he leads, for the seven-year exclusion of the Philippines from the counterfeiting and piracy watchlist of the United States Trade Representative (USTR). This, according to Lopez, is a positive positioning that helps ensure the country’s […]

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Government

94% OF ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES TO OPEN UNDER GCQ – LOPEZ

About 94 percent of economic activities will resume under a general community quarantine (GCQ), Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez has assured. But Lopez said companies are still encouraged to implement work-from-home arrangements even when most of the economic activities has returned under GCQ.  The trade chief said the remaining 6 percent of economic activities that are not […]

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Government

ECQ, GCQ GUIDELINES TO MANAGE COVID-19 RISKS WHEN PH ECONOMY OPENS – LOPEZ

Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said the guidelines jointly issued by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) allowing the private sector to operate during the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) and general community quarantine (GCQ) will manage the risks of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) transmission even as it opens […]

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Government

DTI IDENTIFIES ESTABLISHMENTS NOT ALLOWED TO OPERATE UNDER GCQ – LOPEZ

As some parts of the country will be easing the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) after April 30, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has identified establishments that will remain closed under a general community quarantine (GCQ). During the Online Talakayan of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and Local Government Academy […]

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Government

GOV’T TO GRANT LONGER TAX HOLIDAYS TO FIRMS OUTSIDE NCR – LOPEZ

Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ramon Lopez said the government is looking into granting enterprises that will put up their businesses outside Metro Manila longer tax holidays as an incentive. This is in support of Senator Bong Go’s proposed “Balik-Probinsya” Program to decongest the National Capital Region (NCR) by providing incentives to businesses […]

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Politics

ESTABLISH COVID-19 MEASURES BEFORE INDUSTRIES RESUME OPERATIONS – VILLANUEVA

Once certain sectors are allowed to operate as the government restarts the economy, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) must mandate employers to conduct regular, randomized tests on its workers to monitor and mitigate the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), according to Senator Joel Villanueva. With the gargantuan task of striking a balance […]

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Government

RENTS ARE DEFERRED, NOT WAIVED DURING ECQ – LOPEZ

Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ramon Lopez has clarified to tenants of both residential and commercial spaces that rental fees and charges are deferred but are not waived, during the enhanced community quarantine period. During the Laging Handa public briefing, Lopez said residential and commercial rents falling due within the quarantine period shall […]

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Government

LOCAL GOVERNMENTS SHOULD ENSURE CONTINUED FOOD PRODUCTION AMID COVID-19 — DAR

The Department of Agriculture (DA) reiterated its appeal to local chief executives (LCEs) to reconsider policies that counter efforts of the national government to ensure continued food production, processing, transport and trade during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. “We urge the provincial governors, city and municipal mayors in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao, to allow […]