THE Asian Development Bank (ADB) said it has a technical assistance fund of $20.3 million to help its member countries organize the distribution of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines once these are available sometime next year.
The ADB said in a statement Tuesday that technical assistance will fund health system assessments, country readiness plans, and systems to track vaccine delivery.
“With these additional grant resources, ADB can immediately support our developing members to undertake urgent action, including vaccine system assessments and vaccine deployment strategies, to ensure vaccines are delivered efficiently and fairly,” Woochong Um, director general of ADB’s Sustainable Development and Climate Change Department, was quoted as saying.
The technical assistance will be jointly implemented with its partners including UNICEF and the World Health Organization, the World Bank, and COVAX — a global alliance seeking to ensure equitable distribution of vaccines.
Finance Undersecretary Mark Dennis Y.C. Joven has said the Philippine government will tap the ADB and World Bank for technical and financial support for its free vaccination program targeted for 20 million people next year.
President Rodrigo R. Duterte has said the government is seeking to borrow $300 million to finance its vaccination program, which may cost up to P40 billion.
The World Bank approved in October a new loan facility worth $12 billion to help developing countries buy and distribute COVID-19 vaccines. — Beatrice M. Laforga
THE Trade department expressed its support for a measure establishing a database for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in all cities and municipalities, according to a House of Representatives committee report.
“The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) recognizes the intent of the bill to create an MSME Information System to provide a synchronized, real-time commodity supply inventory and registry system… and to create a wider marketplace among MSMEs and consumers,” the House committee on micro, small and medium enterprise development said in a report Tuesday.
The DTI believes that the House Bill No. 7400, or the proposed MSMEs Information System Act of 2020, will address the challenges of MSMEs in gaining market access for their products and services, the report said.
The department, however, proposed a further review of the proposal because there are government information systems and online marketplaces or databases for MSMEs that could be strengthened or expanded to achieve the same objectives.
The bill tasks the Secretary of Trade and Industry with monitoring and ensure compliance by cities and municipalities with the bill’s requirements and establishing a centralized MSME Information System to link all current information systems.
The DTI, however, expressed reservations about its proposed duties, noting that they may encroach on the functions of the Department of Interior and Local Government.
The department also recommended that the Department of Information and Communications Technology, as the principal agency overseeing the communications infrastructure, provide input “given the numerous MSME-related information systems in place and the current ICT infrastructure in various areas of the country.”
The report noted that the DTI has been strengthening the use of digital technology and applications in all of its platforms to provide MSMEs an online marketplace in which enterprises can promote their products and services. It said “access to market is among the key areas for enterprise development identified in the MSME Development Plan 2017-2022.”
The Department of Budget and Management raised no objections to the measure, the report said. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza
THE GOVERNMENT has launched a program accelerating the grant of intellectual property (IP) protections for science and technology research it supports, which is intended to speed up the commercialization of any innovations developed.
The program will reduce the processing time for a “large number” of industrial designs to five days, while the processing of utility models will be done in two months, Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) Director General Rowel S. Barba said at an online event. Patents will also be expedited, he added.
Representatives from the Trade department, the Science and Technology department, and IPOPHL signed a memorandum of agreement to officially launch the “Scitech Superhighway program” Tuesday.
“Seeing our innovators commercially roll out their works at the earliest possible time will allow them to see a faster return on capital… enabling them to venture sooner into another socially-impactful innovation project,” Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez said in his speech.
He added that a rapid intellectual property protection process will help commercialize entrepreneurial ideas.
“This would make innovation projects a sustainable and steady source of livelihood — as well as a potentially massive generator of higher-income jobs.”
But Mr. Lopez also said the Philippines is still dealing with gaps in its digital and physical infrastructure.
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) last month said that closing the digital and infrastructure gap is key to pandemic recovery efforts in Southeast Asian developing countries. This would improve access to health, education, and financial services, ADB President Masatsugu Asakawa said. — Jenina P. Ibañez
Before the pandemic, there were decades of sustained economic growth never before seen in our history. The outlook for long term prosperity bolstered the government’s very ambitious infrastructure programs and most certainly strengthened the political stability of the administration. However, with the outbreak of the global pandemic, economic development was stunned, impacting everybody, and like all calamitous events, the hardest hit are always the poor.
The shock was difficult for our government, which, like most countries, is handicapped by a slow and inefficient bureaucracy ill prepared for the existential threat and global disruption because of the spreading contagion of the virus from Wuhan. Fortunately, the sudden loss of livelihood and cut food supply chains that threatened to explode into a chaotic situation was avoided. Thanks to the collaboration of the country’s most successful business groups, in alliance with local governments, law enforcement, church groups, and civil society, resources and networks were quickly mobilized to give food assistance to millions of families in the most vulnerable communities of locked down Mega-Manila. These interventions are still sustained in ongoing COVID-19 testing, tracing, and treatment operations.
As the economic crisis worsened, several businesses continued to provide compensation and financial assistance to those of their workers who were direly affected by the economic impact. Many of them even advanced the yearend bonuses of their employees.
Ironically, this is the sector that has been on the receiving end of allegations, threats, intrigues, and sporadic verbal attacks from the President, who, with a very high trust rating, should have more than enough influence to transfer the same attitude to Filipinos. This became an interesting theory that had to be tested with science.
In line with the Stratbase ADR Institute’s advocacy for an all-of-society approach in fighting the global health and economic crisis, we commissioned a special survey through Pulse Asia in September which, surprisingly, contradicts the divisive rhetoric of the President.
The survey revealed that a huge 85% or more than eight out of 10 Filipinos agree that the national government should partner with private enterprises in the operation of public utilities and implementation of social service projects. The survey also showed that across geographic locations and socioeconomic classes, the very positive ratings attributed to “reputable private enterprises” respectively ranged from 79% to 93% and 79% to 91%.
As to what aspect of their lives the private sector can be of help, 90% believe that private investors can help create jobs in the country, while 68% say they can assist in expanding livelihood opportunities, and 62% say they can help in alleviating poverty.
Private enterprises in the Philippines have a strong history of performance that’s aptly reflected by the very high confidence of the survey respondents and should give the government the confidence in Private-Private Partnerships as the first option for its development programs. First, in concretizing recovery plans, the private sector should be engaged in the re-engineering and digital transformation of public services such as healthcare, transportation, power and energy, bulk water, telecommunications and the digitization of the whole government bureaucracy.
Second, it is the private sector that has the capacity to strengthen and expand the country’s digital infrastructure to support the fast growing demand because of the people’s shift to cloud based solutions that make no-contact transactions possible.
Third, with the gargantuan amount of public money to be disbursed by the government, the private sector and civil society should actively participate in ensuring the transparency and accountability in all bureaucracies. Another area where integrating digital technology can be most effective.
The government cannot be left alone to deal with the pandemic’s impact and, more so, the economic recovery of our country. Herein, the limits of the whole-of-government approach is utterly exposed.
But this could be overcome, and apparently, the data from this survey clearly shows that the people know who can create the millions of new jobs that have been lost as a consequence of the economic catastrophe. The people know who will invest in business ventures that will support multiple linkages that will then create more livelihood opportunities. The people know who has the resources, talent, and drive to pursue prosperity and thus fight poverty.
The responsibility for recovery and development is not assumed by a single actor. Instead, this responsibility is partaken by the whole-of-society. In turn, this approach becomes the broader and deeper platform wherein we can craft a realistic and inclusive recovery and development plan. The complexity of the consequences and circumstances of the pandemic profoundly pronounces this need. As the different stakeholders in society are engaged and the essence of participation galvanized, the private sector should step forward not just with resources but with its wealth of innovations and solutions.
The people will be ready to respond.
Victor Andres “Dindo” C. Manhit is the President of Stratbase ADR Institute.
One thing that has thrived during this pandemic is online shopping. While e-commerce platforms were already a booming industry before the pandemic, their appeal has steadily increased since because of the convenience and safety they provide. Indeed, the words “Add to Cart” are now very familiar to us in our daily lives.
With the growth of this industry also comes the proliferation of allegedly counterfeit goods being sold on these online platforms. The question now is, what are the liabilities of the parties involved in selling or authorizing the sale of counterfeit goods or those which infringe the trademark rights of an owner, on these platforms.
Under Republic Act No. 8293 (the IP Code), trademark infringement is defined as the use in commerce of any reproduction, counterfeit, copy, or colorable imitation of a registered mark in connection with the sale, offering for sale, distribution, advertising of any goods or services. Thus, not only will the use of the exact trademark be punishable under the law, but so is using or adopting a colorable imitation of a trademark in commerce.
Clear from the law is that sellers who sell products bearing a registered mark or a confusingly similar mark may be liable for trademark infringement as long as there is evidence to prove that the goods are, in fact, counterfeit or, at least in the case of a nearly identical mark, adopted to confuse the public as to the source of the said goods.
The issue now deals with the liability of e-commerce platforms in cases of trademark infringement.
While Philippine jurisprudence has yet to establish and rule on this issue, guidance may be found in the amendment to the IP Code dealing with copyright infringement. Republic Act No. 10372, which amends Section 216 of the IP Code, provides for a concept known as contributory infringement. While this applies to copyright infringement cases, the amendment may shed light on how e-commerce platforms may be held liable for trademark infringement if they, 1.) benefit from the infringing act, 2.) were aware of or made aware of the infringing activity, and, 3.) had the ability to control the activities of the principal infringer.
This finds support in cases decided in other jurisdictions where it was ruled that there should be “active” participation by the platform before it may be held liable for trademark infringement. In the 2020 case of Coty Germany GmbH versus Amazon Services Europe Sarl, a German Court held that Amazon was not liable for both a listing by a seller of unauthorized “DAVIDOFF” perfumes and storage of these products in its warehouse. The court stated that the operation of an e-commerce platform and use of trademarks in offering products for sale displayed in an online marketplace is made by the sellers who are customers of the operator of that marketplace and not by that operator of the marketplace itself.* The court further reiterated previous rulings which held that “the fact of creating the technical conditions necessary for the use of a sign and being paid for that service does not mean that the party offering the service itself uses the sign.”** It must be noted that to be liable for trademark infringement, the trademark must be used in commerce. In this case, therefore, operating an e-commerce platform per se and storing goods for such third party sellers, without being made aware of such infringement, does not constitute use of the trademark in commerce and does not automatically constitute infringement.
But is there an instance where an e-commerce platform can actually be held liable?
Interestingly, in a 2019 case also decided in Germany, a court held Amazon liable for trademark infringement. The case involved the Google search results for the mark “ORTLIEB.” When the key word “ORTLIEB” was searched on Google, it generated an Amazon-sponsored link which supposedly leads to “ORTLIEB” products. However, when the Google link leading to the Amazon website is clicked (i.e., www.amazon.de/ortlieb+fahrradtasche), the link not only directs a person to products bearing the “ORTLIEB” mark, but also includes listings of products of its competitors within Amazon. The court ruled that Ortlieb may oppose Amazon’s use of the trademark in the contested advertisements on the ground that the actual use of the trademark misleads customers who input such keywords as expect seeing “offers specifically appropriate to the notification, but who are in fact led to lists of tenders containing third-party products.”***
This ruling on “misleading activity” has yet to be tested in the Philippines.
At present, e-commerce platforms in the Philippines have started to adopt a more proactive role in the take-down of posts which are believed to infringe on intellectual property rights. This is done by putting in place systems and facilities for reporting such product listings so long as these reports are substantially supported by evidence (e.g., trademark and/or copyright registration certificates, proof that the product is counterfeit, etc.). While for some people, it may be tempting to buy counterfeit products online because of their price and convenience, consumers must always remember that there is no substitute for patronizing authentic products because of quality and safety. Doing so also rewards the creativity and effort of trademark owners in building their brands.
* ECLI:EU:C:2020:267, 02 April 2020.
** Id.
*** ZR 29/18, 25 July 2019. See http://juris.bundesgerichtshof.de/cgi-bin/rechtsprechung/document.py?Gericht=bgh&Art=en&Datum=Aktuell&nr=97816&linked=pm
The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author. This article is for general informational and educational purposes, and not offered as, and does not constitute, legal advice or legal opinion.
Joan Janneth M. Estremadura is a Senior Associate of the Intellectual Property Department of the Angara Abello Concepcion Regala & Cruz Law Offices (ACCRALAW).
THE WORLD now seems likely to have at least two effective vaccines against COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) with Monday’s announcement of positive early data from Moderna, Inc.’s 30,000-person clinical trial. The result comes a week after Pfizer, Inc. and BioNTech SE revealed a protection rate of more than 90% against disease. Moderna slightly one-upped its rivals, estimating that its shot is 94.5% effective at preventing COVID-19. Both results are highly impressive for inoculations developed at historic speed.
The second success is crucial. Manufacturing constraints mean the world needs multiple vaccines if it hopes to contain the virus. However, as promising as the vaccine news is for the fight against COVID-19, it also offers hope for our ability to respond more quickly to future pandemics. Both leading vaccines use the same promising messenger RNA technology, and their combined excellent early results suggest the world has a crucial new tool to respond quickly to diseases. Moderna shares, reflecting optimism about both its vaccine and the long-term promise of its other mRNA efforts, jumped 16% in early trading. The broader market also got a lift.
There are still unanswered questions about these vaccines. And even with two likely to become available relatively soon, the pandemic is so severe in the US and Europe, and early supplies are so limited, that they won’t help much in the near term. But there’s a reason that these shots were first, and they have provided a remarkable proof of concept for a fascinating new type of vaccine.
Messenger RNA, or mRNA, instructs cells to produce many substances that allow the body to function. These vaccines use carefully designed mRNA strands to teach cells to create a modified version of a key coronavirus protein, prompting an immune response that can fend off the real virus. They essentially turn cells into tiny drug factories. That’s a key advantage. Traditional vaccines use chunks of viruses or entire viruses that are killed or weakened, a tried-and-true process that’s often highly effective but fundamentally time-consuming.
In addition to being speedier to manufacture and develop — a feature which helped Pfizer and Moderna quickly start clinical trials — mRNA is well-suited to rapid adaptation. Instead of growing big batches of a protein or virus, drugmakers can change the instructions provided by the mRNA. That means that researchers could respond nimbly both to concerning mutations in the virus that causes COVID-19, should they arise, and that it’s an excellent platform to respond to new threats. Moderna’s result Monday was based on 95 confirmed cases, boosting confidence in the technology, and it also provided a bit of extra data Pfizer and BioNTech haven’t offered. There were 11 severe COVID cases in the trial, and all of them were in people who took a placebo rather than the vaccine, another suggestion of strong efficacy.
Some caveats remain. While neither company has reported a major safety issue so far, significantly more data needs to be collected on potential side effects, especially because the technology is novel. We still don’t know much about long-term safety and efficacy, and the technology is not in wide use. Messenger RNA is also delicate, requiring careful cold storage and handling that will complicate distribution, though Moderna’s shot is easier to handle than Pfizer’s. As for the broader promise of the technology, the successes can’t solely be attributed to mRNA magic. Years of previous work on closely related diseases such as SARS and MERS gave scientists a head start.
But with all that said, it’s hard to argue that these successes aren’t a boost to global pandemic readiness. There’s now proof that it’s possible to create a highly effective vaccine at speed, and there’s also about to be dramatically more mRNA manufacturing capacity. That means that the next time around, there’s likely to be less scrambling over limited doses. The success will prompt investment in figuring out storage problems and improving on these impressive early results.
Vaccines using mRNA are the front-runners in the race, but many other inoculations are in development. AstraZeneca PLC and Johnson & Johnson both use modified viruses to carry genetic material that prompts an immune response. It’s another approach that’s quick and adaptable, if not quite to the same extent as mRNA. They are likely to be the next to reveal data from continuing trials. The older approaches used by Novavax, Inc. and Sanofi and GlaxoSmithKline PLC may be slower and have yet to enter the final stage of testing in the US, but they can build up supplies quickly once up and running. Vaccinating the whole world will likely require all of the above approaches.
While the double dose of success from Pfizer and Moderna is great news at a time we all could use it, it’s important to remember that it will still be months before either are widely distributed. If anything, it underscores the need for effective public health measures to stop the spread. The ability to rapidly produce vaccines means many more lives can be saved, but only if countries successfully manage the difficult waiting period.
COMPETITION in the PBA Philippine Cup is now down to four teams with the TNT Tropang Giga and Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters kicking off the semifinal proceedings on Wednesday.
Set for 3:45 p.m. at the Angeles University Foundation Arena in Pampanga, the Tropang Giga and Fuel Masters, the third and second seeds, respectively, following elimination play look to draw first blood in their best-of-five semifinal joust and move a step closer to the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) All-Filipino title.
The other semifinal pairing has the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings going up against the Meralco Bolts. They play their series opener also Wednesday at 6:30 p.m.
TNT finished the elimination round with a 7-4 record, joint third place with four other teams.
But on the strength of a higher quotient it took third spot to earn a twice-to-beat advantage in the quarterfinals against the sixth-seeded Alaska Aces.
The team though saw no need to make use of the incentive as it went on to eliminate Alaska at the first instance, 104-93, on Saturday.
The Tropang Giga used a strong third-quarter push to create a wide separation from the Aces, which the latter could not make up for the rest of the way en route to the defeat.
Roger Pogoy came up big for TNT in the win, finishing with 34 points, 16 coming in their key third-quarter assault, to go along with eight rebounds, four assists and three steals in 35 minutes on the floor.
Ray Parks Jr. backstopped him with 20 points while Troy Rosario had 10 points and Poy Erram nine points and 11 rebounds.
“We’ll be ready for the semifinals,” said TNT coach Bong Ravena, who also underscored that defense has to be there for them if they want to go deeper further in the competition.
As a team, TNT is looking to win its first Philippine Cup title since the 2012-13 season.
PHOENIX Phoenix, on the other hand, wound up in a tie for first place with Barangay Ginebra at 8-3, but it had to surrender the top spot as the team lost in its lone game in the eliminations against the Kings.
Despite that, the Fuel Masters proved their mettle in their quarterfinal battle with the Magnolia Hotshots Pambansang Manok, making short work of the latter by winning, 89-88, on Saturday and finding no use for its twice-to-beat advantage.
Matthew Wright towed Phoenix to the victory, finishing with 32 points, including a clutch three-point basket with nine seconds remaining that pushed them ahead to book the win. He also had nine assists.
Jason Perkins was the other Fuel Master in double-digit scoring with 16 points.
Having booked their spot in the Final Four, Phoenix coach Topex Robinson expressed excitement and said they are looking forward to the challenge.
“It’s just so magical for us and we’re just so blessed to be here,” said Mr. Robinson, who was initially named an interim coach heading into the conference in place of Louie Alas before being elevated to full-time head coach.
Phoenix met TNT once in the elimination round and bowed, 110-91, but at that time, it still did not have do-it-all forward Calvin Abueva, who has been a game-changer for the team since returning from a 16-month league-imposed suspension.
ONE of the top volleyball stars in the land, Alyssa Valdez is excited over the possible return of action in the sport after being sidelined by the coronavirus pandemic by way of the now-professional association Premier Volleyball League (PVL).
Graced the online Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum on Tuesday, Ms. Valdez, 27, joined by Ricky Palou, president of Sports Vision, organizer of the PVL, shared that it has been a welcome change that volleyball is once again being the topic of conversation after months without action and news on it because of the health pandemic.
One of the things she is excited about is playing once again for the newly recognized pro league PVL, which finally made the decision to go professional after operating as a semi-pro league for nearly a decade.
“We are happy that we are coming back not only as volleyball players but also as professional volleyball players,” said Ms. Valdez, who plays for the Creamline Cool Smashers in the PVL.
“There is added pressure, of course, but at the end of the day it pushes us more to play better because we are now professionals,” she added.
The former Ateneo star went on to say that the PVL-turning professional will be a boon to the local volleyball community as it would provide a platform for players to improve their game as well as establish a career in the sport.
“We expect the level of play to improve with the PVL-turning professional while giving young players something to look forward to after graduation,” she said.
While also preparing to get back and play, Ms. Valdez is also readying herself for her role as the president of Spikers’ Turf, the male counterpart of the PVL, which is also eyeing to turn professional.
“I’m looking forward to more tournaments in the Spikers’ Turf. Hopefully more teams join the men’s tournament because it’s an exciting league,” she said.
The PVL traces its roots to the Shakey’s V-League in the 2000s, which featured collegiate teams from the University Athletic Association of the Philippines, National Collegiate Athletic Association, Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, and other associations.
In 2011, it turned semi-pro by welcoming corporate and non-school-based teams.
The PVL is eyeing a February or March start for its first season as a professional league.
The league, however, has asked the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) to allow PVL teams to start training before the year ends as part of their preparation.
Apart from Creamline, also competing in the PVL are the BaliPure Purest Water Defenders, BanKo Perlas Spikers, Choco Mucho Flying Titans, Chef’s Classics Lady Spikers, Motolite Volleyball Team, Philippine Air Force Lady Jet Spikers, Petro Gazz Angels, and Pacific Town-Army Lady Troopers. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo
OJ PORTERIA IS REPORTEDLY to play in Thailand after helping United City Football Club win the championship in the just-concluded PFL season. — PFL FACEBOOK PAGE
IN nearly a decade of parading his wares in the country, football star OJ Porteria is now looking for other opportunities and destinations to showcase his skills, deciding to leave the newly minted Philippines Football League (PFL) champion United City Football Club (UCFC).
In an announcement made on Twitter on Monday night, Mr. Porteria said he was leaving the country for now and beginning a new chapter in his football career.
“After nine years playing in the Philippines, it’s time to say goodbye for now. Thank you for all your love and support throughout the years. As one chapter in my career closes, another one opens and I can’t wait for the new challenge. Maraming salamat po!” Tweeted the 26-year-old Filipino-American winger.
In the last decade, Mr. Porteria has been a steady fixture in the local club football scene as well as in the national team.
He was part of Kaya FC from 2012 to 2016 which made waves in the United Football League, including winning the UFL Cup in 2015. While with the team, he scored 36 goals in 55 appearances.
In 2017, he moved to Ceres-Negros FC where he continued to make his presence felt and won more titles—three PFL titles and one Copa Paulino Alcantara.
In the just-concluded PFL season, Mr. Porteria won another PFL title with UCFC (which took over from Ceres) where he was joint fourth place in scoring with four goals in five matches. As part of the Philippine Azkals since 2012, he has had 22 appearances.
While it was saddened by the departure of Mr. Porteria, UCFC said it fully supports the decision of one its key players and wished him all the best in his new journey.
“Off to new challenges. On behalf of UCFC, we would like to thank OJ for his tremendous efforts and commitment to the club. We wish him well with his new [journey],” said UCFC in a Facebook post.
“We hope that good memories about your time with us remain beyond just scored goals and lifted trophies. Be safe and continue to be an ambassador for Philippine football. Bon voyage, OJ!” it added.
Mr. Porteria did not mention where he was going but reports have it that he is bound for Thailand. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo
THE Phoenix Suns acquired star guard Chris Paul from Oklahoma City (OKC) in a six-player trade, the Thunder announced Monday.
Paul and forward Abdel Nader are headed to the Suns in exchange for forward Kelly Oubre Jr., guards Ricky Rubio, Ty Jerome and Jalen Lecque and a 2022 first-round pick.
The deal pairs Paul with Suns phenom Devin Booker in the Phoenix backcourt. Paul is a 10-time All Star, nine-time All-NBA selection and the 2005-06 Rookie of the Year. The 35-year-old veteran brings his career averages of 18.5 points per game and 9.5 assists per game to Phoenix after one season in Oklahoma City.
Paul led the Thunder (44-28) to the postseason in the pandemic-shortened 2019-20 season before they lost a first-round playoff series to the Houston Rockets in seven games. The Wake Forest product averaged 21.3 points, 7.4 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 1.6 steals in the series.
Paul has been a model of consistency, averaging 18.7 points per game in six seasons in New Orleans (2005-11), 18.8 points in six seasons with the Los Angeles Clippers (2011-17) and 17.1 points in two seasons with the Houston Rockets (2017-19). He finished at 17.6 points and 6.7 assists per game last season with the Thunder.
Paul has averaged 9.5 assists per game over 1,020 career games to go with 4.5 rebounds and 2.2 steals.
Booker finished ninth in the league in scoring last season at 26.6 points per game, matching his career-best output from 2018-19.
The Thunder get the dynamic Oubre, who averaged a career-best 18.7 points per game last season, and veteran point guard Rubio, who doled out 8.77 assists per game last season, fourth best in the NBA, in his first year in Phoenix. The 30-year-old has averaged 11.3 points and 7.8 assists for his career.
Jerome, 23, played in 31 games last season as a rookie, averaging 3.3 points. Lecque, a 20-year-old rookie, played in just five games, averaging 2.0 points per game.
Nader, 27, is a third-year player who appeared in 55 games (six starts) last season for Oklahoma City, averaging 6.3 points per game. — Reuters
Sam Presti has always been an astute general manager. The moves he makes haven’t always struck gold. For instance, he let go of James Harden in 2012 even though a little financial creativity and, yes, a handful of hard choices could have allowed the Thunder to keep him. Then again, nobody bats a hundred percent, and he has arguably come closest out of all the front-office honchos in the National Basketball Association despite otherwise-debilitating small-market constraints. And what he hasn’t seen in stability of late, he more than makes up for with reputation, resiliency, and resourcefulness.
The last few years have been far from smooth for the Thunder. They’ve seen Kevin Durant leave to chase titles with the Warriors, Paul George to nix their royal treatment for the Clippers, and Russell Westbrook to chuck an elevated hero status in what looked to be a sinking ship for the better-situated Rockets. Yet, Presti has taken every negative development and harnessed the energy of what should have been knockout blows to create bright future after bright future. And this is precisely how he’s viewing the current offseason; he refuses to wallow in pity, instead seeing opportunity in crisis.
Already, Presti has assembled an enviable stock of draft assets that should help the Thunder as they go through a requisite rebuilding process. The pandemic-hit season should have been Year One of the elaborate plan that acknowledged the prospect of getting worse before getting better. That they didn’t get worse — and, in fact, got better — with a supposedly inferior roster is a tribute to his astute skills at the negotiating table, not to mention as a purveyor of talent. He hasn’t let that stop him from casting a moist eye on the ultimate goal, however.
Indeed, claiming the Larry O’Brien Trophy remains Presti’s primary — and, perhaps, only — consideration as he stockpiles draft assets en route. He struck a deal with the Lakers to snag a first-round pick vice Dennis Schroder. And he’s not done in this regard; dealing new acquisition Danny Green figures to net another pick. He did the same in sending Chris Paul to the Suns. The single-campaign rental of the point god has paid off handsomely, with picks upon arrival and picks in departure. Meanwhile, it’s not as if he has committed to a full-scale tanking. The players he has received in return figure to be competitive, should they not be flipped anew.
When Presti’s endgame will be is anybody’s guess. Uncertainty comes in dealing with futures. What has been clear for a while now, however, is his ascendancy in taking insurance against the attendant risks. Which is why the Thunder can never be written off. In the final analysis, he’s their best bet.
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and Human Resources management, corporate communications, and business development.
A TOWN is flooded due to water released by Magat Dam, Nov. 14. — PHILIPPINE STAR/ MICHAEL VARCAS
BARCELONA — The experience of having to respond so rapidly to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) crisis should serve as a wake-up call to accelerate action to deal with climate change, which is already hitting vulnerable communities hard, the Red Cross said on Tuesday.
In its annual World Disasters Report, the world’s largest humanitarian network said the coronavirus pandemic had shown how governments can “take unprecedented steps affecting their entire economies, and find the necessary resources to robustly face a major global threat”.
The same level of “energy and boldness” should be mobilized to curb global warming and use a window of opportunity created by the pandemic to prepare for future shocks, it added.
“A global catastrophe of the magnitude of COVID-19 could finally open this window wide enough for us to look directly into the face of the climate crisis,” the report said.
At the same time, the pandemic has exacerbated the difficulties facing poor countries and communities struggling to deal with worsening climate and weather extremes as the COVID-19 situation soaks up scarce resources, it noted.
In the first six months after the pandemic was declared in March, more than 100 disasters occurred, from floods to storms, affecting more than 50 million people, it said.
Jagan Chapagain, secretary general of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), cited Sudan as one country that had suffered such pressures — first a locust infestation, then COVID-19, followed by severe flooding.
Three months on, when he visited in October, more than 800,000 people were receiving minimal humanitarian support, with the transitional government forced to divert resources to tackle COVID-19, he added.
The economic stress exerted on poor nations by the pandemic — such as having to spend more on health while livelihoods are damaged by COVID-19 — plus a squeeze on funding for local groups often best placed to help their communities could prove catastrophic for the most vulnerable people, he warned.
“When you have a health impact, socio-economic impact and institutional impact (from coronavirus) coming together, and you have the climate crisis getting worse year by year, this is a very dangerous mix,” he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
The report included analysis showing some of the countries judged to be least able to cope with climate change impacts — from intensifying storms and heat to droughts and floods — were receiving the smallest amount of money per person to adapt.
“Resources are not reaching the countries that are most at risk and are most vulnerable,” said Mr. Chapagain, noting that even when money does arrive, it often fails to trickle down to communities on the ground.
Five out of eight countries with very high climate vulnerability — Somalia, Chad, Sudan, South Sudan and Afghanistan — received less than $1 per person in international adaptation funding in 2018, the report noted.
This is partly because aid funders often shy away from making climate investments in politically unstable countries with weak governments, fearing their money will be wasted.
The report called on donors to clearly identify the most climate-vulnerable nations and make accountable commitments to support them, including special funding windows for fragile states.
SMARTER AND GREENER The report also called for a smarter approach to financing aimed at reducing disaster risk and helping protect people from the growing damage wrought by climate change.
That could involve things like releasing aid funding ahead of an emergency, based on weather forecasts, as happened in Bangladesh before heavy monsoon rains this year.
Providing assistance early can help families can move out of harm’s way or keep vital possessions safe, reducing the cost of relief afterwards.
Helping governments with limited human and technical resources set up the systems needed to tap into international climate funding might be another solution, the report noted.
In 2017, Afghanistan, for example, created a climate finance unit that works across ministries, pushing them to take climate change into account and identifying projects for investment.
The report also highlighted the need for aid agencies to put their own climate and environmental house in order, noting a recognition in recent years that the humanitarian sector “has a responsibility to be part of the solution”.
Kirsten Hagon, a senior analyst with IFRC and editor of the report, noted it was difficult to give an accurate estimate of climate-warming emissions from humanitarian work, as organizations use different ways of measuring them.
But based on a “crude” assessment comparing the cost of humanitarian aid — nearly $29 billion in 2019 — to global GDP (gross domestic product), the report said the sector could be responsible for up to 0.03% of global emissions, a “modest, but not negligible” share.
There are many ways that could be reduced — for example, by sourcing relief goods instead of flying them in, providing cash rather than physical supplies or powering field operations with solar energy rather than fossil fuels, the Red Cross said.
To reduce environmental damage, agencies can do things like cutting back on plastic packaging in aid kits and providing displaced communities with alternatives to cutting down wood for heat and cooking.
“Our contribution to the climate crisis may not be that big, but we have to lead by example,” said Mr. Chapagain, adding the Red Cross had launched an effort to make its own practices greener.— Thomson Reuters Foundation
