Business

Negros Occidental officials and sugar leaders are calling for a unified position from stakeholders and for government action against the plummeting sugar prices.Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson, in a statement on Friday, Dec. 12, said, "Given the current crisis in the sugar industry, marked by low prices and limited buying, I, together with the mayors of Negros Occidental, am calling on all sugar groups, federations, and industry leaders in Negros Occidental to come together and agree on a unified position."As the country’s sugar capital and as a province whose economy is significantly anchored on the strength and stability of the sugar industry, Lacson said it is vital "that we present a single and cohesive stand before elevating our concerns to the national government."...

Mayor Greg Gasataya (5th from left) receiving the 2025 SOLAIA IT-BPM Awards as Outstanding LGU Partner (Regional Category) from IBPAP Chief Operating Officer Celeste Ilagan during the Bacolod Business Talks 2025 forum.*The Bacolod City Local Investment Board has approved the adoption of Executive Order No. 080, series of 2025, which mandates the reconstitution of the Bacolod City Local Investment Board and designates the Department of Local Economic Development and Investment Promotions (DLEDIP) as the Board Secretariat.The approval was made during the Bacolod Business Talks 2025, an Investment Board Meeting and Networking Forum held at L’Fisher Hotel on Thursday, December 11, a press release from the Bacolod City Communications Office said.Issued by Mayor Greg Gasataya, the e...

Mayor Marina Javellana-Yao (center) meets with Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development Undersecretary Henry Yap (right) and Environmental, Land Use, and Urban Planning and Development Director Ibani Padao during their courtesy visit at the City Hall on Tuesday.*Bago City in Negros Occidental is set to pioneer the use of the Automated Land Use and Zoning Compliance Assessment and Monitoring (AutoCAM) tool in the Visayas in 2026.Implemented by the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD), the AutoCAM project utilizes remote sensing, geographic information systems, and artificial intelligence to create an automated, efficient system for assessing and monitoring land use and zoning compliance."The City of Bago has achieved a significant milestone,...

The Negros Occidental provincial government launched a Negros Jobs Online Portal, a centralized digital platform designed to connect employers with job seekers and help address unemployment and underemployment in the province on Wednesday, Dec. 10.Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz said the portal aims to match vacant positions offered by companies with jobless Negrenses looking for work.Diaz said the initiative seeks to shorten the period of joblessness and provide job seekers with access to reputable employers beyond the limitations of their immediate communities.He added that the platform will also help address employers’ concerns by widening their pool of qualified applicants and allowing them to find employees who best fit their needs.Diaz said the province con...

The Bacolod City government, together with its business community, is set to convene local entrepreneurs, industry leaders, and key stakeholders for the Bacolod Business Talks 2025, an Investment Board Meeting cum Investment Forum and Networking Event, at L'Fisher Hotel, Thursday afternoon, Dec. 11.The event dubbed "Building the Future Bacolod: Creativity, Connectivity, and Competitiveness," aims to provide a learning and engagement platform where participants can gain insights from national and local experts on the latest trends shaping tourism, IT-BPM, real estate, logistics, and related industries, a press release from the Bacolod City Communications Office (BCCO) said.Designed as a training–meets–thought leadership program, the forum blends technical knowledge with experient...

Participants of the recent forum workshop*Multisectoral groups in Bacolod City are calling for climate accountability and action following the recent flooding that displaced thousands of people.The groups issued the call at a recent forum workshop on climate crisis, climate finance, and accountability, a press release from the Negrosanon Initiative for Climate and the Environment (NICE) on Tuesday, Dec. 9, said.The event on “Understanding the Causes, Demanding Climate Accountability, and Advancing Just, Transparent, and Participatory Solutions” aimed to deepen public understanding of the climate crisis, clarify climate finance processes, and strengthen efforts to hold institutions accountable following the recent typhoons.The civil society-led forum-workshop came ahead of t...

The site of the old Bacolod City Hall*”We are confident that the case will be dismissed for lack of merit when all the records and the evidence are examined, “ Bacolod Rep. Alfredo  Abelardo "Albee" Benitez said Monday night, Dec. 8.A complaint was filed against Benitez and eight members of the Sangguniang Panlungsod before the Office of the Deputy Ombudsman for Visayas on October 27 and released to the media last week.It cited the “demolition” of the old city hall at corner of Luzuriaga and Araneta streets in Bacolod City  and the ongoing construction of a new one.       The complaint was filed by former city executive assistant on market operations Ernesto Novo Pineda, who cited  alleged violations of the Anti-Graft and C...

Bacolod Rep. Alfredo Abelardo Benitez, Mayor Greg Gasataya, Undersecretary Charles Calima and other DPWH officials (r-l) at the "Oplan Kontra Baha" launching on Friday.* BCCO photo"Oplan Kontra Baha," a collaborative drive of the  Bacolod City government, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), and the private sector, was officially launched at Mambulok Creek on Friday morning, December 5. The initiative aims to clear critical waterways and mitigate the impact of flooding on communities throughout Bacolod City.Bacolod Rep. Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said “with the support of our engineers, barangay leaders, and the thousands of river warriors deployed across the city, we are taking concrete steps to restore the flow of our rivers and reinforce the importan...