DavNor DOLE provides banca engines, fishing materials to Panabo fisherfolk

DAVAO DEL NORTE, February 17 (PIA) - - The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) turned over on February 13, nine banca engines to Gamay na Organisasyon sa Mangingisda ug Sanktuaryo (GUGMASAN), a fisherfolk organization based in Panabo City.

Lym Ongoy, DOLE Davao del Norte information officer, said that the facilities were granted to GUGMASAN as livelihood assistance to the fisherfolk.

“Our office has always been supporting the poor, vulnerable and marginalized workers for capacity-building in our program – DOLE Integrated Livelihood and Emergency Employment Program (DILEEP),” Ongoy said.

He disclosed that the project cost P 161,390 and additional fishing paraphernalia amounting to around P 51,000 will also be provided to the association.

Ongoy also bared that the City Government of Panabo added one banca engine that was given to the association.

“Since we cannot provide an engine for each member, we agreed that it will be utilized by the members in an equipment rental scheme, with which they are the ones who will patronize it and given priority,” he said.

He added that based on their study, the fisherfolk were renting engines from other sources prior to the turn-over.

GUGMASAN is a fisherfolk association with 53 members that is being registered through DOLE last 2014.

During the turn-over, Panabo City Councilor Renante Bangoy advised the association to properly care for the facilities given to them.

“Hopefully, you will take this equipment as if you bought them with your hard-earned money because sometimes we often value less those that are just easily given to us specially by the government,” Bangoy said.

Meanwhile, Ongoy also revealed that the DOLE Davao del Norte will implement a total of P 15.359-million Grassroots Participatory Budgeting (GPB) projects for this year.

The amount covered projects that will be implemented in Asuncion worth P 1.043-million, Panabo City with P1-million, Tagum City with P10.016-million, New Corella with P1-million and Talaingod with P1.8-million. (PIA11, Michael Uy)