31 August 2005
Livelihood loans to keep children away from tobacco farms
By Sarah Perez-Oballes
LIVELIHOOD projects of tobacco farming families in Ilocos Sur and La Union received P300,000 from the Department of Labor and Employment – Region 1 under its Eliminating Child Labor in the Tobacco Industry (ECLTI) Project recently.
The Balaoan ECLTI Beneficiaries Association of La Union (BEBALU) in Balaoan, La Union; the San Juan ECLTI Beneficiary Association of Ilocos Sur (SJEBAIS) in San Juan, Ilocos Sur; and the San Emilio ECLTI Parents Association (SEEPA) in San Emilio, Ilocos Sur were each awarded a livelihood assistance of P100,000 during simple ceremonies held recently in these towns. Present at the awarding ceremonies were local executives of the respective municipalities; DOLE-RO1 personnel led by Dr. Ma. Concepcion Garna, OIC of the Workers Amelioration and Welfare Division; representatives from the Bureau of Women and Young Workers; and other LGU personnel.
A goat-raising project will be undertaken by the 17 project beneficiaries of BEBALU in Balaoan. The municipality and the provincial government provided counterpart funding for the purchase of materials such as electrical wire, cyclone wire, and drinking palls, while the association provided the project site and contributed the labor requirement.
Similarly, 25 beneficiaries of SJEBAIS in San Juan, Ilocos Sur will have goat and hog raising as livelihood project. Counterpart funding of the municipal government included the construction of the animal corral and the feeds worth P26,000. Renato Aguilar, president of the association, accepted the cheque awarded by DOLE on behalf of the organization.
Twenty-five beneficiaries will also engage in goat and poultry raising project of the SEEPA in San Emilio, Ilocos Sur. The municipal government provided counterpart assistance through the construction of corrals and chicken coops. SEEPA President Lonarda Go received the cheque for their organization. The provincial government is also set to give its counterpart assistance to both organizations in the form of livestock medicines and vitamins, feds, and other construction materials.
The livelihood grant is a continuation of the assistance given by the ECLT Foundation, a Swiss-based funding agency which initiated the project in Africa, Latin America and Asia, to 100 tobacco child laborers in the Ilocos Region who were earlier granted a two-year educational assistance each for studies in either the primary or secondary level or for a vocational/technical course.
Two more associations in Pinili, Ilocos Norte and Alcala, Pangasinan will be awarded the livelihood assistance. The municipalities are the selected pilot areas in the region for the implementation of the ECLTI Project.
The livelihood assistance is given to families of the scholars in a continuing program of assistance aimed at keeping the child laborers off the tobacco farms.
LIVELIHOOD projects of tobacco farming families in Ilocos Sur and La Union received P300,000 from the Department of Labor and Employment – Region 1 under its Eliminating Child Labor in the Tobacco Industry (ECLTI) Project recently.
The Balaoan ECLTI Beneficiaries Association of La Union (BEBALU) in Balaoan, La Union; the San Juan ECLTI Beneficiary Association of Ilocos Sur (SJEBAIS) in San Juan, Ilocos Sur; and the San Emilio ECLTI Parents Association (SEEPA) in San Emilio, Ilocos Sur were each awarded a livelihood assistance of P100,000 during simple ceremonies held recently in these towns. Present at the awarding ceremonies were local executives of the respective municipalities; DOLE-RO1 personnel led by Dr. Ma. Concepcion Garna, OIC of the Workers Amelioration and Welfare Division; representatives from the Bureau of Women and Young Workers; and other LGU personnel.
A goat-raising project will be undertaken by the 17 project beneficiaries of BEBALU in Balaoan. The municipality and the provincial government provided counterpart funding for the purchase of materials such as electrical wire, cyclone wire, and drinking palls, while the association provided the project site and contributed the labor requirement.
Similarly, 25 beneficiaries of SJEBAIS in San Juan, Ilocos Sur will have goat and hog raising as livelihood project. Counterpart funding of the municipal government included the construction of the animal corral and the feeds worth P26,000. Renato Aguilar, president of the association, accepted the cheque awarded by DOLE on behalf of the organization.
Twenty-five beneficiaries will also engage in goat and poultry raising project of the SEEPA in San Emilio, Ilocos Sur. The municipal government provided counterpart assistance through the construction of corrals and chicken coops. SEEPA President Lonarda Go received the cheque for their organization. The provincial government is also set to give its counterpart assistance to both organizations in the form of livestock medicines and vitamins, feds, and other construction materials.
The livelihood grant is a continuation of the assistance given by the ECLT Foundation, a Swiss-based funding agency which initiated the project in Africa, Latin America and Asia, to 100 tobacco child laborers in the Ilocos Region who were earlier granted a two-year educational assistance each for studies in either the primary or secondary level or for a vocational/technical course.
Two more associations in Pinili, Ilocos Norte and Alcala, Pangasinan will be awarded the livelihood assistance. The municipalities are the selected pilot areas in the region for the implementation of the ECLTI Project.
The livelihood assistance is given to families of the scholars in a continuing program of assistance aimed at keeping the child laborers off the tobacco farms.
