In a virtual time warp, authentic 19th century Principalia Mansions and original Bahay na Bato (Stone Houses), stand resplendent around a cobblestone plaza and streets paying tribute to the magnificent craftsmanship of our forefathers.
These structures carefully and painstakingly taken down from different parts of the country and rebuilt, “brick by brick”, “plank by plank”, are replete with memories with colorful stories.
Walking along the cobblestone streets or riding one of the caruajes (horse- drawn carriages), one has to constantly remind one’s self that he is in the present somehow trapped in the past; not just peeking through a looking glass but walking, touching, living amongst history’s silent witnesses.
The structures, at least 100 years old, are restored to its former grandeur creating a museum of Filipino architecture.
Located in Bagac, Bataan, significant in Philippine history for the World War II Death March, this “village” of heritage houses is designed to replicate Hispanic town settlements.
At Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar, the legacy of our forefathers and the beautiful Filipino traditions live on.
It is a step back into a majestic past, reliving the age- old traditions and practices distinct to our culture, without leaving the luxury and comforts of the modern world.
At the Paseo de la Escolta, there are currently 17 gues rooms with airconditioning, a modern bath with hot and cold showers, a 21” flat screen TV and DVD player; or you may choose to stay in any of the 18th and 19th century guest houses.
Each villa has airconditioned rooms, hot and cold showers, living areas, and dining facilities, affords each guest the ultimate experience of living out history without leaving the present.
The Filipino culture, being a melting point of many influences, is complex yet distinct. Experience the uniqueness of authentic Filipino-Hispanic cuisine at the Marivent Café where dishes are cooked and server the traditional way.
Taberna del Señor Pepe offers a variety of Spanish tapas, deli items, cocktails and cigars handrolled right before your eyes while El Museo (The Museum) offers a glimpse into the past with the artifacts and items on display.
The Candaba House, originally built in 1780 can accommodate a small group for 20 persons to as much as a groups of 200 persons. The Baluiag House 2 can accommodate functions for 30-80 people.
Instituto de las Bellas Artes, has function rooms for small groups of up to 40 people and a wide ballroom. La Plaza Mayor and El Centro serve as the resort’s outdoor social activity centers.
Both areas may be used for receptions and events and can accommodate 500-1,200 persons.
A showcase of Filipino talent, ingenuity and craftsmanship, Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar takes pride in the past… And keeps its faith in the future.

A group of aboriginal people from Taiwan’s Lanyu (Orchid Island) returned recently to Bataan, the land of their ancestors, with a shipment of medicines and farming tools, spending a week with their distant relatives to teach them modern farming and fishing techniques.
Lanyu, located about 90 kilometers southeast off Taitung County, is inhabited mainly by aboriginal people belonging of the Yami (or Tao) tribe.
According to Yami oral history, the ancestors of the tribe sailed from the Bataan area to Lanyu with the help of the Kuroshio Current more than 1,000 years ago.
Now a group of Yami people traveled in the reverse direction. Seven days ago, more than 50 people, including nurses, pastors, tribe elders as well as farming and fishing experts, set sail to visit their kin in Bataan 180 km away.
In addition to delivering pharmaceuticals, gloves, sickles, and fishing nets, they also took a ship to visit different spots to teach Bataan people how to improve public health facilities, increase farm crop productivity, and boost fish catch.
Residents in Bataan were also highly impressed with the advanced diving gears used by them, they said.
They explained the traditional agricultural cultivation methods used by people in Bataan are still comparatively primitive as compared with those employed in Lanyu and by other aboriginal people in various areas in Taiwan.
The size of sweet potatoes and taros and the production of rice is much smaller than those in Taiwan, they observed.
The Bataan region is full of natural resources and what the people there need is the more effective cultivation methods to increase output and improve living standards, they said.
They stressed that they are glad to have the opportunity to give assistance to their distant relatives separated by an epic length of time.

The World Health Organization (WHO) reported that 10 percent of our population in the Philippines is composed of Persons With Disabilities (PWDs).
“Imagine that. Ten percent,” Clark Development Corporation (CDC) President Benigno N. Ricafort said who seemed perplexed by the statistics.
“That’s about 9 million PWDs from the more than 80 million Filipinos living with us today,” he added.
Ricafort, who has embedded the practice Corporate Social Responsibility or CSR in the mindset of each CDC employees , pushed the CDC beyond its mandate to transform this former United States military installation into a magnet for investments and development.
Thanks to the vision of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, who helped transform this Freeport into one of the top investment destinations in the Southeast Asian region, the last 10 years saw a robust growth in and around the Clark .
The President’s vision became a reality, nay, a legacy as the CDC focused on development thrusts, particularly on infrastructure development, which was Clark ’s magnet for international and local investors.
The CDC also has the Clark CSR programs as another legacy – a legacy that aims to improve the quality of life of PWDs and other indigent people of Pampanga.
“This is another legacy that I want for Clark – the CDC’s care and commitment to pursue sound and meaningful CSR programs that are beneficial to surrounding communities in the province of
Pampanga ,” Ricafort said.
“It’s not enough that we live our day to day lives worrying and complaining about a variety of woes when just outside the four walls of our homes could be a neighbor who is in dire need of an artificial leg, or perhaps the old lady at the sari-sari store by the corner may have poor vision because she is suffering from cataract,” Ricafort said.
According to Ricafort, there are many Filipinos whose living conditions “are far worse than ours. Far worse than the trivial wretchedness we keep ranting about every day.”
It is for this reason, Ricafort stressed, that the CDC forged ties with the Kapampangan Development Foundation (KDF) to provide H.E.L.P. – Health, Education, and Livelihood for Pampanga.
“In Clark , we have put our acts together and stopped complaining… We’ve decided to HELP,”
Ricafort said.  
The CDC, Kapampangan Development Foundation (KDF) and their various partners in service have decided to HELP.
Ricafort noted that the CDC and the KDF’s goal is to return to Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) the “dignity of being able to live a productive life amidst their disabilities by restoring their physical capabilities whether they are amputees, cataract patients, or afflicted with harelip and other facial deformities.”

“Kung walang corrupt, walang mahirap.”

The campaign slogan bannered by incoming President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III to end poverty by getting rid of corruption in the government will be a tough challenge for the incoming administration to achieve.
Filipinos are hoping that this ain’t nothing more than a campaign slogan and wanted Aquino to act swiftly to fulfill his promise.
A recent study on poverty done by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) showed that unless the Philippine economy is able to shift to higher growth path, the country might be “stuck in a poverty trap.”
The ADB study, which projected poverty incidence of various Asian countries by 2020, noted that poverty reduction in the Philippines could be limited for the next decade due to the current financial crisis, the report said.
Exports, the report said, may be greatly be affected as the Philippines’ major export partners are in recession namely countries in the European Union, Japan and the United States.
According to the ADB study, the main reason why poverty reduction in the Philippines has been slow compared to other Asian countries is the failure of the economy to grow and “generate quality employment in sectors with large numbers of the poor.”
“Because of a boom and bust cycle of the Philippine economy in the last three decades and only moderate economic growth performance in recent years, employment opportunities have failed to keep up with this growth in the labor force,” the report said.
The study analyzed that this is the reason why the poor are constrained in terms of opportunities to escape deprivation. This also “increased the probability of the non-poor to become poor,” according to the report.
Failure to sustain high levels of economic growth explained the unavailability of jobs in the country. “Without job opportunities, people will not be able to earn incomes and are vulnerable to poverty,” the report stated.
On the other hand, the World Bank (WB) reported that corruption in the Philippines reduces the effectiveness of efforts to reduce poverty and assist growth.
The bank proposed a nine-point approach to fighting corruption in the Philippines including the enhancement of sanctions for corruption, targeting selected departments and agencies, and increasing public oversight and supporting judicial reform.
Other approaches are the reduction of opportunities for corruption by policy reforms and deregulation, reforming campaign finance, reforming budget processes, improving meritocracy in the civil service, and developing partnerships with the private sector.
The WB said that anticorruption efforts should focus on preventing and eliminating root causes of corruption, but government’s capacity to detect corruption and sanction corrupt practices should also be strengthened.
The goal is to change the current perception of corruption in the Philippines—from a “low-risk, high-reward” activity to a “high-risk, low-reward activity.”
The WB also said that the private sector – as a major source of funds used for corrupt purposes – has to be mobilized to combat corruption.
Involving the private sector will not only allow more sophisticated and sensitive policy responses to corruption to be developed but will also put pressure on the private sector to raise its own standards of behavior, the report said.
A government-private sector partnership against corruption should be formed to design anticorruption strategies in vulnerable departments such as customs, taxation, industrial policy, infrastructure, and investment.
The government must be engaged in a dialogue with the private sector on how to solve the collective action problem associated with bribery: how to prevent some firms from continuing to bribe when others stop, thereby creating incentives for the others to revert to bribery again.
The WB also recommended the development and implementation of company codes of conduct and ensuring their effectiveness through internal control mechanisms, personnel training, and sanctions.
Problems of corruption embedded within the broader system might be explicitly addressed through joint government, congressional, and judicial reform efforts.
As reported recently in the media, once Aquino becomes president, his first order of the day would be to swiftly convene the Judicial, Executive, Legislative Advisory and Consultative Council (JELAC) as part of pursuing judicial reforms of his new government.
Through judicial reform, Aquino believes that deficiencies in the justice system shall be addressed, although this is not a promise of a perfect system.
The reform could also provide that members of the justice system be compensated accordingly in exchange for performing well and to give some measure to insulate them from corruption.
Created in 2008, JELAC’s primary function is to serve as the forum and venue for the representatives of the three branches of government “to undertake measures on matters affecting the primacy of the rule of law; to identify the problems and issues; and to formulate solutions and to implement the same.”
A survey conducted by Social Weather Stations (SWS) and TV-5 showed that nearly three out of five Filipinos expect better governance under the incoming administration while nearly half believe the quality of life will improve in the next 12 months.
But about one in four Filipinos also could not – or refused to – answer questions about their expectations of governance, quality of life and the economy in the next 12 months.
When asked about the quality of governance under the next administration, 57.8 percent of respondents in the SWS-TV5 poll said it “will get better,” while 1.9 percent said it “will get worse.”
Some 15.3 percent said it will “be the same as now” while 25 percent “cannot” or “refused” to answer.
On the other hand, 49.7 percent said they expect their quality of life “will be better” in the coming 12 months, while 23 percent said it will be the same.
About 1.8 percent said they expect their quality of life “will be worse” while 25.6 percent cannot or refused to answer.
Filipinos are hoping that Aquino will be able to lead a new era of governance that will finally deliver the country from the quagmire of corruption that requires new approaches and strategies with courage, passion and political will.

The Subic Forest Watershed Reserve (SFWR) is located in the west-central portion of the major Philippine island of Luzon, 160 km by road northwest of Manila.
It is at the northern portion of the Bataan Biogeographic Zone, which noted high biodiversity and endemism. This secondary growth, low land dipterocarp forest covers approximately 9,800 hectares of which 3,000 hectares is closed canopy.
The forests were protected from overexploitation for over 50 years while under the jurisdiction of the former US Naval Facility.
It is a priority site of the National Integrated Protected Area System (NIPAS). The SFWR lies entirely within the bounds of the Subic Bay Freeport Zone and the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) under authority of Republic Act 7227 of 1992.
A Memorandum of Agreement was executed between the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and the SBMA in 1992, which delegated to the SBMA the enforcement of environmental policies, rules and regulations within the Freeport, provides for management jurisdiction over this protected area.
A wide range of habitats are present in the forest due to the terrain, presence of streams, fringing grasslands and other breaks in the canopy. It is possible to draw an imaginary line through the rainforest, running water, grassland and mangrove habitats that blends into the marine seagrass and coral reef habitats. This represents the major habitats to the tropics.
The preliminary results of the forest biodiverstiy survey revealed 745 plant species. Of these, 3 are included on the endangered species list while 4 are potentially threatened. Thus, the urgency of preserving the Subic forest then is highlighted.
The forest is dominated by white lauan, apitong, guijo, palosapis, which are ecologically and economically important tree species. Recently, a rattan palm previously found only on Mt. Arayat was discovered.
Fifteen percent of the Luzon bird species are found in the Subic forest which comprises ten percent of the whole Philippines. Monkeys loiter at the roadsides. Monitor lizards, snakes, birds of prey, jungle fowl and signs of wild boar foraging are common at the forest fringe. There are 27 endemic vertebrates.
An approximately 10,000 individual fruit bat colony and herd of feral water buffaloes also live within the SWFR. At the southwest portion of the reserve is a well maintained network of paved roads which links two piers to a complex of 6 groups of earth-covered, concrete ammunition bunkers referred to as the Naval Magazine area.
These bunker groups are enclosed in fences. The Naval Magazine in turn is linked by a two-lane road to the rest of th Freeport zone and a narrower road to the municipality of Morong, Bataan. This is slated for low-impact, eco and adventure tourism-oriented development.
Some 150 families of Aetas, an indigenous cultural community, live within SFWR.
A school, a windmill-driven water pump and recreational area are present. They have access to the SBMA Health and Welfare department. Medical and dental missions visit them every now and then. Livelihood opportunities include manual labor at the freeport, SBMA Forest Rangers and forest guides for various eco-tourism activities.
Several entrepreneurs have small variety stores offering staples and canned goods.
The community uses the resources of the forest and the adjacent bay. The Pamulaklakin Forest Trails, which is operated by their self-help organization, provides seasonal livelihood through cultural demonstrations, forest tours and picnic areas.
Ecotourism has tremendous potential given the variety of flora and fauna, presence of streams, waterfalls and trail systems. The road system in the Naval Magazine is ideal for cycling and bird watching.
Horse trails traverse sectionsof the forest. The Jungle Environmental Survival Training (JEST) camp school established by an Aeta to train Americans retained much of its staff and offers treks of up to several nights into the forest. The Philippine Military and Police forces also train in this area.
The western side of the Grande Island and Chiquita Island have the highest coral cover in the bay with up to 75 percent living corals. There are 75 species of fish present in Subic Bay. Important reef fish species comprise 96.25 percent.
The world’s rare and endangered Olive Ridley turtle, Hawksbill, Dugong or Seacow inhabit the Subic Bay. Six species of seagrass are growing in the marine preserved areas of Triboa and Ilanin Bays. There are 156 animal species (vertebrates) and 568 species of insects.
The next time you visit Subic, try to remember some of this information and share it to others, particularly to kids, to instill good values of a clean and green environment.

SUBIC-OLONGAPO BUSINESS TRIANGLE: SBMA Administrator Armand Arreza, Olongapo City Mayor James Gordon Jr., and Ayala Land Inc. president Anthony Aquino sign an agreement for the development of a master plan for the Subic-Olongapo Central Business District Triangle project.

The vision of Olongapo City to become truly the country’s first Freeport zone similar to Hong Kong offering tax and duty-free privileges would soon be realized with the P3-billion development project proposed by Ayala Land Inc. (ALI) for the city’s business district.
ALI president and CEO Antonino Aquino said that fiscal incentives like Subic’s minimal 5-percent gross income tax, if successfully extended to the 7,000-square-meter Olongapo City Central Business District (CBD) Triangle, would set the stage for robust trade in the area.
Aquino said these tax- and duty-free incentives would enable the planned tripartite committee to offer attractive deals to win the cooperation of Olongapeños, particularly the business group, which he said would be the “lifeblood of this development.”
SBMA administrator Armand Arreza assured Aquino that this prospect would be realized as soon as President Arroyo approved the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of Executive Order 675, which was signed by the President on November 05, 2007, to expand the area where tax- and duty-free privileges would apply.
“Once the President gives her approval, it is up to the City of Olongapo to decide what particular incentives to offer,” said Arreza.
Arreza and Aquino signed a memorandum of understanding with Olongapo Mayor James Gordon Jr. recently for the proposed Olongapo CBD Triangle project.
Under the MoU, Ayala Land will be drawing up the master plan for a unique business-development project in this free port and the neighboring city of Olongapo.
The project, to be called the Central Business District (CBD) Triangle, will straddle the boundary between the Subic Bay Free Port and Olongapo City near the free port’s main gate.
Arreza said the project will cover about 7,000 square meters of prime business land and will be the first step in the agency’s push to develop areas beyond Subic’s “secured area.”
Arreza said the CBD Triangle project aims to make the adjoining portions of Subic Free Port and Olongapo City “into a green, environment-friendly residential, commercial and institutional area.”
“This will be the initial project in accordance with the SBMA’s thrust to extend the physical boundaries of the Subic Free Port, and in the process generate more livelihood opportunities for people in the surrounding communities,” Arreza said.
The CBD Triangle project “will effectively generate economic activities in the city, provide more jobs, and improve the quality of life of the residents,” he said.
According to a land-use plan presented by ALI, the project will be located inside the triangle formed by Magsaysay Drive, Rizal Avenue Extension and Perimeter Road in Olongapo City.
It will also include the former SubCom area inside the free port, which will be transformed into a mixed-use area, but predominantly for retail establishments.
Olongapo’s famous entertainment district, which is bounded by Magsaysay Drive and Rizal Avenue, will be transformed into a commercial-office block.
Nearby, an institutional area will rise within the area bounded by Fendler, Third, Hansen and First Streets, also in Olongapo.
ALI’s Aquino said all the construction projects in the CBD Triangle “will be relevant to the history, culture and dynamics of Subic Bay and Olongapo City.”
The project will be environment-friendly, with the banks of the Kalalake River inside the CBD Triangle turned into a waterfront garden for relaxation, picnics and small-group activities.
“Any transformation should be planned well. Otherwise, the deterioration of the environment will continue,” Aquino added.
Arreza said the SBMA began entertaining the expansion project into Olongapo after President Arroyo signed on Novembe 5, 2007, Executive Order 675, which granted tax- and duty-free privileges to investors locating beyond the “secured area,” but within the Subic Special Economic and Free Port Zone.
He added that aside from undertaking the master plan for the CBD Triangle, ALI has also volunteered to draw the plans for beach areas in Olongapo City that are eyed for development into world-class tourist resorts.
Arreza, who pushed for the expansion of Subic’s free port regime to nearby communities, said the proposed project would boost Subic’s drive to gain more investments and create more livelihood opportunities for local residents.
He added that the recent moves of ALI, one of the biggest real-estate developers in the country today, “clearly demonstrates what EO 675 can do to the regions between Subic and Clark.”
Arreza explained that under the EO 675, tax- and duty-free privileges within the Subic Special Economic and Free Port Zone (SSEFPZ) “shall apply within the secured area consisting of the presently fenced-in former Subic Naval Base and such other areas that may be identified, fenced, secured, or declared as additional secured area by the SBMA.”
The IRR for EO 675, a collaborative work of the SBMA and the Bureau of Customs (BOC) here, details the process of identifying, administering and regulating the areas where said incentives can be extended.
Among the incentives the SBMA offers to investors registering in the Subic Bay Freeport are tax- and duty-free importation; exemption from all local and national taxes, with only a 5-percent corporate tax on gross income; unrestricted entry of foreign investments; no foreign-exchange control; visas for foreign nationals; and expanded allowable deduction and higher percentage of income allowable from sources within the Customs territory for regional enterprises.

OPENING RITES. Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority Senior Deputy Administrator lawyer Ramon Agregado (second from right) leads the ribbon cutting ceremony to formally open the office of world-renowned Century21 Real Estate. Joining him are SBMA Director Ted del Rosario, real estate guru Donald Lawby and Ronald Wang.

Buying or selling a home is one of the most important decisions you will make in life, thus, it’s in your best interest to choose an experienced and reputable real-estate agent.
Century 21 Real Estate, the franchisor of the world’s largest residential real-estate sales organization, recently opened inside Subic Freeport to provide expertise and help clients in real-estate ventures.
Subic franchise holder Josephine Chua said Century 21 is in 60 countries, with more than 8,800 offices, 104 languages, and represented by 145,000 brokers and agents who understand the life changes that real-estate decisions can bring.
“When you go for Century 21 Subic, you will be dealing with experienced professionals who will provide you with personalized service,” Chua said during the opening ceremony of its office located near the Royal Duty Free Store.
Century 21 Subic is providing benefits to both house buyers and sellers through its Home Search System and Customized Home Marketing, respectively.
The Century 21 Home Search System for buyer representation is designed to provide home seekers with full service and “anxiety-free” real-estate experience.
“We will deliver a level of service unmatched in the real-estate industry,” Chua explained. “The home search system offers proprietary marketing tools to provide clients with superior service when buying your dream house.”
Services include internet marketing program, global referral network, buyer service pledge, quality service survey, property management, home inspection services and even, local government assistance.
“This customized Home Search System answers all of the questions and concerns that buyers are challenged with when purchasing a house,” says Chua.
Chua likewise explained that for those interested to sell their house, its home marketing system provides sellers with superior service and assistance in differentiating their home from others in the highly competitive marketplace.
The marketing system provides powerful brand name, robust online marketing, global referral network, specialty markets, property management, home inspection service, government assistance and the Century Seller Service Pledge.
She also noted that Century 21 has a strong global presence in six continents spread over 64 countries such as the United States, Canada, Australia, Japan, France, England, Ireland, New Zealand, China, India, Taiwan and many more.
The Century 21 System is actively increasing its presence and market share in the US and globally, with international operations throughout Europe, Latin America, the Middle East and Asia.
Chua said that while more buyers now use the Internet to gain access to listings, or available properties for sale, it is still a good idea to use a competent agent.
She explained that an agent brings value to the entire home buying process—“he or she is available to analyze data, answer questions, share their professional expertise, and handle all the paperwork and legwork that is involved in the real-estate transaction.”
“Let Century21 show you how easy your real-estate purchase can be and for sellers, we will help you save money and provide the highest level of service ever offered by any real-estate organization,” Chua said.
Chua added that Century21 professionals have the expertise to help their clients narrow down their choices by sharing market trends and local information. For more details and information visit www.century21philippines.com.

Balancing development and environment
Recognizing development as potential threat to the survival of natural resources, the SBMA took on the challenge of balancing development and environmental protection by formulating the Subic Bay Protected Area Management Plan (PAMP), with funding from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC). The plan, contained in eight volumes, was two years in the making and underwent several focus group discussions to tackle specific concerns, as well as five major consultations among the stakeholders that included local government units (LGUs), Freeport locators, non-government organizations (NGOs), various national agencies and more importantly, the indigenous people of Subic.
The PAMP divided the freeport into management zones and classified both allowed and disallowed activities per zone. Prior to zoning, resource inventory and ecological profiling were conducted. The management zones, both the marine and terrestrial, were determined on the basis of the ecological value of the biodiversity of an area. The Subic Bay PAMP worked on the framework that the linkages and development of the flora and fauna extend beyond the core zone (strict protection zone.) It also acknowledged the importance of the external land use and the socioeconomic setting as critical to the maintenance and protection of the Subic Bay environment. Under the PAMP, these areas were designated as buffer zones.

Threats from within and without
While the SBMA is determined to pre serve the natural resources, the harsh realities of poverty and lack of access to resources and livelihood opportunities among communities within and around the zone continue to undermine efforts for protection and conservation. Dynamite and cyanide fishing, trawling, kaingin (slash-and-burn farming) and charcoal-making , poaching and encroachment in the Freeport’s fenced area remain.
The story of Mang Ben and Mang Ato, both Aetas from the nearby community of Iram in Olongapo City, is an example of the critical aspect of poverty that is worth looking into. When the two were caught with six pairs of Colasisi bird trapped from the forest inside the zone, they admitted that it is not good for the forest inside the zone, but reasoned out that they have no recourse but to catch and sell the wild birds because they don’t have any other source of income. Mang Ben added that it was better than stealing money from people.
Mang Basti is a classic case of a fisherfolk who lost two fingers to dynamite fishing but still insists on using this method for easier and more catch. Although he fishes in the coastal waters of Subic town, his activity contributes to the destruction of water quality and resource in the entire Subic Bay.

Promoting stakeholder cooperation
The SBMA has long recognized that the sustainable developments of natural resources under its management could best be undertaken with the cooperation of stakeholders with the Subic Bay community.
With this, the SBMA sought to promote and institutionalize cooperation agreements among the stakeholders and initiated the formulation of an Integrated Fisheries and Aquatic Resource Management Council (IFARMC). The council is composed of LGUs, NGOs and POC in the coastal areas of the Subic Bay, the SBMA, the Philippine Maritime Service and the Coast Guard. The primary objective of this project is the creation of an integrated policy and system for the protection of the bay. Toward this end, members of the Subic Bay IFARMC sit in four vital task-groups, legal and policy committee, livelihood committee, information and education committee, and resource mobilization and research committee.
On another, stakeholder cooperation scheme, the SBMA has embarked on the so-called “Social Fencing” project. This project is a subcomponent of the Perimeter Fencing project which primarily aims for the security and protection of the Subic Freeport secured area. The Social Fencing project, founded on a framework consistent with the PAMP that “communities are partners in the conservation of efforts of the SBMA,” is an alternative to physical fencing of areas where there are existing communities. The strategy is to engage local communities in securing the vulnerable portions of the SBFZ perimeter by providing incentives to partner communities in exchange for protection from encroachment and degradation of the Freeport environment…these are just some of the initial efforts of the SBMA in working toward sustainable development for the Freeport in the framework of balancing the economic, environmental and social aspects of development. Knowing fully well that the advancement of the communities within and outside the Freeport is an integral part in the pursuit of its mandate, the SBMA continues with its task of protecting the environment and leaving a sustainable legacy to future generations. Amethya Dela Llana

Amethya Dela Llana- Kuval, a former college instructor and community organizer, is at present the manager of the SBMA Ecology department. She brought the same zealous activism and commitment to community welfare when she joined the SBMA in 2001.

Subic Bay Freeport closes 2009 with renewed confidence that the effects of the global economic crisis to local economy would soon be over, expressing much optimism and brighter prospects into 2010.
Economic indicators such as employment generation, import and export earnings, and seaport revenues posted positive growth while investment commitments put up by Filipino-owned companies, for the first time in recent years, surpassed foreign direct investments.

Employment
Companies engaged in shipbuilding and maritime-related services notched gains as they are now considered as the biggest Freeport employers surpassing the electronic manufacturing sector which was badly affected by the global economic crunch.
The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) reported growth in shipping industry as it was buoyed by impressive statistics indicating strong performance in job generation that offered hopes for unrelenting recovery from global economic downturn.
The SBMA noted that the service-oriented companies still employ the bulk of close to 87,000 workers hired by various business locators here.
SBMA Administrator Armand Arreza said that seven of Subic’s top 10 biggest employers are in the maritime business, while the three others that complete the list are from the electronics manufacturing business.
“This has been the case since Korean shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction Corp. located in Subic in 2006,” Arreza noted. “While the services sector still hired most of Subic’s workers, those in the shipbuilding and manufacturing industries usually landed in the top 10 biggest individual employers.”
“These two industries are really catching up fast in terms of hiring, but the bulk of Subic’s workforce still depended on companies that provide services,” Arreza added.
According to SBMA data, the biggest employer in Subic as of October 2009 is Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction Corp., which has a total of 3,118 employees. Hanjin operates a $1.7-billion shipyard at Subic’s Redondo Peninsula and builds some of the biggest vessels in the world today.
Following Hanjin in the second and third slots are two Japanese manufacturers—computer parts-maker Nidec Subic Phils. Corp., which employs 2,361 workers; and electronics motor-producer Sanyo Denki, which has hired a total of 2,218.
The fourth and fifth biggest employers are Korean companies that provide support services to Hanjin. These are Subic Shipbuilder Corp., with a total of 1,862 employees; and Greenbeach Powertech Inc., with a total of 1,693 workers.
In sixth place is Taiwanese computer-maker Wistron Infocomm Phils., which has a total of 1,699 employees. Wistron used to be Subic’s biggest employer prior to the establishment here of Hanjin in 2006.
The rest of the companies on the top 10 employers list are all Hanjin subcontractors: Subickor Corp., which has a total of 1,662 workers; Metrobay Corporation, with 1,514; Redondo Baytech Corp., with 1,426; and Kalayaan I-Tech Corp., which has a total of 1,361 employees.
With a total manpower complement of 15,796, the top 10 employers, however, delivered only 18.51 percent of Subic’s current employment record of 86,631.
SBMA data as of October 2009 also indicated that the number of workers in the services sector stood at 38,676, or 44.64 percent of the total workforce in the free port, while those in the shipbuilding and maritime sector totaled 25,301, or 29.21 percent.
The rest come from the manufacturing sector, which had 15,614 workers, or 18.02 percent; construction sector, with 6,494 or 7.5 percent; and the domestic sector which employed a total of 546 helpers and caretakers, or 1 percent.

Exports
The SBMA also said that exports in the Subic Bay Free Port in 2009 have so far grown to $800.98 million as of September. This represented a slight increase over the $755-million export production in the same period in 2008.
According to the SBMA, Korean shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction Corp. is the biggest exporter in 2009, with $355.56 million in freight-on-board (FOB) deliveries as of November.
Hanjin is followed by Taiwanese computer maker Wistron Infocomm (Philippines) Corp., with $111.4 million; Hong Kong-based Lets Do Mobile Philippines, with $63.52 million; and Japanese electronic motor-maker Sanyo Denki Philippines, with exports of $50.91 million.
Rounding out the top 10 exporters are Japanese ATM maker Hitachi Terminals Mechatronics Philippines Corp., with $43.08 million; Japanese wood-products producer Juken Sangyo Philippines, $26.03 million; Taiwanese lock maker Tong Lung (Philippines) Metal Industry, $17.71 million; Danish eyeglasses manufacturer Lindberg Subic Inc., $14.88 million; Japanese sensor-maker Nicera Philippines Inc., $12.13 million; and Japanese computer parts-maker Nidec Subic Philippines Corp., with $9.8 million.
The SBMA said that import transactions made in Subic from January to November 2009 reached a total of $2.01 billion, or a 6.14-percent decrease from the $2.14 billion record set in the same period in 2008.
Subic’s top importers for this year are Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction Corp., with an FOB total of $378.46 million; Sanyo Denki, with $335.17 million; PTT Philippines Trading Corp., $289.94 million; Wistron Infocomm, $182.56 million; Nidec Subic, $135.45 million; Nicera Philippines, $86.79 million; Micro Dragon Petroleum Inc., $72.65 million; Koryo Subic, Inc., $54.3 million; Lets Do Mobile Philippines, $48.54 million; and Ixion Corp., with imports totaling $45.4 million.

Revenues
The SBMA reported that it expects to surpass the revenue-generation record of P5.27 billion in 2008.
This, as cash earnings by both the Bureau of Customs (BOC) and the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) began showing minimal growth in the last quarter, Arreza said.
Arreza said the combined BOC and BIR collections will “pull Subic through to a positive performance despite a shortfall in foreign direct investment [FDI].”
“As of now, we only need about P394.6 million more to reach the 2008 revenue level. That’s about a month’s worth of collections to make,” Arreza said.
With BIR figures for October and November yet to come in, while total collections averaged P443.7 million a month in the last 11 months, “the December earnings alone should bring total earnings over and above the 2008 record,” Arreza said.
Reports by the BOC and the BIR to the SBMA indicated that the cash collections of the two agencies from January to November 2009 have already reached P4.88 billion, with the BOC delivering P3.85 billion and the BIR P1.03 billion.
But aside from cash collections, Subic Customs Collector Marietta Zamoranos also reported about P2.78 billion in noncash earnings, which are mostly composed of government-to-government transactions.
Despite this strong collection, the BOC here said its collection in 2009 is still short by about P71.36 million compared with its 2009 target. The Customs office here has set a P3.92-billion goal for the January-November period, but has thus far collected only P3.85 billion.

Investments
Filipino firms made it to the top of the chart by drowning out the competition with sheer numbers: a total of 139 investment projects that, taken all together, were worth about $96.22 million.
This translates to 57.74 percent of the $166.64 million total for investment projects approved by the SBMA board from January to November 2009.
Korean firms, which held sway here since 2006 when shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries Corp. plunked its initial $1-billion investment, slipped to the No. 2 position with only 26 investment projects worth a total of $55.86 million, or 33.52 percent.
This was less than a third of the $198.84 million (85.48 percent) committed by 46 Korean companies in 2008, the same year that 67 Filipino firms invested $10.09 million (4.33 percent).
The third slot among the biggest investors this year went to a Swiss-owned company, which put up a project worth $7 million or 4.2 percent; followed by six Taiwanese projects with a total worth of $2.86 million; and four Japanese projects with a total of $1.27 million.
Arreza said that FDI in the January-November 2008 period totaled $224.82 million. For the same period in 2009, it was only $73.82 million.
However, even as foreign investment dropped in 2009, Arreza noted that Filipino companies “more than made up for the slump” and carried the day for Subic’s investment performance.
“This is an encouraging sign,” Arreza said. “As far as we can tell, Subic is fast regaining its footing in terms of investment generation.”
For the last two months alone, investment pledges in Subic reached a total of $44.42 million, with a total of $23.1 million committed by 12 investor-companies in October, and a total of $21.32 million pledged by 22 other firms in November.
Arezza said that among the biggest investors in the two-month period is Filipino real-estate giant Ayala Land Inc., which pledged $21.4 million for the construction, development and operation of a retail and commercial center.
Seven other Filipino companies made it to the list of top 10 biggest investors this year. These are Tountzis Shipping Inc. with $20.23 million; Jadelink Subic Inc., $16.85 million; Pure Petroleum Corp., $6.22 million; Subic Business and Technology College, $4.29 million; Bonsure Evergreen International Corp., $2.21 million; Chifil International Import-Export Manufacturing Co. Inc., $1.41 million; and Eastern Subic Fuel Depot Corp., with $1.05 million.
The only foreign companies on the same list are Korean casino-resort developer Ocean Nine Philkor Inc., which pledged $52.38 million; and Swiss-owned Philip Morris Philippines Manufacturing Inc., with $7 million for its warehousing operation here.
The SBMA also said that the 163 projects it has approved in 2009 are expected to create a total of 6,340 new jobs. The Subic free port has an active work force of 86,631 as of October 2009.
The agency added that as of November 2009, there are a total of 1,310 approved investment projects in the Subic Bay Free-port Zone. These projects are worth a total of $5.918 billion in committed funds.
Arreza also said that the services sector is expected to keep the lead in employment generation in 2010 because Subic “is basically service-oriented.”
Subic’s thrust to become a major service and logistics hub is also expected to create more service-oriented jobs, investments and revenues in 2010. Rey Garcia