Butuan City- A total of thirty-eight (38) projects amounting to Php 27,080,000.00 were realized in 2013 through the active participation of the grassroots sector in Caraga with the inclusive growth-implementation strategy of the KALAHI CIDSS- National Community-Driven Development Program (KC-NCDDP) under the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).
DSWD-XIII Regional Director Minda Brigoli said that funding source of the said projects were from the Grassroots Participatory Budgeting Process (GPBP) of the national government.
“Most of the implemented projects are day care centers (DCCs). Others include rehabilitation of early childhood care centers, acquisition of learning materials for some DCCs, livelihood center, evacuation center, and multi-purpose halls.” Brigoli disclosed.
“In Caraga region, 12 areas were recipients of the KC-NCDDP-facilitated GPBP projects which are the following: Butuan City, Cabadbaran City, Jabonga, Surigao City, Gigaquit, Basilisa, Dinagat, Esperanza, Loreto (AgSur), Barobo, Tagbina, and Bislig City,” she added.
KC-NCDDP Regional Program Manager and Assistant Regional Director for Operations Mita Lim mentioned that the engagement in KC-NCDDP-led GPBP areas started in March 2013 of which a regional level GPBP consultation was conducted.
“All the projects were completed in May 2014 and series of inaugurations and turn-over ceremonies were conducted from April to July 2014,” Lim quipped.
“Fulfillment and satisfaction were strongly felt by the community volunteers in the barangays who implemented the projects. Most of them commented that such experience of leading and managing government-funded projects was their first time and their community’s fresh experience as well,” she shared.
According to Jean Paul Parajes, DSWD-GPBP focal person, the active participation of the barangay/municipal/city local government units (LGUs) through the provision of technical assistance to the volunteers and the local counterpart contributions (LCCs) for the projects should also be recognized.
“CDD became a venue in building our capacities and actualizing our full potentials. With this project of the national government, we are well-informed of the whereabouts of the intended funds and we are ensured that those funds are utilized fully for its very purpose. Of course, we are the ones who managed it.” testified Joel P. Bagayawa, community volunteer in Libuac, Surigao City.
GPBP, formerly Bottom-Up-Budgeting (BUB), is an anti-poverty program of the national government. This program is by nature participatory as its prime movers are the grassroots sector, especially the Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), in partnership with the LGUs and the national government. ###(Social Marketing Unit/DSWD Field Office Caraga)
