The Philippines has secured 1.5 million metric tons (MT) of rice from Vietnam, ensuring a stable supply of the country’s staple grain through April 2027. The agreement was reached after Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and newly elected Vietnamese Prime Minister Le Minh Hung agreed to establish a long-term trade mechanism aimed at ensuring stable rice supply and strengthening food security cooperation between the…
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) warned that the accumulated volcanic debris blocking the Mi-isi-Binaan Channel on Mayon Volcano could trigger “life-threatening secondary explosions” at any time due to temperatures reaching as high as 500ºC. In a report from the state-run Philippine Information Agency in Albay, Doreen Abelinde, resident volcanologist at the PHIVOLCS Mayon Observatory, explained that the pyroclastic density…
The World Health Organization said the hantavirus outbreak is not the start of another pandemic. During a news briefing, Maria Van Kerkhove said the situation is different from COVID-19. Van Kerkhove said hantavirus spreads through “close, intimate contact.” Authorities are currently tracing dozens of people who disembarked from the Dutch vessel MV Hondius, where a hantavirus outbreak was reported. Reports said around…
Vietnam is in the grip of a construction frenzy unlike anything Southeast Asia has seen in a generation—and while Hanoi breaks ground on bullet trains, nuclear plants, and the world’s largest stadium, the Philippines is fighting a different kind of battle: keeping fuel affordable for ordinary Filipinos while its own infrastructure ambitions inch forward under the long shadow of corruption. The groundbreaking…
With the perceived ouster of career health officials, Malacañang now stands accused of putting institutional stability and expert leadership at risk for political convenience. The uproar follows the exit of Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Singh-Vergeire and other veteran DOH officials in what appears to be a politically motivated shake-up. About 55 professional medical groups signed a joint statement expressing concerns of what…
The Laguna Lake is fast deteriorating into the country’s “biggest septic tank,” Biñan City Rep. Walfredo “Arman” Dimaguila Jr. warned on Saturday, August 2. In an interview on DZRH News’ Special on Saturday, Rep. Dimaguila urged the Marcos Jr. administration to take urgent and science-based action to rehabilitate the vital water body affecting millions across Southern Luzon and Metro Manila. “Magkakaroon na…
The Iran war is showing why the Philippines can’t afford to neglect its farmers
A war thousands of kilometers away is beginning to ripple through something as basic as the Filipino dining table. The conflict involving Iran has pushed oil prices higher, disrupted key shipping routes, and strained global supply chains—especially for fertilizer, a critical input for food production. Farmers are already feeling the pressure. Fertilizer prices have surged by as much as 30% to 40%,…