TACLOBAN CITY – Ormoc City has identified two rivers as major sources of water in the city as part of its bid to ensure a stable water supply to 82 percent of its communities in the next 25 years.
The initial result of the latest feasibility study recommends Ahag River, Pagsanga-an River and Lake Danao as possible sources.
“(However,) it cannot be Lake Danao because water might be plentiful in our lake, but considering it is on a fault line, the consultants said it is not advisable. Any ground movement from the fault line will damage the major pipelines,” Mayor Richard Gomez said in an interview on Thursday.
“It is actually easy for people to say that Lake Danao is the best source, but unfortunately, the study suggests otherwise,” he added.
The lake has been one of the sources of water for six Leyte towns and Tacloban City.
The official was referring to a study of the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Center.
The water system project aims to provide an uninterrupted supply facility with a source, a reservoir, a piped distribution network with an adequate treatment facility, and household taps.
A reservoir will be set up and a new pipeline from bulk water will also be built to augment the interconnection of existing pipelines.
The project will also establish a clarifier and filtration gallery to improve the quality of the water.
It is seen to upgrade the water supply in 28 service areas.
Earlier, the city government said they are eyeing loans from state-run banks to finance the long-term water supply project. The estimated cost is PHP2 billion.
At present, the city’s water supply comes from various sources including underground water and rivers.
The existing water system only supplies about 70 percent of the requirement of the city’s 25,000 water concessionaires, Gomez said.
Around 61.5 percent of Ormoc’s population are connected to a piped distribution network with an adequate treatment facility.
Ormoc is a first-class independent component city in Leyte province with a population of 230,998 in 110 villages, making it the second-most-populous city in the province Leyte.
The city is the economic, cultural, commercial, and transportation hub of western Leyte.
(SARWELL Q.MENIANO/PNA)

CATARMAN, Northern Samar- The province of Northern Samar places third, best in government internal process award, provincial category in the 2021 Digital Governance Awards (DGA) organized by DICT, DILG and the National ICT Confederation of the Philippines.
The results were announced in an online awarding ceremony on October 29, 2021.
DICT thru ICT Industry Development Bureau Director Emmy Lou Versoza-Delfin congratulated the Provincial Government of Northern Samar for stepping up and embracing digital transformation in improving its services to its constituents. “A proud Nortehanon, I hope that the DGA initiative will continue to spark innovations not only at the provincial level but also in the municipalities of Northern Samar,” Director Delfin said.
DGA is an annual search for innovative information and communications technology (ICT) practices showing outstanding and remarkable integration of ICT to the different sectors of society, and utilizing ICT for a more efficient and effective delivery of services to the public.
The best in government internal process award category recognizes efforts of an LGU in developing or improving its internal systems and adhering to various recognized standards to be able to provide better services to its internal customers.
PGNS, through its ICT arm, the Management of Information Systems Office (MISO) submitted the Northern Samar Provincial Hospital Point of Sale (NSPH POS) System as its entry to DGA 2021, which qualified during the initial screening and certified complete based on the entry requirements.
A total of 125 entries from 80 LGUs qualified and competed for the Digital Governance Awards.
Good governance which includes PGNS ICT initiatives, is a priority agenda of Governor Edwin Ongchuan under his development framework dubbed as continued progress.
(NORTHERN SAMAR PROVINCIAL INFORMATION OFFICE)

TACLOBAN CITY – Some 17 individuals who are concessioners of the Bangon River Walk in Palo town attended a three-day trained on food preparation under the Community-based Kulinarya program of the Department of Tourism (DOT).
The participants undergo training on how to prepare and handle food for tourists and regular customers in a professional manner, rules to having a clean kitchen, how to cook in the most systematic and efficient manner and presentation / plating.
They also gain a better understanding of the importance of food safety, sanitation, and hygiene. They were also taught on basic culinary math that helps the participants on how to do budgeting.
The concessioners were trained by Chef Mark Reynan Sabayan, the only accredited culinary trainor in the region by the DOT8.
Prior to the community-based Kulinarya, it was learned that the concessioners are selling foods in their stalls that are mostly of western influence.
With the training, they are taught how to prepare and cook local dishes like tinola, kinilaw, sinugba, prito, and pako salad.
Preparation and cooking including ingredients used by the participants were based on the traditional way how it is cooked.
Culminating the three-day training was the food presentation of dishes cooked by the participants.
“What you have acquired flourish it and try to look for your origin because it will be the key to your success, it will make us proud of our place, and somehow our place will be known and take the fame,” Sabayan said.
Sabayan also reminded the participants to be keen on food safety and preparation as it reflect on the dishes that they prepare and serve and on their well-being as the person who cooks.
DOT Regional Director Karina Rosa Tiopes agreed with Sabayan saying that cleanliness is critical to food preparation and how food is being served and presented comes only at second.
“I hope you put to good use this help that the government gave you, and also you should also help you self. Whether your business will be successful or not will depend on you,” Tiopes said. (ROEL T.AMAZONA)

To give significant insights in today’s pandemic-challenged businesses, Southwestern University PHINMA’s B-School once again held Business Next Forum on Wednesday, October 20, 2021. The event gathered business leaders, entrepreneurs, industry practitioners and mentors including those from the academe, students taking up business and those aspiring to build their own business.
SWU PHINMA through its Business School launched Business Next Forum in October 2019 with Accenture Philippines Country Managing Director, Lito Tayag as guest speaker on “Digital Transformation: The “Wise Pivot”.
In this year’s forum, seasoned IT professional Aileen Judan – Jiao, President and Country General Manager of tech giant IBM Philippines, an Information Technology organization that serves domestic and international clients, talked about “Big Data and Analytics for Value Creation and Business Insights”.
In her talk, Jiao emphasized the relevance and impact of Big Data and Analytics on business and people. According to Jiao, “data is the new currency and every company must be a data company”, to remain relevant and competitive under any circumstance.
The ideas presented stimulated the business sector of Cebu, led by the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) to use and exploit data analytics in making data driven decisions for sound business outcomes. In response to IBM’s presentation, Felix Taguiam, President of CCCI, said that the benefits of Big Data & Analytics include strategic Marketing approach, new revenue opportunities, customer personification and improved operational efficacy that will provide competitive advantages to businesses.
Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the only Chamber of Commerce outside Metro Manila with an ISO Certification, is one of SWU PHINMA B-School’s industry partners in transforming business students into competent future business leaders and professionals.
Dr. Chito Salazar, the President of Southwestern University PHINMA reiterated in his closing remarks that Business Next is another platform of the university to bridge the gap between the academe & industry. Salazar said that SWU structured business program to maximize partnerships with the industry like the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and IBM Philippines in exposing students to people who are practitioners in business. This is part of SWU PHINMA B-School’s thrust in guiding students to become the best so they can land in the best possible job and rise to the peak of their profession.
With the timely Business Next topics, Aileen Judan – Jiao commended SWU PHINMA for having the foresight in bringing significant discussions which present real scenarios in the business world including the necessary shifts in the way business is done.
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For program offering related inquiries, contact SWU PHINMA through 0917 835 2881 or 0942 082 0539. Or follow the university’s official Facebook page Southwestern University PHINMA for updates and important announcement. Visit http://swu.phinma.edu.ph for more information about SWU PHINMA and its programs.