Following the successful accomplishment of Project Local Adaptation to Water Access (LAWA) piloted in Ifugao last year, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) expands its implementation to the six (6) provinces of Cordillera Administrative Region.
Aiming to address water security and food insufficiency, the Department incorporated Project Breaking Insufficiency Through Nutritious Harvest for the Impoverished (BINHI) for this year’s regional-wide implementation covering 213 barangays in 32 municipalities of the Cordillera Region.
As of May 2023, there are 8,381 partner-beneficiaries who will be benefiting from Project LAWA at BINHI under the DSWD’s Risk Resiliency Program (RRP) through Cash-for-Training and Work (CFTW).
“Kaya po partner-beneficiaries ang tawag natin sa kanila dahil sila ang katuwang natin sa pag-implement at pagmanage ng ating Project LAWa at BINHI. Kailangan angkinin ng community ang proyekto. Once na naari ng community ang proyekto ay mamamaintain nila ito upang masiguro ang kahandaan ng patubig at pagkain kahit na may climate crisis,” explained Special Assistant to the Secretary for the Project LAWA at BINHI, Dr. Maria Isabel Lanada.
Cash-for-Training in full swing
Through the Cash-for-Training (CFT) component of the Project LAWA at BINHI, the partner-beneficiaries are provided with learning development sessions to strengthen their capabilities in advancing environmental protection actions. Discussions covers Disaster Risk Reduction and Management laws and frameworks, climate change and its impact in vulnerable communities, administrative requirements, project planning, and other technical topics related to water systems and gardening.
The DSWD Field Office CAR teamed up with the Local Government Units for the facilitation of the three-day training. As of this release, the Provincial Technical Working Groups in Apayao, Benguet, Ifugao, Kalinga, and Mountain Province are currently conducting CFT in the covered municipalities.
The Cash-for-Work (CFW), the second stage of the Project implementation, ensues after the training. For 15 days partner-beneficiaries will be carrying-out their proposed sub-projects such as construction of small farm reservoir, repairs and rehabilitation of water harvesting facilities, aqua/hydroponics, aquaculture, school-based and community-based vegetable gardening, planting of disaster resilient crops, fruit-bearing trees, and mangroves, and vermi-composting among others.
For this year’s batch, the partner beneficiaries of Municipality of Atok is first to complete the 15-days cash-for-work. Meanwhile, the CFW in Municipality of Asipulo and Hingyon in Ifugao is set to be completed by last week of May.
Those who have completed the CFW are currently preparing for the conduct of another two-days CFT for project sustainability planning and turn-over ceremonies.# DSWD FIELD OFFICE CAR, SOCIAL MARKETING UNIT, IO II MYLYN M. BONGSIAN
