The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Field Office MIMAROPA recently spearheaded a series of provincial consultation meetings for the implementation of Local Adaptation to Water Access (LAWA) and Breaking Insufficiency through Nutritious Harvest for the Impoverished (BINHI) in Occidental Mindoro, Palawan, and Oriental Mindoro on April 19, 30 and May 3, 2024, respectively in collaboration with the concerned Provincial Government Offices.
In Occidental Mindoro, the DSWD team made a courtesy visit to Hon. Michael O. Diaz, Municipal Mayor of Paluan to consult and deliberate the implementation of Cash-for-Training and Work (CFT/W) initiatives and discussed collaborative efforts for implementation.
Present during the visit were representatives from Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office (MSWDO), Municipal Agriculture (MAO), and Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office (MDRRMO) who expressed their support to the project.
Other Local Government Units (LGUs) that were visited include the Municipality of San Jose, Rizal, Sta Cruz, and Abra De Ilog.
In Palawan, preparatory activities also commenced in the Municipality of Brooke’s Point with the consultation meeting with Hon. Mayor Cesareo R. Benedito Jr., that discussed the objectives of the project and the expected results in combating water insufficiency and food insecurity.
The project was presented to the Sangguniang Bayan members during its regular session and urged the approval to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the DSWD to signal the collaboration.
Further, site validation was conducted in Barangays Mambalot and Ipilan, Brooke’s Point, Palawan and selected barangays in Occidental Mindoro to assess the suitability of the areas for LAWA implementation with representatives from the MAO and MSWDO which underscores the collaborative effort behind the project’s success.
Synergy is now shaping between the DSWD and the Provincial Government of Oriental Mindoro with DSWD provincial staff working on the preparatory stage of the project.
With recent developments and collaboration of DSWD with partner LGUs and National Government Agencies, the project LAWA and BINHI is expected to be completed within the months of May and June this year that will benefit the poor, vulnerable and the disadvantaged sectors of the society, especially in the affected provinces of MIMAROPA region.
Project LAWA at BINHI is a project under the Risk Resiliency Program (RRP) that utilizes a cash-for-training and cash-for-work modality and serves as a proactive intervention and sustainable solution to combat hunger, alleviate poverty, and reduce economic vulnerability exacerbated by climate change and disasters.
