Davao Chamber, SM intensifies campaign on eWaste recycling and proper disposal

Recycling and proper disposal of waste materials from electronic devices to include computers, laptops and cellphones is the focus of massive advocacy campaign by SM City Davao and he Davao City Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc.

SM City has set a Waste Market Day (WMD) every first Saturday of each month and this December it will be on December 5 where accredited buyers of waste materials will set up a buying booth at the mall’s parking lot to receive the items from the public.  This has already been institutionalize and Dabawenyos bring to the WMD their recyclable items.

Davao Chamber, IBM Philippines forge agreement to set up tech center

The Davao City Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc. (DCCCII) has forged an agreement with IBM Philippines for the establishment of a technology center that can used for free by small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and other industries to improve their business operations.

DCCCII consultant for the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) committee Andrei Fournier said the technology center will be set up at the DCCCII office along J.P. Laurel where IBM Philippines is donating software worth P1.4 million, while ICT Davao will also be donating three desktop personal computers.

The center could also be used by those who want to develop programs for SMEs for free as most of the basic problem of SMEs is the non-availability of software application and with the center they could develop the appropriate software for their business.

With IBM Philippines starting to move outside of Metro Manila, it has expanded to Davao City lately and their involvement in the project is a welcome development. The technology center will also be launched on November 26.

SM City Davao offers cyberzone

has launched its cyberzone with Philcom as its wi-fi provider.

SM regional manager for Mindanao Debby A. Go, who led the switch on ceremonies for the mall’s wifi access on October 31, 2009 said the move was to provide people in Mindanao with free access to internet.

“It will be SM’s greatest feature as it launched its free access wi-fi zone anywhere inside the mall. SM mall in Cagayan de Oro City is also a wi-fi zone,” Go said.

SM City Davao was SM’s 24th mall which provides free access to internet.

Joanne A. Abrogar, SM Supermall cyberzone operations manager, said five more malls will be equipped with wi-fi access before end of 2009.

She said by the first quarter of 2010, all SM’s 36 malls around the country would have internet access, one of the value-added services within SM malls with Philcom

Go Negosyo Caravan moves to Davao

Known entrepreneurs are coming to Davao City to launch the Go Negosyo Caravan inorder for the city to explore new and exciting entrepreneurial opportunities.

Davao City Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc. (DCCCII) chair Simeon Marfori II said they support the effort of the present administration to promote entrepreneurship and the Go Negosyo is a way of strengthening the Philippine economy.

The forum is a learning experience for aspiring and existing entrepreneurs and students and offer networking venue for them. It will promote and enhance the role of Davao City SME Center in advocating for entreneurship in Davao City.

The Go Negosyo Davao launch will be held on December 3 and 4 at Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas with

Epson sees big business potential in Mindanao market

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Epson Philippines Corporation, manufacturer of computer softwares and hardwares, printers, etc., is optimizing a big market in Mindanao by reaching many areas and tapping corporate businesses with reformulation of their packages and approaches.

 

Ed P. Bonoan, senior general manager and head for sales and marketing division, during its First Epson Davao Convention recently held here, believes that there is a lot of potential in the area, but the company has not maximized its presence.

Bonoan said Mindanao only contributes five percent of its total market share and they would like to increase their growth here by tapping not only individual but also corporations.

He said they introduced a different approach of reaching out

SM Kabalikat sa Kabuhayan Farmers Training in Davao

With the holding of the 15th batch of “SM Kabalikat sa Kabuhayan Farmers Training” in Davao City, SM City allocated 5,000 sq. m. of land area in its property at the back of the mall to train residents  here on technologies that will improve their vegetable farming.

Cristie S. Angeles, project director for outreach program of SM Foundation who led the launching of its 15th batch of “SM Kabalikat sa Kabuhayan Farmers Training” said about 130 farmers are participating in the 2nd batch training, the first was composed of 100 farmers held in a farmlot in Marilog, this city last year.

She said this project is to empower farmers through season-long training on improved and doable agricultural technology conducted by Harbest Agribusiness Corporation (HAC) in cooperation with the Department of Agriculture and the City Agriculture Office.

Actual training started on July 21, 2009 up to October 2009 where the trainees completed 12 sessions and their training was capped with a Harvest Festival

Reducing waste through charcoal briquette production

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR)  is conducting a massive advocacy on reducing waste through its charcoal briquetting program that will at the same provide alternative livelihood and conserve forest resources.

Bonifacio A. Apura, regional executive director of DENR XI said they had introduced the technology to different sectors in the community saying that it generated good results although a lot of work still has to be done.

With the volume of garbage that is being produced and using the technology he said these waste products could be converted into charcoal of better quality.

He said the DENR charcoal is a solid fuel dervied from carbonized leaves, twigs, stem and other farm and urban wastes and compacted into briquettes.  The charcoal is easy to ignite and burns completely in at least 50 minutes.

He said with this charcoal it can lessen wood charcoal consumption of poultry farms, households and other domestic businesses. Every year these charcoal users consume about 5.4 metric cubic meters of fuel wood from the forest and woodlands or an equivalent of 1.35 million metric tons of charcoal.  And for every ton of briquettes produced, about 88 trees are conserved.

Citing comnparative analysis of the type of charcoal required per household

Davao student wins international award on determining sex of Phil Eagles

Completing a research project while still in high school about determining the sex of Philipine Eagles, this 16 year old boy from Davao City competed in the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) and won in the competition.

Jovani Tomale traveled to Reno, Nevada in May to present a computer program that detemine the sex of a Philippine Eagle and took home 2nd Special Award from the American Statistical Association (ASA).

Tomale, now an SM Foundaion scholar and studying accountancy freshman of the Ateneo de Davao University, formulated the computer software during his senior year at Davao City National High School with the supervision of Aristoniel Cabonilas, research consultant and Vladimer Jobayashi of the University of the Philippines-Mindanao.

He said he learned during one of their field trips at the conservation breeding facility in Davao that the Philippine Eagle Foundation (PEF) had a problem determining the sex of Philippine Eagles.

He designed a computer program

PEF calls on the public to help save rare eagles

With the celebration of Philippine Eagle Week (PEW) on June 4 to 9, 2009, the Philippine Eagle Foundation is leading the celebration that calls for stewardshipn and social responsibility inorder to help save rare eagles.

Tatit Quiblat, PEF communications officer said the stability of the forests, as people’s source of food, livelihood and protection from man-made calamities, can be measured in the number of existing Philippine Eagles found in these areas.

She said an eagle needs 7,000 hectares of forest to live but currently the figure is in an alarming rate and we are losing the forest to sustain the eagle and human life.

During the PEW, Quiblat said they will be staging a fun-filled activities for kids of all ages to highlight the importance of Philippine Eagle and wildlife conservation.

She said the celebration is a call for stewardship and social responsibility and aims to educate individuals and communities on how they can help this endangered specie.

New 7-storey hotel opens in Davao

A seven-floor hotel with over a hundred rooms opens early January this year in Davao City.

Uy Ching Siong, owner of My Hotel which is a businessman’s hotel in an interview said the hotel was the former Grand MenSeng Hotel located in one of the city’s major thoroughfares, the San Pedro Street.

With a project cost of over P47 million, he said the renovation was focused more on the rooms and the putting in of new facilities. Nothing was altered with the structures because when they check on the engineering works, it had strong foundation and in good condition.

The invested fund covered the land acquisition, the building renovation and machine and equipment.

He said My Hotel offers affordable rates plus other amenities like free WiFi access in every room, free long distance calls to to the US and Canada, free Globe line to Globe line nationwide call, free Sun to Sun call, free local call, 24 hours security camera, fire alarm system, standby generator, PABX telephone system, color TV with cable in every room, elevator, free newspaper reading, function room and restaurant.

“We wanted to give the best to our clients that is why we also invested on these modern equipment and faciltiies,” he said.

Despite the mushrooming of other small hotels in Davao City, he said they are optimistic of their hotel investment as they bank more of getting more clients with their location just within the heart of the city.

My Hotel is very near the San Pedro Catheral, the City Hall, San Pedro Police Station, banks and major stores.He said occupancy rate is still fluctuating even as he said that they are satisfied with what they have although they need to promote the hotel in either Manila and Cebu.