This Week in Cebu (September 1 to 7, 2019)

It will be a gloomy week for the Queen City of the South as clouds hover above the city the whole time. Meanwhile, thunderstorms are expected during the first three days of the week. But the sun will make a brief appearance on Wednesday before rain clouds start to gather once again on Thursday. Residents and visitors of Cebu will have another short respite from the rains on Friday with the reappearance of the sun in the morning. Saturday will be a different story as rain clouds stage a comeback over the weekend. Temperatures for the week will be from 24°C and 33°C [1].

To deal with a burgeoning traffic problem in the city, the Cebu City government is set to host a traffic summit on September 20. Aside from the Talisay City and Mandaue City local governments, transport groups, such as taxi and bus operators, were also invited to the summit. Cebu City Mayor Edgardo Labella said the traffic summit aims to create an integrated solution to the traffic problem in metro Cebu. While it may not result in the implementation of a traffic plan, the mayor said the summit will help identify the causes of the problem as well as potential short-term and long-term solutions. Also invited in the traffic summit are other stakeholders, including the Philippine National Police, Cebu Contractors Association, Traffic Patrol Group, and Mall Operators Association [2].

The provincial government of Cebu has ordered the monitoring of all seaports and the Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) to prevent the entry of raw and processed meat products infected with the African swine fever. Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia directed the Provincial African Swine Fever Task Force (PASFTF) to strictly monitor all ports of entry to protect the swine industry of the province. She also called for the creation of a task force to deal with the issue. The governor also said the issue should be addressed and concrete action should be taken to protect the hog industry of the city. Collaboration among different agencies was also necessary to protect Cebu, which is the biggest pork-producing province in Central Visayas [3].

Two days after the cancellation of flights to Hong Kong, the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) management announced the resumption of regular flights to one of the busiest airports in the world. While normal schedules have resumed, officials said there may be some delays due to continuing protests at the Hong Kong International Airport. Officials encouraged travelers to coordinate with their airlines for additional flight information. Flights to Hong Kong were initially canceled after the departure area of the Hong Kong International Airport was blocked by protestors on August 12 [4].

Cebu City will play host to the 6th Philippine Farm Tourism Conference from November 6 to 8. Organized by the International School on Sustainable Tourism (ISST), the conference aims to increase interest in agritourism as an activity in achieving food security. ISST President Mina Gabor said the conference will also make the Philippines the ecotourism and agritourism leader in Southeast Asia. Experts will discuss farm tourism and edible landscaping success stories. The conference will also look for ways of making farming attractive to the youth. Aside from the ISST, the conference is also presented by the Department of Tourism, Department of Agriculture, Department of Trade and Industry, Cebu provincial government, and the Cebu City government [5].

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