The Ilocos Times

By Leilanie G. Adriano Staff reporter Laoag City —The Bankers Association of the Philippines (BAP) in partnership with the Ilocos Norte government held a financial literacy education program to families of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) here. The program, which was free for all concerned, was held March 13 at the Tabacalera Function Hall The country’s most distinguished speakers and executives from the finance sector “Shared their insights on topics that are relevant in today’s finance conscious Ilocano,” the organizers said. Part of the discussions included a presentation on how to optimize savings and maximize returns, microfinance loans and investment options. As part of the continuing program of the Ilocos Norte Investment Office and the Gender and Development Office to promote investment opportunities and livelihood development, the event is expected to empower OFW families to help manage the hard-earned remittance sent by their families abroad. Over t

OWWA Officers Aprila C. Bisquera and Emmanuel Santiago C. Diaz during the two-day workshop. The Overseas Workers Welfare Administration- Regional Welfare Office 1 (OWWA RWO1) participated in the Workshop on Community Preparedness for Migrant Reintegration spearheaded by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) last February 5-6, 2015 at the Hotel Ariana in Bauang, La Union. The seminar was participated by a total of 75 PESO Managers, OFW Leaders, representatives from Government and Non-Government Organizations including the four Family Welfare Officers (FWOs) of OWWA Region 1. Topics covered during the seminar include the National Reintegration Program and Reintegration services and plans in the Region, the Concept of Reintegration in the Context of Migration and Development, Harnessing Remittances through Financial Literacy, Challenges in Reintegration Management, Institutional Partnership Engagement and Crisis Management. Meanwhile, OWWA Officers who are

In leis is the House Speaker Joseph Souki; Jean Jeremiah, former Rep. Felipe Abinsay Jr. and the writer, Amado Yoro Have you ever wondered how to get others to follow your lead? Research has found that most of the world’s top leaders follow seven actions to attract followers. Amazingly, the actions are the same whether the leader is in charge of a fundraiser, a social group or a community, and as a community organizer and volunteer, they are tips and pointers on how I achieved a set goals in my personal style, a personal stroke and approach and experience to meet my goals with at a 50% success rate:   Focus with your time; Allocate a time to do and apply your skill in time management; Time discipline, stick to schedule; Invite, include, involve; Good coordination; Trust: apply power of delegation with authority; Share your ideas, listen to others idea; Follow up and take action further actions as needed; Be consistent with the “can do attitude”; Don’t pretend to be a perfe

House Chamber as the opening session on Jan. 21, 2015 IT WAS January 21, 2015 Wednesday in Hawaii nei. The morning sun rose over the Punchbowl hills, a resting place of fallen veterans who defended our national security and peaceful country. Around ten o’clock, the Hawaiian ‘tambuli’ and the gavels of the both Chambers’ presiding officer were pounded against the respective podium for the official opening of the 28 th Hawaii State Legislature. The Senate Chamber and the House, both at the first floor of the Hawaii State Capitol with some security officers, located at the corner of Beretania and Punchbowl and Richard Street just the opposite of the Washington Place, the official residence of the Hawaii Governor. As an inventory purpose of Filipino-American ancestry, how many in our own are assuming if we can count as ours any spouse has a connection to us Filipinos, by marriage. In the Hawaii Senate, there are six senators out of the 25 Senate members are representing

  Ilocos Norte Governor Imee Marcos lists the possible solution for the El Niño problem for farmers in the province. (Alaric Yanos photo) By Leilanie G. Adriano Staff reporter Laoag City —To mitigate the impact of El Niño, or the so-called prolonged drought in tropical countries like the Philippines, the Provincial Resiliency Task Force in Ilocos Norte continues to educate farmers here, urging them to change their planting calendar and save on water. Popularizing the use of Alternate Wetting and Drying (AWD), a water-saving technology that farmers can apply to reduce their irrigation water use in rice fields without any yield penalty, rice experts here have joined the Ilocos Norte government’s provincial resiliency task force to inform farmers about its advantages should farmers adopt this technology. In AWD, irrigation water is applied a few days after the disappearance of the ponded water. The field is alternately flooded and non-flooded. The number of days of

A total of 1,987 livelihood starter kits were handed out by the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) through its regional offices to distressed OFWs who returned to the country from January to December 2014 through the welfare agency’s Balik-Pinas, Balik-Hanapbuhay program. Majority of the distressed OFW-beneficiaries were females who worked as household ser vice workers and caregivers. The remaining number comprised skilled workers, mostly male, from countries experiencing political and civil unrest such as Libya and Syria. Most of the recipients came from Region III, followed by Regions IV-A, X, V, CAR, XI, NCR, XII, II, VI, VIII, and I. The livelihood starter kits that amounted to P19.72 million were to be used mostly for food-related ventures in various modes. These are in trading (buy and sell, rice and other foods and consumer goods, fish vending, mini-grocery, e-load, etc.), agricultural production (crops, livestock & poultry), food service (carinderi