Face shield is a must for workers starting on Saturday, August 15.
Secretary Silvestre Bello III of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) has issued the order as an additional protection to the workers against the COVID-19. Guideline for certain order is still in the process.
Aside from face masks, all workers are also required to wear face shields in their workplaces. No face shield means no work as any worker who refuses to follow will not be allowed entry on their companies. Employers, on the other hand, will face administrative sanctions in failure to implement the policy.
Bearing in mind that there will be a greater demand for the face shields, the Department of Health (DOH) suggested a retail price for face shields of between ₱26 and ₱50.
The COVID-19 Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) also warned establishments in Cebu City that they could face closure if found to have violated quarantine protocols.
On Friday, Lapu-Lapu City Junar “Ahong” Chan announced that the city will be ready to transition from the current general community quarantine (GCQ) to the more relaxed modified GCQ (MGCQ), should the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) decide to downgrade the city’s classification on August 16, 2020.
Mayor Chan said the data from the Department of Health – Central Visayas (DOH-7) show that the COVID-19 cases in the city have significantly decreased “as a result of their massive contact tracing and the effort to isolate those who are suspected of having contracted with the virus.”
Moreover, the mayor mentioned that the residents have already developed awareness about the COVID-19 and the measures to prevent from infection such as the wearing of face masks, physical distancing, and limiting their movements to essentials.
Mayor Chan also said that a part of the shift to MGCQ is to prepare hotels and resorts in the city to embrace the new normal in accepting local and foreign guests, this includes aligning and ensuring the safety and health protocols mandated by the IATF, DOH and the Tourism, Cultural and Historical Affairs Commission (TCHAC).
As of August 13, 2020, Lapu-Lapu City has a total of 2,027 confirmed COVID-19 cases with 1,275 recoveries and 73 deaths. Active cases are now at 679, with an impressive recovery rate of 62.90%.
The Philippines ranked 4th in the World Health Index, a ranking of healthiest and least healthy markets across the globe that was revealed during the recent global health survey commissioned by the A.S. Watson Group, the world’s largest international health and beauty retailer.
Over 5,500 consumers across 10 markets in Asia and Europe aged 15-60 participated in the survey from November to December last year to share their thoughts on a wide range of health topics.
The Netherlands topped the healthiest market list, followed by Singapore, the United Kingdom, the Philippines, Malaysia, Mainland China, Ukraine, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Thailand.
The World Health Index 2020 in the A.S. Watson Global Survey shows the Philippines as the fourth healthiest market.
Other takeaways of the survey:
Happier People are Healthier. 91% of the respondents believe that smiling and laughing have a lot of health benefits. Yet only 66% smile enough due to stress. By generation, Gen Z smiles more and are happier than the more mature groups including Gen Y, Gen X, and Boomers. And Gen Z tends to consider themselves as healthy.
Family and Health are by Far the Most Important Aspects of Life. When it comes to ranking the importance of life aspects, Family (87%) and Health (84%) top the list, with Wealth and Love (33% and 32%) in the third and fourth with a wide gap.
Malina Ngai, Group COO of the A.S. Watson Group and CEO of A.S. Watson Asia and Europe believes that “if the survey was being conducted two months later in February this year, I am sure this result will even be more pronounced with people putting family and health at the very top priority in life.”
Credible Information Matters. As fake news and information flood the internet and social media, consumers nowadays tend to seek health information from credible sources. The research revealed 61% still commonly see a doctor when feeling unwell and 43% go in store to get OTC medication. Yet only 15% of respondents turn to pharmacists for advice.
The A.S. Watson Group believes that more and more people will seek for the help of pharmacists as they are reliable, professional, and easily accessible. Watsons Philippines has a strong network of 1,436 pharmacists nationwide. More than just dispensing medicines, the pharmacists are patient advocates ensuring that the right medication is given through review, implementation of prescription, and detection of therapeutic incompatibilities.
How to Stay Healthy. To lead a healthier lifestyle, over 80% of the respondents believe that enough sleep, a healthy diet, and regular exercise can keep them healthy. But 40% of them fail to do so. More and more people (60%) are interested in taking vitamins and dietary supplements to improve their health.
At the A.S. Watson Group, 1 billion shoppers bought health products last year and sales for the health category increased 11% year on year. The insight from the Group shows that there are more and more people are investing in their health and well-being with vitamins and supplements booming globally at a 12% growth year on year.
In the Philippines, Watson’s health business is growing at 18% year-to-date, with vitamins experiencing a phenomenal 132% growth versus last year. Clearly, more Filipinos take a proactive approach in ensuring they stay healthy and protected especially in this time of global health crisis. With this, Watsons expanded its product range for vitamins and health essential related products to further meet the people’s needs
Need some health information? Go to your Watsons pharmacist. Watsons Philippines has a strong network of 1,436 pharmacists nationwide. They are professionally trained on healthcare and a reliable source of opinion to alleviate pressure on public health system.
Let’s all stay healthy and happy. Watsons Call & Deliver ensures safe and convenient access to medicines and personal care essentials. The expanding Watsons hubs where customers may contact have dedicated riders allowing the customers to stay safe at home.
Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the Lapu-Lapu City Government has entered into a Joint Venture Agreement (JVA) with reclamation developer Mactan Bluewaters Development Consortium (MBDC).
This joint venture, according to the announcement, will soon help in solving Lapu-Lapu City’s troubles, including traffic congestion.
The reclamation project will be covering the shores from Brgy. Punta Engaño to Brgy. Canjulao. Moreover, the city will also be allowed to acquire additional revenues “without spending a single peso,” said Mayor Junard “Ahong” Chan.
On August 7, 2020, Mayor Chan signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with MBDC for the 203-hectare area.
Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Chan with Mactan Bluewater Development Consortium on a PPP project signed on August 7, 2020.
“We will build there our coastal highway, a 30-meter wide road,” the mayor said in Cebuano.
The coastal highway is expected to solve the city’s traffic woes since it will serve as the city’s alternative road.
This reclamation project is also the implementation of a socialized housing project for informal settlers, as proclaimed by former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo years back, said Mayor Chan. There will be a 25-hectare area allocation for socialized housing in Barangay Canjulao.
“We can use the property for this purpose. The developer will build it at no cost to the city government,”
– Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Ahong Chan
Mayor Chan added that the mixed-use reclamation project would host spaces for the following:
Tourism facilities,
commercial and industrial properties, and
a park.
Apart from the aforementioned, Mayor Chan also plans to have a boardwalk under the two Mactan bridges and is considering a construction of a new City Hall building.
According to the JVA, 100 hectares will be developed in Punta Engaño by MBDC while the consortium will develop 103 hectares in Canjulao.
Once completed, 52 percent of the reclaimed area will be turned over to the City, while the remaining 48 percent will be the developer’s share of the land.
The Philippine Reclamation Authority has approved the project and the City Council has authorized Chan to sign the MOA.
Since the time malls were allowed to re-open last month, we noticed many stores in the city have been offering great deals with huge discounts.
So if you’re waiting for the perfect time to shop for new stuff like shoes and bags, then you might want to consider these crazy deals at SM City Cebu’s SM Store (a.k.a. department store) that recently trended online.
In this particular sale, which may be offered until August 31 or until supplies last, you will get additional P300 or P500 off on your purchase with your SM Advantage Card and a minimum P3,000 single-receipt purchase.
Check out some items you can purchase at SM City Cebu:
This seasonal sale is available in most, if not all, SM Stores nationwide. This means, you can also visit the department stores at SM Seaside City Cebu and SM Consolacion. Though of course, items being offered may vary per branch.
SM Stores are open Mondays to Sundays from 11AM – 7PM for walk-ins and delivery through SM Seaside’s dedicated Pabili Service partners.
When going out, make sure to observe the following:
Quarantine pass is required to enter the mall.
Must wear a face mask at all times.
Observe physical distancing.
Also don’t forget to wash your hands frequently and disinfect thoroughly as soon as you get home.
New mall on a shoreline cliff to be highlighted by a man-made lagoon, boutique hotel, garden chapel, beach walk, and rows of retail shops & restaurants including four cinemas.
Property giant Megaworld is building a two-level mall along the beachside cliff of its 30-hectare The Mactan Newtown development in Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu.
With a total gross floor area of 30,000 square meters, the Mactan Newtown Beach Walk will be highlighted by a 1.4-hectare man-made lagoon at the center.
The lagoon will have floating boardwalks and a bridge that will connect both sides of the mall. With a maximum depth of around 1.5-meters, it can also serve as venue for future water sports activities such as jet ski, wakeboarding, stand-up paddling, and boating. It will also have its own man-made shoreline at its perimeter.
The Mactan Newtown Beach Walk, which is designed and to be operated under the Megaworld Lifestyle Malls brand, will also have its own chapel that will be surrounded by a garden by the Cliffside, overlooking the sea.
It will also have four state-of-the-art cinemas, a Food Hall, al fresco areas, Traveler’s Lounge, and a view deck, allowing visitors and mallgoers to have a panoramic view of the sea and nearby islands.
“Megaworld Lifestyle Malls is bringing a fresh, new concept of mall development in Cebu that recreates and innovates the beach lifestyle experience. We take inspiration from some iconic coastline commercial developments in South California, where visitors can enjoy coffee, meet friends over lunch or dinner, watch a movie, or simply shop around in this laid-back beach atmosphere,”
– Kevin L. Tan, Megaworld chief strategy officer
The mall complex will also have its three-storey boutique hotel, offering 48 spacious guestrooms with retail shops at its ground level. This will be operated under the Megaworld Hotels brand.
True to its commitment to sustainability, Megaworld will use solar roof panels for this new mall, and will utilize an open layout scheme for passive cooling and natural lighting in most of the development’s common areas.
Around 40% of the entire development will be dedicated to green and open spaces.
Megaworld will spend P1.5-billion to build the Mactan Newtown Beach Walk, which is expected for completion in 2021.
August is one of the most popular times of the year to observe meteor showers.
According to DOST-PAGASA, if the sky permits, the famous Perseids meteor shower will be observed with its peak in the late evening and early morning hours on August 12-13, 2020 with at least 50 or more meteors observed during peak time.
However, the waxing gibbous Moon may interfere with the observations of fainter meteors.
Meteors are easiest to observe if there is no moonlight, light pollution, and a clear sky.
The Perseids meteor shower radiates out from the constellation Perseus, which is located on the eastern horizon during August as shown in the images below.
On Tuesday, President Vladimir Putin announced that Russia has developed the first vaccine offering “sustainable immunity” against the coronavirus. According to Putin, his daughter is among those inoculated.
“This morning, for the first time in the world, a vaccine against the new coronavirus was registered. One of my daughters had this vaccine. I think in this sense she took part in the experiment,”
– President Putin said during a televised video conference call with government ministers
The vaccine, developed by the Gamaleya National Research Center in Moscow, has an official registration with the Russian Health Ministry after less than two months of human testing.
In addition, Putin also said that the vaccine has proven efficient during human testing and promises to offer “sustainable immunity” against the coronavirus.
In a report, the vaccine is “based on adenovirus and contains dead COVID-19 particles which cannot multiply and are therefore safe”, according to Alexander Gintzburg, head of the center. However, he also said it can provoke an immune response such as high temperature to the introduction of foreign substances.
To date, there are more than 200 COVID-19 vaccine candidates in development globally, including more than 20 in human clinical trials based on the data from the World Health Organization (WHO).
Another iconic building will soon rise in the prime Cebu Business Park in Cebu City and this condominium tower will be designed by no other than Paris-based architecture firm, Vincent Callebaut Architectures.
Aptly named as such, Rainbow Tree, is taken from the “Eucalyptus Deglupta”, an iconic and colorful tree from the Philippines.
The Rainbow Tree features a 32-story building with 300 apartment units; mixed-use residential, condominium with retail and serviced apartments. The Rainbow Tree is a staggered geometric stack of 1,200 modules, each with sides measuring 4 meters sides and a height varying between 3.2 to 4.8 meters.
This project aims to build a residential building with double environmental certification (LEED + BERDE) for a perfect balace of cultural heritage and natural heritage of unparalleled splendor.
“On October 31, 2019, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) designated 66 new “Creative Cities. Among them is Cebu, awarded for its innovation in design, particularly in the field of fashion, architecture, and the production of eco-responsible furniture,” said Vincent Callebaut Architectures.
“The architecture of the Philippines is both a dynamic combination of multiple influences and a reflection of the country’s historical and cultural heritage. This heritage is based on a mixture of Austronesian, Chinese, Malaysian, American (Art Deco), and Spanish (Baroque) influences.”
“At a time when we need to find radical solutions to reduce the global carbon footprint, we have designed a 32-story, 115-meter high tower built of solid wood, as it is the only natural, abundant, and renewable material,” added the firm.
The Rainbow Tree organic tower integrates the principles of passive bioclimatism and advanced renewable energies.
Adorned with beautiful plant essences from the neighboring tropical forests, the Rainbow Tree draws a flourishing spiral in the colors of the rainbow, bringing a breath of freshness to Cebu Business Park.
The tower will be built by using a CLT (Cross Laminated Timber). As the studio highlights, The Cross Laminated Timber manufacturing process requires much less energy than concrete or steel, and moreover it does not generate greenhouse gases. As a reminder, producing 1 ton of concrete generates 2.42 tons of CO2 and producing 1 ton of steel generates 0.938 ton of CO2.
In terms of fire resistance, remember that wood burns slowly, does not release toxic fumes, and transmits heat 250 times slower than melting steel and 10 times slower than concrete which cracks under the effects of the flames.
“The Rainbow Tree has sinusoidal balconies staggered between the even and odd floors allowing palm trees and deciduous trees to grow on a double height,” explained the office.
“The endemic plant species are listed according to the color of their flowering – pink, purple, green, yellow, orange, red – to draw 5 plant spirals wrapping around the solid wood facades.”
Moreover, the 30,000 plants, shrubs, and trees planted on the tower will capture 150 tons of CO2 in the atmosphere of the Cebu City annually to transform them into oxygen through natural photosynthesis.
The Rainbow Tree is subdivided into:
The basement, level -1 to -3
40 parking spaces per level
120 spaces in the infrastructure
Here are the facilities and amenities to expect in this iconic tower:
Ground floor:
Catering restaurant
Co-working office space
Access ramps to silo car park
3rd to 6th floors:
40 parking spaces per level
160 spaces in superstructure for electric cars
7th floor:
Condominium pool and spa
8th floor:
Mezzanine of the fitness center with a double height over the swimming pool
9th to the 31st floor:
13 apartment units per level with 3-bedroom apartments
An urban skyfarm and its 2 mezzanines aquaponically poducing fruits, vegetables, and algae
On the roof:
1,650-square-meter photivoltaic and thermal solar panels
“By 2050, 80% of the world’s population will live in cities. It is now necessary to produce as close as possible to the consumer-actors and consume the minimum of resources while reducing wastes and greenhouse gas emissions,” said Vincent Callebaut, founder of Vincent Callebaut Architectures.
“Within the framework of the new circular economy, the Rainbow Tree is a prototype of a completely biobased vertical forest respecting the four pillars of the ecological city of the future, namely: energy self-sufficiency (heating, cooling, and electricity); greening of buildings and development of urban agriculture; soft mobility centered on pedestrians, bikes and electric co-mobility; social innovation through spaces for sharing between residents and solidarity services,” added Callebaut.
Good news! Cebu’s most popular food market is back!
On Monday, Sugbo Mercado announced its resumption of operations starting on August 12, 2020 for pick-up, take-outs and delivery every Wednesday to Saturday from 11AM to 8PM.
Sugbo Mercado will also accept walk-ins and dine-ins at 50% capacity starting on August 19, 2020.
This means, you can now enjoy your Sugbo Mercado favorites and even discover new ones while the food market makes sure that safety and health protocols are in place.
Here’s everything you should know about Sugbo Mercado’s re-opening:
Pick-up, takeout and delivery (Foodpanda, LEB) are highly encouraged for this week (Aug 12-15)
Walk-ins and dine-ins at 50% capacity are welcomed on controlled numbers, starting on August 19, 2020.
Registered entry for contact tracing, temperature screening, sanitation and on strictly “No Mask, No Entry” basis.
Safety barriers are in place for the mutual protection of our vendors and guests on top of standard social distancing measures.
Operating hours: 11AM to 8PM, Wednesdays to Saturdays
