New report on lending apps fiasco offers recommendations to gov’t
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Non-profit group Foundation for Media Alternatives (FMA) has released a new report on the mobile lending issue, which has been lingering in the last couple of years due allegations of debt-shaming and other forms of harassment.FA-FMA-loan-apps-report-digital-share
The report, titled “Loan apps: Financial inclusion at what cost?”, is the culmination of a study that was launched in late 2019 after numerous loan apps in the country became the subject of thousands of complaints.
The report delves into the underlying causes that spurred the growth of the digital lending industry, zeroing in on the popularity of microloans and the apps that have made them accessible to populations without access to traditional creditors.
Protecting health workers and their data By JESSAMINE PACIS
Published February 2, 2021 2:26pm In the 2020 report by Oxford Languages, one cluster of words considered significant for the previous year relates to the health workers of the world. It’s supposed to reflect their indispensable role during this very trying time of dealing with a raging pandemic. Unfortunately, despite their supposed importance, health workers are not exactly getting any favors. Here in the Philippines, one could argue that they are actually among those who experience the most discrimination and other types of abuse during this same period. It is, without a doubt, a heavy burden, especially when one considers the fact that it is already on top of the physical, mental, and emotional toll wrought by their constant presence in the frontlines of this “war”, made even worse by the very little support they receive from the government.
ICT group presses Congress to pass bills on Open Access, Faster Internet Services
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The Better Broadband Alliance (BBA) has called on Congress to pass the Open Access in Data Transmission and Faster Internet Services bills to address poor Internet access, especially in the rural areas.
In a letter sent to House Speaker Lord Allan Velasco and Senate President Vicente Sotto III, BBA urged the passage of two key policy reforms to heed Pres. Rodrigo Duterte’s repeated calls to improve telecommunications and Internet services.
Citing data from various sources, BBA claimed that Covid-19 and the lockdown restrictions have forced many sectors to deliver services online and revealed the poor state of Internet access. Millions of Filipinos are still unable to access the Internet, including 55% of adult Filipinos, 82% of households, and 83% of all enrolled students in public schools.