In a country where the government’s response to any crisis is often, for one reason or another, inadequate and found wanting, the responsibility for marshaling resources to bridge the gap between what is available and what is needed often falls on the shoulders of the private sector. And the current pandemic—arguably the biggest public health…
These days, it seems, anything and everything can be found and bought online and brought to one’s doorstep. What enable this are the ubiquity of smartphones, the availability of internet connection and the swarms of motorcycles and utility vehicles, thanks to low interest rates over the past few years. The same few years before the…
The Department of Agriculture (DA) in April announced that it would be expanding the operations of its “Kadiwa” stores by making their products and services available online, thus allowing farmers and fishers to continue selling their produce to consumers even with the movement restrictions at the height of the lockdown. The plan is for the…
Agripreneurship is touted as the future of farming, one that will ensure sustainable growth of Philippine agriculture and profitability for those who get into it. But still very few dare to get their hands dirty and take the risk. Three agricultural entrepreneurs who thrived in this arena shared with The Inquirer the values and lessons…
MANILA, Philippines —If there’s a rising tide that lifts all boats, there may also come a time, no matter how rarely, that a tsunami may wreak havoc on anything on its path. The coronavirus pandemic is one such cataclysmic event. While the human race is no stranger to pandemics, the world has never been as…