Daily Archives

August 30, 2026

DCPO launches citywide ‘Oplan Kalinaw III’

by Contributor August 30, 2026

written by Contributor

OPERATIVES of all 18 police stations of the Davao City Police Office (DCPO) arrested 33 lawbreakers and also delivered essential government services to over 700 residents during the simultaneous rollout of “Oplan Kalinaw III” on Friday, Aug. 28.

Led by DCPO director PCOL Peter B. Madria, the anti-criminality and community outreach drive centered its main operations at the Barangay New Valencia gymnasium in Tugbok District, under Police Station 20 (Los Amigos).

Parallel law enforcement operations across the city resulted in 33 operational accomplishments, including the arrest of 13 wanted persons, eight anti-illegal drug busts, six anti-smuggling seizures, five operations against loose firearms, and one illegal gambling arrest.

Meanwhile, the DCPO partnered with the City Government of Davao, the Public Safety and Security Office, the 1003rd Infantry Brigade, Task Force Davao, national agencies, and local business sponsors to provide civil assistance to 700 beneficiaries.

Residents availed themselves of free medical check-ups, legal consultations, National Police Clearance processing, agricultural inputs from the Department of Agriculture, and civil registry services via the Philippine Statistics Authority.

Field units also conducted community education briefings covering anti-bullying awareness, Republic Acts protecting women and children, and fire prevention strategies.

“Effective policing goes beyond maintaining peace and order—it also means being present, responsive, and accessible to the people,” PCol. Madria said in a statement, emphasizing that the dual approach aligns with the National Crime Prevention Program’s key strategies for 2026-2027.

August 30, 2026 0 comments

News

EastMinCom marks 20th: 12 units dismantled, 163 LGUs rebel-free

by Rhoda Grace Saron August 30, 2026

written by Rhoda Grace Saron

THE EASTERN Mindanao Command (EastMinCom) highlighted the complete dismantling of a primary regional insurgent committee and the surrender of hundreds of rebel fighters during its 20th founding anniversary on Friday, Aug. 28.

Presenting the report under “Tatag Sidlakan Mindanao,” EastMinCom commander LTGEN Adonis Ariel G. Orio confirmed the total neutralization of the Northeastern Mindanao Regional Committee (NEMRC)—long considered the main regional command of the insurgent movement in Caraga.

The collapse of the NEMRC allowed Caraga Region to achieve Stable Internal Peace and Security (SIPS) status.

EastMinCom also recorded major security breakthroughs across its joint operational area:

12 insurgent units dismantled through sustained military and inter-agency operations.
590 members and supporters surrendered, returning to mainstream society under government reintegration programs.
461 firearms and 45 anti-personnel mines recovered, significantly degrading the armed capability of remaining threat groups.
84 cities and municipalities sustained Insurgency-Free status, while 79 LGUs achieved SIPS classification, covering 163 local government units now operating in stable, peaceful environments.

Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff Antonio G. Nafarrete, who served as guest of honor alongside Philippine Army Commanding General Donald M. Gumiran, lauded EastMinCom for transforming its areas of jurisdiction from an insurgency hotspot into a booming economic corridor.

“Two decades of neutralizing threats, protecting our people, and securing our territories have forged the Eastern Mindanao Command into an enduring pillar of strength,” Nafarrete said.

Orio emphasized that the command’s achievements extend beyond battlefield metrics to long-term community development.

“The first twenty years were never simply about defeating an insurgency. They were about creating the conditions where communities could prosper, institutions could grow stronger, children could dream beyond conflict, and future generations could inherit an Eastern Mindanao defined not by fear—but by opportunity,” Orio said.

With internal security gains consolidated, EastMinCom is shifting focus toward bolstering territorial defense, disaster response capabilities, and protecting Eastern Mindanao’s maritime borders as it enters its third decade of service.

August 30, 2026 0 comments

Community

Army Chief Joins 10th Infantry Division in Celebrating 20 Years

by Contributor August 30, 2026

written by Contributor

PHILIPPINE Army Commanding General Donald M. Gumiran led the 10th Infantry Division in celebrating its 20th founding anniversary on Saturday, Aug. 29, highlighting two decades of regional stability and troop development across Eastern Mindanao.

The anniversary milestone, held under the theme “Agila@20: Sustaining Peace, Securing Sovereignty, Inspiring Excellence,” gathered senior military leaders, former division commanders, and partner stakeholders at Agila Hall.

Accompanied by Eastern Mindanao Command commander LTGEN Adonis Ariel Orio, Gumiran received full military arrival honors from 10ID commander MGEN Alvin Luzon before joining division troops for the anniversary program.

As part of the milestone event, the Army chief led the blessing and formal opening of the newly constructed Non-Commissioned Officer Barracks and NCO Lounge, aiming to upgrade the living conditions, welfare, and operational morale of enlisted personnel.

Addressing the troops, Luzon praised the contributions of past and present division personnel while urging them to remain professional, adaptable, and focused on maintaining security gains.

“Twenty years is more than a measure of time. It is a legacy built by generations of Agilas who served with courage, integrity, and dedication,” Luzon stated.

Gumiran commended the unit’s sustained record in counter-insurgency, community development, and disaster response, emphasizing that the division’s stability directly underpins national defense.

“A stronger Agila means a stronger Army and a stronger nation,” Gumiran told the assembly, reinforcing his command philosophy focused on stewardship, transformation, and readiness.

The program concluded with the presentation of awards and recognition to exemplary military units, civilian personnel, and regional partner agencies for their contributions to the division’s two-decade history.

August 30, 2026 0 comments

Business Opinion

LINE OF SIGHT | Taxes, Trust, and Transparency

by Contributor August 30, 2026

written by Contributor

DURING a recent firm visit attended by accountancy students, I had the opportunity to sit as one of the panelists and speak with students who were beginning to explore what it means to work in public practice. At one point, I was asked what I considered to be one of the challenging experiences in my profession, particularly in tax. My answer was not about the technical difficulty of interpreting the Tax Code, preparing tax returns, or keeping up with the constant stream of regulations and issuances from the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).

These challenges are, after all, part of the profession and generally come with difficulties. But what I find more difficult is the tension between helping clients understand and comply with their tax obligations while, at the same time, seeing the recurring public concerns over how the taxes collected by the government are eventually used.

As tax practitioners, we tell our clients that compliance matters. We remind them of their obligations, help them navigate complicated rules, and advocate compliance, even when doing so can be costly or inconvenient. Yet there is an uncomfortable question that sometimes follows: How do we sustain that message when taxpayers themselves begin asking whether the government is exercising the same degree of discipline, accountability, and fidelity to the law in managing the money it collects from its people?

That question becomes even more difficult in an environment where allegations of corruption, questions about the use of public funds, and concerns regarding government accountability regularly occupy public conversation, as it often draws public attention to the stewardship of government resources. Regardless of the merits of any allegation or controversy, these situations nonetheless touch on something more than politics, and that is public trust. The funds being discussed are ultimately public funds, and a significant portion of government revenue comes from taxes paid by ordinary Filipinos and businesses.

The issue, therefore, is not simply whether a particular government official or agency has complied with the rules governing public expenditure. Rather, it raises a broader question about the relationship between citizens and the State: What happens to taxpayer confidence when people begin to doubt how the revenue generated from their taxes is managed after it has been collected?

I would say that this is not an argument against taxation; it is an argument for trust in the tax system. Every tax withheld from an employee’s salary, every VAT passed on in consummation of goods and services, and every business tax remitted to the government represents money that citizens and businesses surrender by force of law. Because taxation is compulsory, the government is expected to bear a heightened responsibility to exercise its authority lawfully and accountably.

Taxpayers cannot simply refuse to pay because they disagree with how public resources are spent; they must generally comply first and challenge an assessment through the remedies provided by law. The rule of law, due process, and accountability are therefore essential to maintaining the confidence of those asked to contribute to the public treasury.

The importance of these safeguards becomes most apparent when the State’s authority to collect taxes is weighed against the taxpayer’s right to due process. Recent jurisprudence illustrates how the courts preserve this balance by requiring the government to exercise its taxing power within the limits imposed by law.

The Supreme Court’s (SC) decision in Commissioner of Internal Revenue v. Robinsons Convenience Stores, Inc., G.R. No. 259968, 27 August 2025, involved the government’s effort to collect a tax assessment while the taxpayer challenged its validity. By suspending the collection proceedings, the Court recognized the need to protect taxpayer rights and affirmed that the government’s power to collect is not unlimited. Although the case may appear to concern technical issues, such as the suspension of tax collection, the validity of issuance of a Warrant of Distraint and/or Levy, and the dispensation of the bond requirement, its broader significance is clear, that the State, too, is bound by law.

A second recent decision provides another perspective on the importance of fairness and predictability in taxation. In Melco Resorts Leisure (PHP) Corporation v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue, G.R. No. 271261, 02 April 2025, the SC clarified the reckoning point for the two-year period for claiming a refund of erroneously paid VAT. Although the taxpayer ultimately did not obtain the refund because the Court found that the payment was not actually erroneous or illegal, the taxpayer, being engaged in VAT-exempt transactions, cannot claim a refund of input VAT, because such input VAT simply becomes part of the cost of its purchases.

The Court held that the period should be counted from the date the taxpayer actually paid the VAT to the BIR, rather than from the date the taxpayer’s suppliers remitted the tax. The decision is noteworthy because the Court rejected an interpretation that would have effectively required the taxpayer to establish the remittance of VAT by hundreds of suppliers and produce a substantial number of their tax returns, which is almost impossible to do. In determining the proper reckoning point, the Court considered principles of substantial justice, equity, and fair play.

For businesses, particularly micro, small, and even medium enterprises, this kind of jurisprudence matters beyond the legal technicalities. A taxpayer needs to know not only how much tax is due, but also what rights and remedies are available when an error occurs. The predictability of tax rules affects business decisions, cash flow, and financial planning. A tax system can become difficult to trust when taxpayers feel that they are being asked to carry burdens that the law does not actually impose upon them.

This brings us back to taxpayer confidence. When the government applies tax laws fairly and consistently, compliance is more likely to be seen as a civic duty. When the system appears arbitrary or burdensome, trust erodes and compliance rests more on fear of penalties than confidence in the system. The credibility of taxation therefore depends on the government exercising its authority within constitutional and legal safeguards.

For those of us in public practice, this is particularly important. Tax practitioners occupy a unique position between taxpayers and the government. We help clients understand rules that can sometimes be complicated, prepare them for compliance requirements, correct mistakes, and navigate disputes with tax authorities. In doing so, we become part of the mechanism through which the State encourages voluntary compliance. We tell clients that taxes are not optional and that ignorance of the law is not a defense. We advise them to keep proper records, reconcile any discrepancies, meet prescribed filing deadlines, issue appropriate documents as mandated in the Tax Code, as amended, and report their transactions accurately. But there is a limit to what technical tax advice can accomplish if the larger system loses the confidence of the people it is asking to comply with.

Recent controversies involving public funds remind us why trust matters in the first place. Public discussions about confidential funds, government expenditures, and alleged irregularities can easily become partisan. The SC’s recent tax decisions offer an important reminder that the rule of law applies on both sides of the fiscal equation. The taxpayer must pay what the law requires, but the government must collect only what the law permits. The taxpayer must comply with legitimate requirements, but the government must respect the rights and remedies that the law gives to taxpayers. Once taxes have been collected, the public has every reason to expect that those funds will be used, accounted for, and protected according to law.

Perhaps, a key challenge for tax practitioners is not only helping taxpayers comply, but also preserving their confidence in the system. Sustainable compliance depends not on fear and penalties alone, but on fair rules, accessible remedies, and accountable institutions.

Taxes are the lifeblood of government, but trust may be the lifeblood of tax compliance. The first can be collected through law. The second has to be earned.

Trust, once lost, is far more difficult to collect than taxes.

Charisse is a manager in the Tax Advisory & Compliance Practice Area of P&A Grant Thornton. One of the leading audit, tax, advisory, and outsourcing firms in the Philippines, P&A Grant Thornton is composed of 29 Partners and 1,500 staff members. We’d like to hear from you! Connect with us on LinkedIn and like us on Facebook: P&A Grant Thornton and email your comments to business.development@ph.gt.com. For more information, visit our website: www.grantthornton.com.ph.

August 30, 2026 0 comments

Business

Security Bank sharpens focus on wealth, entrepreneurs, and corporates to drive next growth phase

by Contributor August 30, 2026

written by Contributor

MAKATI CITY, Philippines – Security Bank Corporation unveiled a focused three-year strategy to capture the next wave of growth in Philippine banking. The Bank will concentrate on wealth management, entrepreneur banking, and corporate and institutional banking, leveraging its existing strengths where it believes it can compete from that position of strength.

Presented at Investor Day 2026, the strategy comes as Security Bank celebrates its 75th anniversary and builds on strong first-half momentum. The Bank reported net income of PHP6.1 billion, revenues of PHP34.9 billion, and pre-provision operating profit of PHP15.4 billion for the period.

“As we mark our 75th year, we’re looking ahead with clarity and confidence,” said Victor Lee, President and Chief Executive Officer of Security Bank. “We know where the opportunities are. We know the strengths we bring to them. Our direction is clear. The momentum we are seeing today gives us confidence in the road ahead.”

At the heart of the strategy are three growth businesses. Through wealth management, Security Bank will deepen relationships with affluent and emerging affluent clients. Through entrepreneur banking, it aims to become the bank of choice for business owners. In corporate and institutional banking, it will pursue opportunities linked to major projects, business ecosystems, and growing cross-border activity.

Security Bank will support businesses by strengthening transaction banking, with the ambition of becoming the preferred operating bank for more clients. A larger role in clients’ payments, collections, cash management, and daily financial activities will help the Bank build deeper relationships and reinforce its deposit franchise.

A key advantage is Security Bank’s strategic partnership with MUFG Bank, which combines the Bank’s knowledge of the Philippine market with MUFG’s global network, sector expertise, and cross-border capabilities. Building on the success of its Japan Desk, the Bank sees further opportunities to serve multinational companies and support investment and business flows across key international corridors.

Security Bank will also participate in broader consumer growth through an ecosystem that includes Home Credit, Mitsubishi Motors Finance, and SB Finance. These businesses extend the Bank’s reach into consumer and mobility financing while creating opportunities beyond the parent bank.

“We’re not trying to be everything to everyone,” Lee said. “We’re deliberate about where we grow. We will focus on areas where we believe we can build a meaningful advantage over time. We know why we can win. And we intend to earn that right every day.”

August 30, 2026 0 comments

Opinion

Beyond Metro Manila: Building a Philippines Where Opportunity Travels

by Contributor August 30, 2026

written by Contributor

Let us begin with a simple observation.

Metro Manila has been extraordinarily successful in attracting economic activity.

It has only about one-sixth of the country’s population, yet it generates roughly one-third of national economic output.

There is a reason for this concentration.

Businesses locate where markets, skilled workers, infrastructure, financial institutions, government agencies, and other businesses are already concentrated.

Success attracts success.

But concentration also has a limit.

When too many people and too many economic activities are concentrated in one metropolitan area, the costs begin to rise.

Traffic becomes more severe.

Housing becomes more expensive.

Travel times become longer.

Land becomes scarce.

Infrastructure comes under pressure.

Air quality suffers.

Families spend hours commuting.

Young people find that even a decent salary may not go very far once housing and transportation costs are taken into account.

The same concentration that once generated efficiency can eventually create congestion, exclusion, and declining quality of life.

This is not an argument against Metro Manila.

It is an argument for developing the rest of the Philippines strongly enough that Metro Manila does not have to carry the entire country.

Behind Every Migration Number is a Family

We often discuss migration in terms of numbers.

But there is a human story behind every number.

Think again of that provincial family.

The daughter may leave for Manila because she wants a professional career.

The son may move to Cebu because there is no comparable job near home.

Perhaps another relative goes overseas.

The parents remain in their hometown.

At first, everyone may regard the migration as a success.

And often it is.

But there can also be a less visible cost.

Parents grow older without their children nearby.

Grandparents may help raise grandchildren.

Family celebrations become occasions that require expensive travel.

A mother may spend years away from her children.

A young person may achieve economic success but feel increasingly disconnected from the community where he or she grew up.

These are not arguments against mobility.

They are reminders that economic geography affects family life.

Migration is Not the Problem; Compelled Migration is

There is nothing wrong with a young Filipino choosing to move to Manila, Cebu, or another country because an opportunity there is better.

Mobility is part of a dynamic economy.

The problem arises when a young person feels that leaving home is the only way to build a decent future.

Development should expand choices, not narrow them.

A young Filipino should be able to say:

“I want to work in Manila.”

But he or she should also be able to say:

“I want to build my career in Cebu.”

Or:

“I want to return to Davao.”

Or:

“I want to establish my business in Iloilo.”

Or:

“I want to work in Clark.”

Or even:

“I want to remain in my province and turn my farm into a modern business.”

That is the real objective of balanced regional development.

Not preventing migration, but creating more choices.

We Should Not Build Five More Manilas

Balanced regional development does not mean trying to reproduce Metro Manila everywhere.

That would be neither possible nor desirable.

The Philippines is too diverse.

Every region has different natural resources, skills, traditions, geography, and economic strengths.

Cebu does not need to become Manila.

Davao does not need to become Cebu.

Iloilo does not need to imitate Davao.

Clark does not need to reproduce the capital.

Cagayan de Oro should develop around its own strengths.

The objective should be to create strong regional economic ecosystems that build upon local advantages.

Cebu: A Regional Economic Engine

Cebu is perhaps the clearest demonstration that economic dynamism does not have to be concentrated in Metro Manila.

It already has significant business services, manufacturing, tourism, education, logistics and entrepreneurship.

Its central location gives it an important role in connecting the Visayas and parts of Mindanao with domestic and international markets.

But Cebu’s importance should go beyond Cebu City itself.

A stronger Cebu economy can create markets for surrounding provinces.

Farmers can supply hotels, restaurants and food processors.

Manufacturers can purchase from regional suppliers.

Universities can produce talent for businesses throughout the Visayas.

Tourism can generate opportunities in transportation, food processing, handicrafts and services.

The objective is therefore not simply a prosperous Cebu.

It is a prosperous Cebu that pulls neighboring communities into a larger economic network.

Davao: Unlocking the Potential of Mindanao

Davao offers a different opportunity.

Mindanao is an enormous economic space with agriculture, fisheries, minerals, tourism and a large population.

Davao can become a stronger gateway to this wider economy.

Agriculture and manufacturing can reinforce one another.

Instead of exporting agricultural commodities in relatively raw form, more processing can take place closer to where products are grown.

Imagine a farmer producing cacao, coffee, bananas, coconut, or other crops.

If processing, packaging, cold storage, logistics, and marketing take place nearby, more value remains in the region.

More importantly, young people can find jobs in the wider agricultural value chain without having to leave Mindanao.

The farmer becomes part of modern industry rather than remaining outside it.

Clark: A Growth Engine Beyond the Capital

Clark provides another important opportunity.

Its infrastructure, airport, location and proximity to Central Luzon give it the potential to become a major centre for manufacturing, logistics, aviation-related industries, tourism, business services and technology.

But its greatest significance may lie in what surrounds it.

Clark can become the anchor of a wider Central Luzon economic corridor, creating opportunities for towns and provinces beyond the immediate metropolitan area.

This is exactly the kind of development that can reduce pressure on Metro Manila while creating opportunities closer to millions of Filipinos.

Iloilo: A Stronger Western Visayas Economy

Iloilo has the potential to combine education, healthcare, tourism, agribusiness, business services and emerging technology-related activities.

Its development should therefore be viewed not simply as the growth of one city but as the strengthening of a wider Western Visayas economy.

That requires better connections with neighbouring provinces and islands.

A strong regional centre should become a source of markets, skills, healthcare, finance and services for surrounding communities.

Cagayan de Oro: Connecting Agriculture and Industry

Cagayan de Oro can play a similar role in Northern Mindanao.

Its geographical position makes it an important commercial, logistics and agro-industrial centre.

This is particularly significant because agriculture and manufacturing need to become more closely connected.

A farmer should not have to send a crop hundreds of kilometres before it can be processed.

The surrounding economy should provide storage, processing, packaging, transportation, finance and marketing.

That is how a regional city can become a bridge between the farm and the wider economy.

From Cities to Regional Economic Corridors

This leads to an important change in how we should think about regional development.

We should stop thinking only about individual cities.

We should think about regional economic corridors.

A strong regional city should be connected to:

surrounding municipalities;
agricultural communities;
industrial areas;
universities;
ports;
airports;
tourism destinations;
logistics centres;
and smaller towns.

The objective is to allow economic activity to spread.

The city becomes the anchor.

The region becomes the beneficiary.

The Farmer Must Be Part of Development

Balanced regional development cannot mean building modern cities while leaving rural communities behind.

Consider the Filipino farmer.

A farmer may produce mangoes, coconut, cacao, coffee, bananas, vegetables, or rice.

But where is most of the value created?

Too often, substantial value is created after the product leaves the farm.

This is where regional development can make a fundamental difference.

Food processing can be located closer to farms.

Cold storage can reduce wastage.

Packaging can be developed locally.

Digital platforms can connect farmers with markets.

Financial services can reach rural entrepreneurs.

Transport can become more efficient.

Agricultural research can improve productivity.

In this way, the farmer becomes part of a larger regional economic ecosystem.

The goal is not simply to produce more agricultural commodities. It is to create more value around the farmer.

Women Should Not Have to Leave Home to Find Opportunity

Regional development also has a very personal dimension for Filipino women.

A young woman should not have to leave her province simply because the only meaningful employment opportunities available to her are concentrated in a distant city.

Regional economies should offer opportunities in education, healthcare, manufacturing, tourism, digital services, entrepreneurship and professional work.

For a mother, a job closer to home can mean much more than a salary.

It can mean being able to see her children every evening.

It can mean caring for ageing parents.

It can mean participating more fully in family life.

Regional development is therefore also about the dignity and choices of women.

The Filipino Child Should Not Have to Leave Home to Dream

There is an even deeper dimension.

A child growing up in a provincial town should be able to dream as big as a child growing up in Metro Manila.

Perhaps she wants to become a doctor.

Perhaps he wants to become an engineer.

Another child may want to become a teacher, scientist, entrepreneur, farmer, designer or technology professional.

Those dreams should not depend entirely on whether the family can afford to send the child to Manila.

We cannot put a world-class university and a specialised hospital in every municipality.

But every major region should have strong educational and healthcare institutions capable of supporting its people and attracting talent.

A child should be able to grow up knowing that geography does not determine the size of his or her dreams.

Healthcare is Part of Economic Development

Healthcare is often discussed separately from economic development.

In the development parlance, we can afford to do that.

For a senior citizen living in a provincial town, regional inequality may have a very practical meaning: travelling several hours, sometimes to another island, simply to see a specialist.

For a family with a sick child, distance can become frightening.

For a company considering investment in a regional city, the availability of good healthcare for employees and their families is an important consideration.

Strong regional hospitals therefore serve two purposes.

They improve quality of life.

And they make regional economies more attractive.

Healthcare is economic infrastructure.

Education Must Follow Economic Opportunity

We also need to align education and regional economic strategy.

A manufacturing cluster needs technicians and engineers.

A tourism centre needs hospitality professionals.

An agricultural region needs food technologists and supply-chain specialists.

A technology hub needs digital and engineering talent.

A logistics centre needs skilled workers.

One should therefore ask a simple question in every major region:

What kind of economy the country is trying to build, and what skills will that economy require?

Then education and training should be designed accordingly.

A young person should not graduate and discover that the local economy has no use for the skills he or she has acquired.

Metro Manila Will Benefit, Too

Balanced regional development should never be presented as a war between Metro Manila and the provinces.

Metro Manila has legitimate economic strengths.

It will remain the country’s principal centre for finance, corporate headquarters, government, specialised healthcare, higher education and many high-value services.

A stronger regional economy would actually make Metro Manila more sustainable.

If more jobs exist elsewhere, migration pressure can moderate.

Housing pressure can ease.

Traffic can become more manageable.

Businesses will have more location choices.

Infrastructure can be used more efficiently.

A stronger Philippines does not require a weaker Metro Manila.

It requires less dependence on Metro Manila.

Connectivity is the Foundation

Regional development cannot succeed if regions remain poorly connected.

The country needs connectivity in several forms.

Physical connectivity: roads, bridges, ports, airports and rail where economically justified.

Digital connectivity: reliable, affordable high-speed internet.

Financial connectivity: banks, digital finance and credit for regional businesses.

Knowledge connectivity: universities, research institutions and industry networks.

Market connectivity: efficient links between producers and consumers.

The objective is to make distance less economically damaging.

We Must Decentralize Opportunity, Not Just Government Offices

Moving government offices outside Metro Manila can help.

But that is not regional economic transformation.

We need to decentralise economic opportunity.

That means encouraging businesses to invest outside the capital.

It means providing competitive power and infrastructure.

It means developing industrial and business parks.

It means supporting regional entrepreneurs.

It means creating strong universities and hospitals.

It means making regional cities attractive places for young professionals to live.

A young engineer should be able to find an exciting career in Cebu or Clark.

A young entrepreneur should be able to build a business in Davao or Iloilo.

A young professional should be able to return to Cagayan de Oro without feeling that returning home means sacrificing his or her future.

The Youth Question

This may ultimately be the most important reason for balanced regional development.

The Philippines has a large and ambitious young population.

Young Filipinos want good careers.

They want modern lifestyles.

They want good schools for their children.

They want safe communities.

They want healthcare.

They want decent housing.

They want opportunities.

If those opportunities exist primarily in Metro Manila—or abroad—one should not be surprised when young people leave their provinces.

But if regional economies offer good jobs, good education, healthcare, connectivity and a reasonable quality of life, many young Filipinos may choose to stay.

Some will still leave.

That is natural.

The objective is not to stop them.

It is to give them a choice.

A New Regional Development Strategy

I would suggest five broad priorities.

First: Build regional economic anchors

Strengthen Cebu, Davao, Clark, Iloilo and Cagayan de Oro, while identifying other cities with comparable potential.

Second: Connect these anchors to their surrounding regions

A regional city should become a market and service centre for neighbouring provinces and communities.

Third: Build upon local strengths

Agribusiness where agriculture is strong.

Manufacturing where infrastructure and skills permit.

Tourism where natural and cultural assets provide an advantage.

Digital services where connectivity and talent exist.

Logistics where geography creates an opportunity.

Fourth: Bring education and healthcare closer to people

Strong regional universities, technical institutions and hospitals are essential economic infrastructure.

Fifth: Make regional investment genuinely competitive

Reliable electricity, efficient infrastructure, digital connectivity, access to finance and predictable regulation should not be privileges available only in Metro Manila.

A Philippines of Many Growth Engines

Perhaps the most important change required is a change in mindset.

For decades, people often thought of Metro Manila as the centre and the rest of the Philippines as the periphery.

On a more serious reflection, one will find that such a model has reached its limits.

The Philippines should instead think of itself as a network of regional growth engines.

Metro Manila can remain one.

Cebu can be another.

Davao can be another.

Clark can be another.

Iloilo can be another.

Cagayan de Oro can be another.

And there can be many more.

These centres should not compete destructively with one another.

They should complement one another.

Together they can create a more diversified, resilient and inclusive national economy.

The Measure of Development is Not Where People Move—But Why

There is a simple way of thinking about this entire issue.

Every year, many Filipinos move towards Metro Manila.

We should not ask only:

How many people are moving?

We should ask:

Why are they moving?

Are they moving because they have discovered an exciting opportunity?

Or because their own region did not provide one?

That distinction matters enormously.

A successful country does not necessarily have little migration.

It has more choices.

A young Filipino should be free to move.

But he or she should also be free to stay.

That is what development should ultimately achieve.

The freedom to choose.

Let Opportunity Travel

At the heart of regional development is a very simple aspiration.

A Filipino family should be able to choose where it wants to live.

A young woman should be able to build her career without automatically leaving her hometown.

A young man should be able to find productive work without believing that Manila—or another country—is his only hope.

A farmer should be able to see a future for his children in the community where they were born.

A mother should not have to choose between employment and staying close to her children.

An elderly parent should be able to receive good healthcare without travelling hundreds of kilometres.

And a child growing up outside Metro Manila should know that his or her dreams are not geographically limited.

This is not about keeping people in their hometowns.

People must remain free to move wherever opportunity takes them.

It is about giving them more than one choice.

The country can build strong regional economies.

The country can develop manufacturing clusters.

The country can process agricultural products closer to farms.

The country can establish better universities and hospitals outside Metro Manila.

The country can improve connectivity.

The country can support regional entrepreneurs.

The country can attract investment to the regions.

The country can give young Filipinos reasons to build their careers closer to home.

The objective is not to diminish Metro Manila.

It is to relieve Metro Manila of the impossible responsibility of carrying the aspirations of an entire nation.

A more balanced Philippines would ultimately make Manila stronger, not weaker.

It would give Cebu greater opportunities.

It would unlock Mindanao’s enormous potential.

It would strengthen Central Luzon.

It would energise the Visayas.

It would create new possibilities for farmers, entrepreneurs and workers in the provinces.

And, most importantly, it would give Filipino families something that development statistics cannot fully capture:

the freedom to choose where they want to live, work, raise their children and grow old.

That, in the end, is what balanced regional development should mean.

Not simply moving GDP from one place to another.

Not simply building another airport, highway or economic zone.

But bringing opportunity closer to people.

A young Filipino girl should not have to leave her hometown simply to find a good career.

A young Filipino man should not have to leave his province because there is no decent work there.

A farmer should not have to watch his children leave because agriculture offers no future.

A mother should not have to choose between employment and family.

A senior citizen should not have to leave home to obtain quality healthcare.

And a Filipino child should know that growing up in a province does not mean growing up with smaller dreams.

The Philippines does not need one great economic centre.

It needs many strong centres, connected to one another and to the communities around them.

The future the Filipino citizens and the Filipino nation would like to see is a Philippines where opportunity is no longer concentrated in one metropolitan area, but flows across regions, cities, towns, islands and communities.

Let all concerned get together to build a Philippines where people can move because they want to—not because they have to.

That is not merely regional development.

It is inclusive national development.

August 30, 2026 0 comments

Science & Technology Special Reports

Hospital for Farms: AI-powered agritech app transforming farming from guesswork to precision

by Nova Mae Francas August 30, 2026

written by Nova Mae Francas

MARINA Tan-Du kneels beside one of her nearly 1000 fruit-bearing trees in Davao City, waiting as she pushes a soil probe into the ground.

Seven minutes later, the tool prints a slip with a list of recommendations that informs her at a glance what years of guesswork never could: exactly what her soil needs and what it does not.

“I already have almost 1,000 fruit-bearing trees, but I have been doing application through guessing, kung mag-green, kung mag-yellow (if it turns green, if it turns yellow),” Marina admitted she has been deciding by feel and by the color of the leaves.

“Years of investment, and the soil had nothing to show for it,” she stressed.

Marina is among the farmers whose fertilizer application was assumption-based and applied by habit, through guesswork.

The stakes are national. The Philippines’ banana industry alone is a billion-dollar industry, with an export value of 1.68 billion USD in 2025 according to the Philippine Statistics Authority. Yet fewer than one in 200 Filipino farmers has ever had soil tested- a gap that GreenVisions PH’s innovation, AI-Driven Farm Management, is trying to close with a 7-minute soil diagnostic device that works like a “hospital for farms”: diagnose, treat, monitor.

GreenVisions PH is a social enterprise led by founder and CEO Engr. Lorilyn Pablo Daquioag is bringing AI-powered farm management, soil testing, and monitoring systems for farmers to make diagnostic-based decisions.

Farming by guesswork is costly, inefficient

According to GreenVisions PH research, about 99.5% of Philippine farmers apply fertilizer on guesswork and without soil data.

In an industry as large as Philippine banana production, worth close to ₱68 billion annually, around 65 percent of farmers’ income disappears into farm management costs.

“Much of it is fertilizer wasted, applied by feel rather than by fact,” Daquioag said in an exclusive Zoom interview with TIMES.

The challenge, she stressed, is that farmers use these inputs without diagnosis of what the soil actually needs.

Alarmingly, only 0.05% of farmers conduct soil testing, which is roughly one in every 200 farmers.

GreenVisions Ph’s data from the farms it has assessed shows that excessive fertilizer use is present on about 95% of the farms.

The reason is simple: farmers have to wait for weeks or months before the results are out. But they cannot wait. One day late is one harvest season compromised.

“They cannot use this to decide what they will do in their farm, because the data comes out late. That’s why they do guesswork,” she stressed.

Marina also accounted that waiting for soil testing results is “tedious” as it takes 3–6 months.

“Yun ang hindi ko ginawa, kasi parang it’s very tedious for me. I have to collect the sample of soil, ipa-uga, dalhin pa nako sa Agdao [Davao City] sa Department of Agriculture, and it will take three to six months to get the result, matagal. So, in short, hindi ko ‘yun nagawa,” Marina stressed.

The Department of Agriculture-Regional Soils Laboratory XI, in Agdao, Davao City, requires soil samples for analysis to be air-dried, pounded using a mallet or large stone, and sieved using a plastic net, garden net, or a fish net.

Farmers are also required to quarter the air-dried sample, safely pack it in a paper bag, and properly label it before submission.

Hospital for farms: Precision, sustainable farming

For Daquioag, smart farm management is knowing what it means to be sick, and what it means to be treated properly.

“A plant is just like a human when it gets sick. Isn’t the proper way to get checked?” Daquioag said.

A sick plant, she explained, is treated the same haphazard way many Filipinos once treated illness: first assumption, then remedy.

A yellowing leaf gets diagnosed as a nutrient problem the way an unexplained fever might once have been blamed on superstitious beliefs, prompting a folk cure instead of an actual checkup.

*GreenVisions PH conducting soil testing and analysis in partner farms (Photo: GreenVisions PH)*

That’s the logic behind GreenVisions PH’s three-part system, which it calls “hospital for farms.”

Rather than waiting for weeks or months for lab results, farmers can use the device directly in their field, place it in their soil, and receive recommendations in minutes.

At its center is a device called AI- Driven Farm Management Module (AID-FMM), which analyzes soil composition using sensors to measure key soil indicators: nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, temperature, moisture, and pH.

Daquioag said the device delivers recommendations in less than a minute, while the full reading process takes seven minutes.

The results are then immediately printed in an easy-to-understand report, allowing farmers to make smarter decisions directly in the field, guiding farmers exactly what to apply, how much, and how frequently.

“The device provides automatic recommendations on the specific soil, and also what the crops are, so it is already there: what are the crops, what is the stage, are they vegetative and fruiting, and the status of the crops,” Daquioag stressed.

*Soil test results from the* *AI- Driven Farm Management Module (AID-FMM) are printed and imported to the AIMS Platform (Photo: GreenVisions PH)*

The metrics are based on Bureau of Soil and Water Management, Philippine soil-testing references, Food and Agriculture Organization, crop-specific agronomy and nutrient requirements, and other relevant scientific resources, but are continuously refined through their pilot tests and field validation.

Data-based treatments for the soil

For Daquiaog, farming smarter is through a combination of precision farming and data-backed treatment with microbial technology.

GreenVisions PH also incorporates two microbial treatments: e-CAS and Tricho+, beneficial bacteria and fungi designed to restore soil biology.

Enhanced Compost Activator Solution, or e-CAS, contains beneficial microorganisms that promote soil quality, eliminate bad odor, improve crop nutrient absorption, and boost crop immunity and quality.

While Tricho+ or Trichoderma is a beneficial soil fungus that controls plant diseases and promotes healthy plant growth by enhancing root development and soil fertility.

Daquioag said this helps crops actually absorb the nutrients already present in the ground and reduces chemical use, rather than simply adding more fertilizer on top.

“Based on our two years’ pilot, we improve not only the microbial presence, but also the crops, but also the pH. Usually, when we enter, 4.3, after 3 months, naging 5.8 na,” she said.

*Banana trees of Happy Bananas Agro Enterprise in Tulunan, Cotabato comparison after two months of e-CAS and Tricho+ application (Photo: GreenVisions PH)*

The e-CAS and Tricho+ help lower farm costs by up to P4.1 million saved annually on a 20-hectare banana farm.

Daquioag emphasized a 97% recovery from Panama disease, 52% larger and healthier yields, and 25% faster growth, figures from the company’s own two-year pilot.

Fertilizer use also reduced by at least 30% during their pilot year.

GreenVisions PH also saw the need for a monitoring platform, as large farms or even small-scale farms record their farm data manually, on a calendar, if at all. While this works, she said that it leads to missing records and delayed reporting.

Their monitoring platform, Agricultural Intelligence & Monitoring System (AIMS), tracks farm conditions on an ongoing basis through real-time monitoring and operations tools.

AIMS enables data-driven farm management, allowing farms to easily generate and record data from field activities to input applications, providing clear insights for smarter decision-making.

“So we work as a hospital for farms in that approach,” Daquioag said. “We diagnose, we treat, and we provide monitoring.”

What the data actually showed: cost savings for farmers, balanced soil nutrients

The diagnosis, in case after case, revealed the same pattern: farmers weren’t necessarily under-fertilizing or over-fertilizing. They were often fertilizing blind.

Daquioag described the case of banana farmers in the Green Visions PH area who had been applying a routine mix of 16-16-16, potassium, urea, and a branded fertilizer at a cost of roughly ₱7,000 per application.

When GreenVisions tested the soil, it came back highly acidic, with fertilizer residue already built up around the roots. The plants weren’t absorbing the nutrients because the soil chemistry wouldn’t allow it.

“Ngano dili mudako ang iyahang bunga sa saging, because acidic na ang soil and then walay proper absorption sa fertilizer na iyahang gina-apply (Why isn’t the banana fruit growing larger? It is because the soil has become acidic, preventing proper absorption of the fertilizer being applied),” Daquioag said.

Once the data showed the excess, the farmer cut back to only the fertilizer his soil actually needed, and his cost dropped from ₱7,000 to about ₱2,400 per application.

For Marina’s case, her soil wasn’t acidic in the same way, but simply wasn’t releasing the nutrients it already held.

“My plant only needs N, the nitrogen. But I was applying the three, the NPK, the phosphorus and potassium, which hindi pala kailangan pala ng aking tanim. Kasi andoon na pala sya, available pala sa lupa,” Marina said.

GreenVisions recommended she stop applying additional NPK fertilizer altogether and instead apply the microbial treatments, E-CAST and Trichoderma, to unlock what was already in the ground.

“I applied what they instructed: the ICAS, the Trichoderma, the Myco, and then also put in only nitrogen,” Marina said.

*Comparison of Marina Tan-Du’s plant after data-based application (Photo: GreenVisions PH)*

Within a month, her second soil reading came back markedly different; it was found that the soil does not need phosphorus and potassium.

By her rough estimate, her fertilizer cost per hectare fell from around ₱3,000 to ₱1,000.

What convinced her wasn’t the savings alone, but how her crops responded. Marina reported new growth, new leaves, visible within weeks of the first application.

For a durian farm that won’t bear fruit for another five years, that early flush of growth is, for now, her evidence that the approach is working.

From space to soils

Daquioag’s path to founding Green Visions PH began nowhere near a farm.

She holds a master’s degree in electrical engineering and was a member of the pioneering team of scholars under the STeP-UP graduate track at the University of the Philippines Diliman Electrical and Electronics Engineering Institute, selected to help develop the country’s first locally built nanosatellites in 2019: the Maya-3 and Maya-4, which launched to the International Space Station (ISS) on August 29, 2021.

Maya-3 and Maya-4 are the first Philippine university-built satellites, as the previous four: Diwata-1 and Diwata-2 launched in March 2016 and October 2018, were developed and built in Japan in partnership with Tohoku and Hokkaido University.

Meanwhile, the smaller nanosatellites Maya-1 and Maya-2 launched in June 2018 and February 2021, were developed in Japan in partnership with the Kyushu Institute of Technology.

The idea for what eventually became GreenVisions PH started earlier, in 2018, when she entered a competition to design a mobile app for sustainable agriculture, which was a tool to help farmers treat nutrient deficiencies without synthetic chemicals.

Researching the app, she came across a statistic that changed her direction entirely: 52 percent of the Philippines’ biodegradable waste never gets converted into usable fertilizer.

“While digging, I saw that there’s no engineer really solving the root cause. They only make, like, technology on a surface level, to detect this, to record this, to monitor this, but there’s no root cause that they are solving,” she said.

That realization led to her first venture, Waste for Good in 2021, which focused on converting biodegradable waste into bio-fertilizer. But after deploying early versions of the product to urban households and small gardens, she found limited traction.

The pivot toward banana farmers was when she saw the method of planting bananas was “terribly harsh.”

She recalled wanting to create a technology like remote sensing, satellite mapping, and imaging. However, while talking to the farmers, she realized that’s not what they need, but precision soil testing.

“Soil testing is the most important thing before you plant. I checked current technologies in the Philippines, and there really was no technology for precision or guidance,” she said, noting that while there may be, it was “unreliable and tedious.”

*Lorilyn Daquioag during a field work in one of the partner farms (Photo: GreenVisions PH)*

Eventually, precision soil diagnostics followed with the research and development into the soil-testing technology beginning in 2024, with the current brand GreenVisions PH.

Farming, she says, was never far from her own background, as born to a family of farmers, but her inspiration to do engineering in agriculture is her son.

“I want to create innovations aligned with environmental sustainability, particularly sustainable agriculture. So, in GreenVisions, we focused on creating innovations for precision and sustainable agriculture while empowering communities, protecting our planet,” she said.

From starting up with P2,000, and with the help of UP Diliman and the Department of Science and Technology Technology Application and Promotion Institute (DOST- TAPI).

In its commercialization journey, Green Visions PH was supported by DOST-TAPI’s Expanded Venture Financing Program (EVFP) and promotion and marketing through its Science and Technology Promotion for International Contest and Exhibit (SPICE) Program.

*Lorilyn Daquioag at the GITEX Asia AI 2026 in Singapore (Photo: GreenVisions PH)*

The program paved the way for its participation in GITEX AI Asia 2026, where Daquioag represented Filipino women in technology on an international stage.

Her team is now composed of people from diverse fields, including engineering, microbiology, and agriculture, and currently has its own engineering lab, a microbiology lab, a 1-hectare demonstration farm in North Cotabato, and a satellite office in Davao.

As of 2026, they reached over 9,000 communities nationwide, promoting climate action, sustainable agriculture, and precision farming.

Government answer to the same problem

The Department of Agriculture recognized that one of the main challenges the farmers face is guidance on fertilizer use management.

As a response, the department launched the Bureau of Soils and Water Management (DA-BSWM) FertMap (Fertilizer Map) just last June 2026.

FertMap works off a georeferenced map of the country where farmers filter by province, municipality, and barangay to find existing soil test records in their area, then view pH, nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium readings tied to that plot.

From there, they select their target crop along with variety, maturity, planting date, and landscape type, and the system generates a fertilizer schedule: the right type, right amount, right timing.

Reports can be downloaded as PDFs, and users can filter further by soil pH or nutrient parameters to narrow results.

By selecting the farm location, farmers can view the available soil data and generate fertilizer recommendations based on the crop they intend to grow.

While GreenVisions PH offers an on-site 7-minute device, the FertMap relies on existing lab records through combined soil analysis results from BSWM soil laboratories and mobile soil laboratories under the National Soil Health Program (NSHP), which means its usefulness in a given area still depends on whether that area already has soil data on file.

To note, the DA-BSWM launched the first-ever operation of the Mobile Soil Laboratory (MSL) just last January 2025, where Tarlac province was the pioneering site and the first to experience the state-of-the-art, 10-wheeler truck capable of analyzing 42 soil parameters.

Farming with science and technology, AI

For Daquioag, the harder problem was never the science and technology but the trust in AI, so adaptation requires time and patience.

Farmers, she said, are wary, and AI is not a word that means much to someone deciding whether to spend money on fertilizer or farming in general.

“Farmers don’t care about AI, or about the technology, or whatsoever features. They care how you can help them to save, how you can help them grow their crops healthier,” she said.

GreenVisions PH doesn’t lead with the pitch of AI, but is grounded in the truth of the soil. The enterprise conducts gatherings called Kapehan and Tsokolate sessions rather than direct sales presentations.

*Lorilyn Daquioag speaks before a group of farmers during one of the Kapehan and Tsokolate sessions (Photo: GreenVisions PH)*

The sessions are run in partnership with agencies including the Department of Agriculture’s Bureau of Soils and Water Management and its regional field offices.

It also invites farmers to bring in soil samples for free testing before any product is ever discussed.

“We provide free soil testing and discuss how essential soil health is for the farm’s resiliency. At the same time, we offer technologies and awareness on how to be a smart farmer and not assumption-based,” Daquioag said.

A Target: From 0.5 to 30 percent

Daquioag, however, is candid about how small GreenVisions PH has made against the scale of the problem it describes.

By their own figures, only about one in 200 Filipino farmers currently undergoes any form of soil testing, and the data those farmers do have is often years out of date.

She stated the goal of GreenVisions PH for the next five years is to move that adoption rate from roughly 0.5 percent to 30 percent of Filipino farmers nationwide.

She framed the number as ambitious but said it is achievable, as long as farmers are given tools that fit into how they already work rather than tools that ask them to think like engineers.

“With our guidance and technologies, we want to empower farming smarter, growing greener; that means, we want to make farmers here in the Philippines smarter, more sensible in handling their farm when it comes to diseases, soil, farm management, expenses, and others,” she said.

Farmers’ resiliency, she stressed, depends on how resilient and how healthy their soil is.

“Mas healthier ang approach sa lupa, mas healthier ang tanim, mas malaki ang ani, without spending too much,” she stressed.

For Marina, three months into her own trial, the appeal is simpler.

It’s the difference between waiting six months for a lab result that may already be outdated by the time it arrives, and knowing, in minutes, what her soil actually needs.

“The knowledge or the guidance itself is very important to truly understand the condition of my land. So, knowing that the soil is suitable for plant development gives me great confidence that my crops will indeed bear fruit,” she stressed.

For Marina, farming smarter means listening when the soil has something to say and, for once, getting the diagnosis before the harvest, and not after.

August 30, 2026 0 comments