Phillippines - Nuts and Bolts

The world's second-largest archipelago after Indonesia, the Republic of the Philippines comprises 300,000 square kilometers (777,001 square miles) on 7,107 islands in the South China Sea between Borneo to the southwest and Taiwan to the north; only 4,600 are named and a mere 1,000 are inhabited. The islands are in three main groups: the Luzon group, the Mindanao group and the Sulu and Visayan group. The country's 65.2 million inhabitants speak Tagalog and English. Roman Catholics comprise 83 percent of the population, Protestants 9 percent, Muslims 5 percent, and Buddhists 3 percent. There are more than 100 ethnic groups in the country.

The Philippines has one of the developing world's highest literacy rates. Nearly every child in the country finishes primary school and nearly three-quarters of the population completes secondary school. The education system is based on the U.S. model. Although relatively highly educated, about 50 percent of Filipinos live at or below the poverty line, namely because economic expansion falls short of the country's population growth rate. The official currency is the Philippine peso. Approximately 26 pesos equal US$1. Hard foreign currency and traveler's checks are easily exchanged at banks, hotels and authorized money changers throughout the country. Credit cards are also now widely accepted.

Local time in the Philippines is GMT plus eight hours, i.e., exactly 13 hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time. Manila is in the same time zone as Beijing, Taipei, Macau, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore and Hong Kong, but one hour ahead of Seoul and Tokyo. It is one hour ahead of Bangkok and Jakarta, and one and a half hours ahead of Yangon.

The local water is generally potable, except in remote rural areas. Hours of business in the Philippines are from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, with most offices closed from noon to 1 p.m. or so. Banks open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Shops in major tourist centers open at 9 or 10 a.m. until at least 7 p.m. daily.

Telephone, telex and fax services in the Philippines are surprisingly poor, and communication with the outside world is slower than you'll find in other parts of the Far East. Overseas calls take from 30 minutes to an hour to put through and are expensive, although IDD has arrived at the better hotels.

The local current is 220V/50 cycles-when there is power. One of the biggest infrastructural problems in the Philippines is electricity. The country experiences frequent and lengthy power outages on 258 out of the 297 working days each year.

Although the Philippines exports copper and is the world's largest supplier of refractory chrome, perhaps 90 percent of the country's natural resources have yet to be tapped, as the Philippines hasn't been largely surveyed.

Embassy Locations

United States Embassy

1201 Roxas Boulevard-Ermita 1000

Manila, The Philippines

Tel.: (63-2) 523-1001

Fax: (63-2) 522-4361

http://www.usia.gov/posts/manilaemb/

The Canadian Consulate

Fourth floor, Philippine Air Lines Building

Ayala Avenue

Makati

Tel.: 876-536.