Davao Dads To Join Int’l Sister City Summit

Three Davao City councilors are set to attend the Philippines International Sisterhood and Twinning Association (PHISTA) in Baguio City from August 30 to September 2, 2009.

“In connection with the Baguio City Centennial Celebration and the Sister Cities and Town Twinning Summit you are hereby directed to travel to Baguio City to represent the city government of Davao in the said activity,” Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte said in a memorandum order directed to councillors Rachel Zozobrado, Susan Isabel Reta and Louie John Bonguyan.

Reta heads the Council Committee on Tourism while Bonguyan heads the Council Committee on Cooperative and People’s Participation.

Duterte has authorized the three councillors to join the PHISTA activity in Baguio considering it is an international event that will allow the councillors to exchange experiences with domestic and international officials in the areas of trade, tourism and international relations among others.

A total of 15 international sister cities and 18 local sister cities of Baguio City are expected to participate in the event. Duterte said the participation cost of the three councillors will be shouldered by the City Government of Baguio.

“This will be a very good opportunity to learn and share experiences with the other domestic and international delegates to the event since one of the scheduled activities is the sharing of best practices both for the domestic and international participants,’ International Relations Committee chair Rachel Zozobrado said.

She said Davao is very active when it comes to twinning agreements but the committee would like to see a more active agreement that will not only remain on paper, but which will also yield positive results for both cities involved in the sisterhood agreement.

The City Council of Baguio has unanimously approved a resolution 25 years ago on February 2, 1984 to invite Davao as a sister city. The visit could perhaps rekindle the interest to form a sisterhood agreement between the two cities, even if both cities are on the opposite ends of the archipelago and they represent different cultures, heritage and customs.

While Davao City has several sisterhood agreements with international cities, one of the latest and high-profile sisterhood agreements it entered into locally is the one with San Juan City.

Exchange of medical services between Davao, Manado eyed

Patients from Manado, Indonesia will soon benefit from Davao City’s well-developed medical facilities and well-trained medical practitioners, once the sisterhood agreement between Davao and Manado is signed.

“This is possible considering that we have agreed to add Health and Wellness to the fields of cooperation between the two cities under the sisterhood agreement,” Committee on International Relations chair Councilor Rachel Zozobrado said.

She said the soon-to-be signed sisterhood agreement will also include other areas of cooperation including Human Resources, Science and Technology, Trade and Economic Developments, Education, Youth and Sports, Environment and Urban Management as well as Information and Communication Technology.

“We are actually very excited about the development of the terms of the sisterhood agreement and we are all hopeful that it will not only remain on paper, but will translate to actual programs and projects for both cities,” she said.

City Tourism Chief Rizal Giovanni Aportadera, who attended the International Relations Committee hearing, said during his visit in Manado, he was informed that cases which cannot be handled by the medical practitioners and facilities in Manado are being brought to Davao City for treatment.

“This would make the inclusion of health and wellness in the fields of cooperation for the Davao-Manado sisterhood agreement very viable,” he said.

This was confirmed by Indonesian Consul Lalu Malik Partawana, who said this is also the same case even for patients from Bitung, who are also brought to Manado or Davao City for treatment. He said there are a lot of possibilities with the inclusion of health in the sisterhood agreement.

Zozobrado said Davao City is very developed when it comes to its medical services and facilities. She said the health and wellness field extends even beyond the medical tourism field which is also being eyed for promotion by the city’s tourism sector.

“We have lots of well-trained medical personnel in the city and we are also proud of the medical facilities offered by government hospitals like the Davao Medical Center and private hospitals like Davao Doctors Hospital,” she added.

She said this will add to the traffic between Davao and Manado, and will hopefully promote repeat visits for residents of both cities.

Soft loans to small investors in Tugbok, Talomo residents eyed

Microfinancing or soft loans are being eyed for the calamity-stricken districts of Tugbok and Talomo, to allow small businesses and farmers in the areas to rebuild their lives and businesses after the flashflood that hit them last month.

“We are requesting government financial institutions to grant soft loans to small investors in the areas declared by the city council to be under a state of calamity,” councilor Rachel Zozobrado said.

Zozobrado has passed a resolution requesting government financial institutions such as the Philippine National Bank, Land Bank of the Philippines, the Development Bank of the Philippines, PAGCOR and providers of development assistance to grant soft loans not only to the small investors affected by the heavy rains and flashfloods last June 29, 2009 but also to marginal farmers and small entrepreneurs. The City Council also suggested the inclusion of Quedancor, GSIS and SSS to the list.

The City Council, which declared a state of calamity in the Districts of Talomo and Tugbok last July, also granted a total of P1,025,000 million to these areas.

She said the affected entrepreneurs and farmers are seeking immediate financial assistance from the government financial institutions to mitigate the impact of calamity to their businesses and to rehabilitate them as well.

“What they need are soft loans from government institutions and those that provide development assistant for small businesses to enable them to raise their income level and improve their living standards and to rehabilitate what was destroyed or lost by reason of the calamity,” she said.

Zozobrado said these small investors need to recover the capital they lost as a result of the calamity. By providing them soft loans, the loan providers will be able to help them start again, she added.