Due to the massive devastation caused by Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda), multinational financial services corporation, Citi took action and launched a global fund raising for the affected areas. Asia Pacific CEO Stephen Bird petitioned to employees around the locality to assist Citi Philippines in gathering assistance for the super typhoon ravaged Visayas Region. “Our thoughts are…

Makati Garden Club (MGC) and Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) recently celebrated the gift of sharing with “The Art of Giving”, the 17th Festival of Trees. Hosted by journalist and TV personality Cito Beltran, the event was held at the Jaguar/Land Rover Showroom at The Fort. Highlights include the silent auction, wherein the patrons…

Member companies and partners of Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) have been pooling resources for Typhoon Yolanda (International name Haiyan) relief efforts for the last several days.   Cash contributions have been given by the following: Epson Precision Philippines: PhP2M; Brother International Philippines: PhP500,000; and Mr. Jose Antonio Aboitiz: PhP1M through the PBSP Visayas…

PBSP has ground staff on site at target areas for our relief efforts in the Samar-Leyte vicinity. We are focusing efforts on the towns of Guiuan, Giporlos and Balangkayan which are heavily damaged and in ruins. The town of Llorente, while there is no reported casualty, is also heavily damaged. Most municipalities are 90% devastated….

TRANSCRIPT from CNN interview of PBSP Executive Director, Rafael Lopa

“So I’m going to turn now to Rafael Lopa, who is in Davao City in the Philippines. He is the executive director of the United Way for that country.

I know you’re very busy, so thank you for spending some time with us. Your group is focusing on the long-term recovery. We are taking a look at these images, people who are desperate, who need food, who need water, who are saying they’re still — their children are getting sick. What are you seeing on the ground today?

RAFAEL LOPA, EXEC. DIRECTOR, UNITED WAY IN THE PHILIPPINES: Well, pretty much the same, but what’s reported on TV, it’s really just at the present sites, very overwhelming. Again, you have to understand, this is a – this is the third largest disaster that we’ve experienced in just a span of about two months. We had, of course, a manmade disaster in Zamboanga when rebels invaded the city. But then we had an earthquake in neighboring province of Bohol and now this one.

And really I guess the fatigue of everyone trying to just address the problem, just trying to address this numerous needs of our different disaster victims is just too overwhelming and — but at the end of the day, I think, well, we just can’t stop. We just have to start pushing and pushing and trying to figure out how else we could reach out to our people.

SAMBOLIN: I know there are just some horrific images of devastation and we’re looking that the pictures of these babies. But over the last four days, have you seen any improvements at all?

LOPA: I think it’s really a slow process that’s happening right now. Even we, in the private sector, are still trying to find ways and means to even send some of the relief – relief that we have also put – we’ve been able to assemble independently of what government’s been able to do. Clearly everybody’s trying to augment this. But the transport of these goods and the logistics that need – that are needed is just becoming more and more difficult. We, of course, it’s further aggravated by the peace and order situation that’s happening in Tacloban. So it’s really very difficult to really bring stuff right now, even as we have it. And that continues to be a challenge. But we’re still pushing. We’re still pushing.

SAMBOLIN: Well, Rafael Lopa, executive director of the United Way, we appreciate your time and we wish you a lot of luck.

LOPA: Thank you very much. And just like to take this occasion to ask some of our – some of our friends there in the United States, if you could visit our giving page,www.unitedway.org/philippines. We’ve sort of — we put a portal together with the United Way Worldwide Network to raise additional funds to actually augment whatever relief and rehabilitation efforts that we need to do now and, of course, in the future. We need to rebuild those schoolhouses. We need to rebuild homes. We need to provide additional health services. Definitely there’s going to be a lot of impact on that, not only on the physical, but even on the mental trauma that’s happening there. We do need your help. So, please —

SAMBOLIN: No, absolutely. No, absolutely. Mr. Lopa, absolutely. We will make sure that we have that information available on our website. Thank you so much for your time.

To our friends in the United States of America and other countries who have expressed their desire to help out the victims of Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan), you can now send funding support through the United Way Worldwide donation platform. The Philippine Business for Social Progress is the United Way affiliate in the Philippines.To my friends…

United in their goal to bring comfort to the victims of the 7.2 magnitude earthquake in Bohol, employees of REALPAGE pooled their resources to reach out to their kababayans. The company matched their employees’ giving and donated it to the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) which is organizing relief operations in Bohol.  REALPAGE Philippines,…

To ease the burden of evacuees being exposed to diseases and elements while in their temporary shelters, assorted medicines and hygiene kits were turned-over recently in Barangay Talon-Talon, Zamboanga City by the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) through the IMPACT (Innovations and Multisectoral Partnerships to Achieve Control of Tuberculosis) Program. PBSP Executive Director Rafael…

First Philippine Holdings Corporation (FPH) recently renewed its membership with Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP). The contribution amounting to PhP 1M will be utilized for the Foundation’s various agendas through its PlaCEs or Platforms for Collective Engagements in the areas of Health, Education, Environment, and Livelihood and Enterprise Development. This approach is in support…

The Makati Garden Club (MGC) and the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) recently held the 17th Festival of Tress Press launch at the Makati Garden Club.  Guests and members of the media had a glimpse of what to expect during the fund raising gala this coming November 14, 2013, 5:30 PM onwards at the…

Primesoft Philippines Inc. will be handling the website design and development of PBSP’s Inclusive Business Imperative (IBI) Knowledge Hub. The website will feature best IB practices, emerging trends, IB researches, and seminars, among others.  PBSP’s institutional partner for the IBI Knowledge Hub website is the Business-Call-to-Action United Nations Development Programme. In photo are: Danilo Sigales,…

Epson Precision (Philippines), Inc. recently turned over PhP 1M to the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) to benefit affected families of the 7.2 magnitude earthquake in Bohol. PBSP continues to mobilize resources from its member-companies and private individuals for relief operations to be able to reach more people. For cash donations, you may deposit…

No less than 3 million Filipinos are affected by the 7.2 magnitude earthquake that hit the provinces of Bohol, Cebu, and Siquijor last October 15, 2013.

The Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines (ULAP) supported by Australian AID (AusAID) and The Asia Foundation (TAF) with Coalition of Change members: DLSU-Jesse Robredo Institute of Governance (JRIG) and Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) will be holding a Local Education Policy Workshop for Local Chief Executives on October 9-10, 2013 at the…

Participants and organizers of the first iFly (I Keep Fit. Live Well. Stay Young) Program Management Training are all smiles after completing the two-day training. This activity helped the health and HR practitioners from the participating companies to systematize their respective health and wellness programs. The said workplace health program is aimed at addressing the…