Tetangco as new BSP Governor
From Within
The signature of Bangko Sentral Governor Rafael Buenaventura will soon disappear from the face of Philippine peso bills when he retires midyear.
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| Tetangco says President Arroyo's choice of a career officer like him is a vote of confidence on the bureaucracy's ability to produce good leaders |
Come 1 July, Amando M. Tetangco Jr. will become the second Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor to rise from the rank of central bank Deputy Governor, like Gabriel Singson 12 years ago. At 52, “Say” has spent 31 years at the central bank, where he currently oversees banking services, economic research, and treasury operations. He represents the Bangko Sentral in the NEDA Board, the National Food Authority Council, and the Industrial Guarantee and Loan Fund Review Committee.
In 1992 to 1994, he served as Alternate Executive Director of the International Monetary Fund in Washington, DC. Back in 1974, he worked with the Management Services Division of SGV and Co. for one year. He graduated AB Economics cum laude from Ateneo de Manila University. As a central Bank scholar, he obtained an MA in Public Policy and Administration with concentration in Development Economics from the University of Wisconsin.
Governor Buenaventura said President Arroyo’s timely announcement of Tetangco’s appointment “eliminates speculation on the continuity of market reforms that the BSP is now putting in place.” He said Tetangco is one of the principal architects of the far-reaching reforms BSP is spearheading to foster the development of the domestic capital market, strengthen the banking sector, and amend the BSP charter to make it more responsive to the demands of a changing environment.
Kyoto Treaty
Air Freshener
After seven years since its inception in 1997, the highly controversial Kyoto Treaty finally took effect last 16 February 2005. Some 141 countries acceded to the treaty, including the Philippines as well as 30 industrialized economies. Russia’s accession last November 2004 was the final seal to warrant its legitimacy because the treaty should be signed by 55% of those responsible for greenhouse gas emissions in 1990 in order to create an impact on the environment.
The Kyoto Treaty, in essence, mandates signatories to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by 5.2% from the 1990s level, which is a reduction of 29% from current emission levels.
The highly controversial environmental treaty, which is also the first global, legally binding, environmental treaty, took quite a few years before coming into full force because of doubts over its effectivity in dealing with climate change and global warming. A major setback was the refusal of the United States, the largest greenhouse gas polluter, to support the treaty because of its adverse impact on their economy.
Australia, which has a large coal industry, is also a non-signatory. Instead, it devised its own “National Greenhouse Strategy” which aims to reduce only 10.1% of greenhouse gas emissions. This strategy is actually an 8% increase over its emission level in 1990. China and India, also considered large greenhouse gases polluters, are also non-signatories.
In order to help “pollutant” countries meet their targets, the Kyoto Treaty has provisions for carbon emissions trading and the Clean Development Mechanism. These provisions allow industrialized countries to invest in environmentally safe projects in developing countries for which they are given carbon credits. The Philippines stands to benefit in CDM projects as they bring investments from industrialized countries aimed at sustainable development
The Philippines is not required to reduce its greenhouse gases emissions, but the Senate filed a resolution calling for the ratification of the Kyoto Treaty and the Montreal Protocol, both of which aim to reduce greenhouse gases. Moreover, the Clean Air Act of 1999 has provisions for monitoring greenhouse gases in order to manage the country's emission levels.
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