PIA Davao Region

DAVAO CITY, March 21 (PIA)- The City Government of Davao is pushing for MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Events) tourism as one of its lynchpin for recovery and growth. During her last State of the City Address outgoing Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio said they have activated the Davao City MICE Strategic Masterplan which will guide the local government and the hospitality industry in improving MICE programs, strategy and infrastructure. “As a major MICE destination in the country we are confident that we are able to once again achieve our pre-pandemic tourist arrivals of more than two million per year and generate 39 billion pesos in estimated tourism receipts,” the Mayor said in her SOCA. Also during her address the Mayor bared the construction of the Davao City MICE building which will be constructed at the City Government compound beside Peoples Park. “ This will house several meeting rooms, auditoriums and theater and an events center,” Mayor Duterte-Carpio said. But the prog

DAVAO CITY, March 2 (PIA)- MICE Con 2022   (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions, Exhibits Conference) will be hosted by Davao City. According to City Tourism Operations Office OIC Generose Tecson, they are eyeing October of this year in holding the largest gathering of MICE industry players and stakeholders in the country. Davao City won the bid to host MICE Con 2020 however the COVID-19 pandemic forced the organizers and the city to cancel the event.   “Since we won the bid in 2020, they decided that Davao City will host the MICE Con 2022,” Tecson said. The city tourism chief announced the good news during the induction of the Davao Tourism Association’s new set of officers held on Feb. 28 at the Waterfront Insular Hotel. Tecson said in preparation for the huge event, Davao City’s MICE execom will be meeting along with the Tourism Promotions Board to discuss the upcoming gathering. “For us go na siya, yung days nalang and yung setup niya if its going to be hybrid because we want to show

DAVAO CITY, Feb. 17 (PIA)- From aiming to achieve herd immunity, the City Government of Davao is now targeting to vaccinate its whole population estimated at 1.8 million people. “Before herd immunity atong ginatarget karon didto na ta sa total population (Before we were targeting herd immunity now we are in total population),” said Dr. Michelle Schlosser Davao City COVID-19 Task Force Spokesperson during her radio guesting at Davao City Disaster Radio. Dr. Schlosser said the City has vaccinated 85.14 % of its total population and has already achieved vaccinating the herd immunity target of the 70% of the City’s population. “Ang atong goal is to vaccinate the entire population of Davao City, mao na ang atong ginakab-ot karon mao na ang basihan sa atong rating and percentage dili na ang herd immunity lang (Our goal is to vaccinate the entire population of Davao City that is what we are trying to achive that is our basis fo our rating and percentage no longer just the herd immunity),” Dr

DAVAO CITY, Feb. 14 (PIA) An approximate number of 250 children were expected to be vaccinated at the Southern Philippines Medical Center yesterday as the pediatric vaccination for kids ages five to eleven commenced Monday (FEB. 14). This happened as Dr. Ricardo Audan, chief of clinics at the Southern Philippines Medical Center firmly observed a reduction of COVID-19 cases in their facility.     He said the RT-PCR results nowadays have resulted to 11 percent reduction of cases compared to the readings in the recent past which could reach 70 percent.   Audan said there is truth to the observation that the delta variant was more serious than the omicron variant of COVID-19 but he stressed that the omicron variant is highly transmissible compared to the delta variant.   “One thousand SPMC employees were positive of COVID-19 two weeks ago, but all of them returned to work after quarantine because they are all fully vaccinated.   It’s really the work of the omicron variant which is mild,” A

DAVAO CITY, Jan. 31 (PIA) The city chief executive clarified that not all persons with COVID-19 will be treated with Molnuperavir, an anti-viral medicine used to treat COVID-19 infection. Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio told the Davao City Disaster Radio that it is up for the doctor to diagnose if a person with COVID-19 can be given with this medicine.   “Only the pulmonologist and the infectious disease doctor can recommend for someone to take the medicine.   Do not self-medicate,” Duterte-Carpio said.   The City Government purchased this medicine for the Southern Philippines Medical Center who might use the medicine for the critical and severe cases of COVID-19 infection. Duterte-Carpio said that infection due to the COVID-19 is certain to happen with the surge still going on.   She said people really wonder why despite people have no travel history, they are still afflicted with the COVID-19 virus. However, expressing her personal opinion, Duterte-Carpio said that as a mother, authorities

DAVAO CITY, Jan. 12 (PIA)—The City Tourism Operation Office no longer demands any requirement for travel to Davao City either land, air or sea.   Generose Tecson, head of the CTOO reiterated that they follow the IATF guidelines on international travel.   She said there is already specific restrictions for arrivals from foreign countries classified as green, yellow and red specifically for unvaccinated and vaccinated individuals.   Tecson bared that based on the IATF guidelines all persons from foreign countries and are going to Metro Manila must have three-day RT-PCR tests before boarding their flights.   She said the quarantine days depend on the country where they come, like those classified as yellow and red countries, still have 14-day quarantine, while those in green-list countries and are vaccinated must have 10-day quarantine where seven days are spent in the facility and another three-days at home.   Tecson clarified that green-list countries pertain to countries with least COV

DAVAO CITY- From a contact tracing only application during its early implementation, the Safe Davao QR Code (SDQR) has transformed into a full-scale tool utilized as Davao City's COVID-19 Management System. A QR code for contact tracing was implemented in November last year when Executive Order 60 series of 2020 was issued by Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio. It provided the guidelines for a QR code for contact tracing.  All Davao City residents and non-residents would need to register and get a QR code as this would allow entry to the city and movement within the city. The deluge of registrants for the QR code overwhelmed the initial site and had to be temporarily shut down. The City Government then was assisted by ICT Davao- a local organization of ICT (information and communications technology) to help bring back the site and the QR system.  Ingenuity, a Davao City-based full service software company was tapped for trouble-shooting and redevelopment.  It was an IT bayanihan

DAVAO CITY, Dec. 20 (PIA)- The City Government of Davao has sent an Emergency Response Team to the Municipality of Ubay, Province of Bohol to help in the rescue and relief efforts in the aftermath of Typhoon Odette. The 106-person team came from the City Health Office, Davao City Central 911's Emergency Medical Sevices (EMS), Urban Search and Rescue (USAR), Fire Auxiliary Services (FAS), doctors from the Southern Philippines Medical Center, and social workers from City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO).   The team is headed by Davao City 911 chief Emmanuel Jaldon. They departed on Sunday (Dec. 19) at the Davao International Airport. Davao City Mayor Sara Z. Duterte-Carpio was present to send-off the contingent. Aside from the medical and rescue team the City sent 55 tons of food and other supplies for the affected communities in Visayas. Typhoon Odette a Category 5 typhoon made several landfall in the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) on Thursday (Dec. 16) then ex

DAVAO CITY- The City Government of Davao has declared the suspension of work in government offices and the conduct of face-to-face classes in all public and private schools from Kindergarten to Post-Graduate Studies from 12:00 noon today (Dec. 16) to 5:00 p.m. Dec. 17. Proclamation No. 5 series of 2021 signed by Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio, also suspends the conduct of vaccination activities on the said date. However, government work for offices belonging to safety, security, health, social services and disaster and who are performing emergency, disaster preparedness and response duties and Covid-19 response activities are still required to work. Under Proclamation No. 5 S. 2021 private offices and establishments are given the discretion to suspend work on the aforementioned dates but are encouraged to do the same for the safety and convenience of their employees. The Proclamation states as basis the onslaught of Typhoon Odette (PAGASA General Flood Advisory # 4) where advisories have fo

DAVAO CITY, November 29 (PIA) - At six in the morning, on the first day of the 3-day nationwide Bayanihan Bakunahan, Jessa Gomota left her new-born baby to her partner at home and proceeded to the People’s Park in Davao City where she would be getting her first dose of COVID19 vaccine. "Naa man gud koy baby nga dili nako basta-basta mabiyaan sa balay. Sakto karon kay off duty ang akong partner mao nga siya akong gibilinan sa among anak. Mao nga nakahigayon ko karon ug pagpabakuna . (I have a baby that’s why I just can’t leave home anytime. Good thing that my partner is taking a day off and that allowed me to come here and get vaccinated.),” Gomota said. She learned about the Bayanihan Bakunahan which runs from November 29 to December 1 on social media. Included in the announcement which she read is the vaccine brand that interested vaccinees will be able to get. Gomota shared that she has long wanted to be vaccinated with a Pfizer brand. “ Naengganyo pud ko kay nahibal-an nako nga

DAVAO CITY, Nov. 23 (PIA)—The head of the Davao City Social Services and Development revealed that the city will bring the gifts for the Indigenous Peoples directly to their communities.      Atty Marlisa Gallo, chief of the City Social Services and Development said IPs no longer have to go down to the city proper to get their gifts because the city government will bring the gifts to them.   Gallo mulled on distributing the gifts as early as December 6.   She bared that their office is currently preparing 30,000 gifts for the IPs this Christmas, apart from the 29,000 beneficiaries last year.     Gallo said the gifts will comprise of food packs composed of rice and canned goods.   “It is intended for everyone, “she said.   Gallo said initially the delivery will happen in Paquibato and Marilog Districts.   She said they will just coordinate with the barangay chairs but the actual distribution will be done by the CSSDO personnel.   Gallo said the IP communities will claim the items by the