The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Field Office Caraga launched Project LAWA at BINHI (Local Adaptation to Water Access and Breaking Insufficiency through Nutritious Harvest for the Impoverished) in Barangay Union and Mahayahay, Lingig, Surigao del Sur, on May 17, 2024.

 

To ensure that the beneficiaries understand the project “LAWA at BINHI,” which they will be involved in, Dr. Maria Isabel Lanada, the Special Assistant to the Secretary (SAS) for special projects from the DSWD Central Office, first discussed disaster risk reduction and climate change and then introduced to them the RRP.

The Local Adaptation of Water Access and Breaking Insufficiency through Nutritious Harvest for the Impoverished, or Project LAWA at BINHI, aims to ensure that no one goes hungry by providing opportunities for planting to mitigate food shortages during disasters and maximize the availability of water resources.

 

The ceremonial launching was graced by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Central Office’s Special Assistant to the Secretary (SAS) for special projects, Dr. Maria Isabel Lanada, together with DSWD Field Office Caraga’s Assistant Regional Director for Operations, Jean Paul Parajes, regional and municipal RRP focal persons, Mayor Elmer Evangelio (Lingig), provincial board members, and barangay captains of Union and Mahayahay.

 

The barangays Union and Mahayahay in the municipality of Lingig are pioneering the implementation of Project LAWA at BINHI in the province of Surigao del Sur.

 

The said project spans 20 days of implementation. It includes a 3-day training and 15 days of work during which participants will construct and rehabilitate small farm reservoirs and tend to their abaca, vegetables, and fruit-bearing trees, and a 2-day follow-up training focusing on teaching them the project’s sustainability.

 

“Rest assured that we will fully support this project. I will find time and focus on this. We are grateful and look forward to more projects like this from DSWD being implemented in Lingig,” Mayor Elmer Evangelio expressed his commitment to the project.

“The government offered us guidance, and we initially resisted. Thank you, mayor, our barangay captain, and DSWD. I was lost, a gambler and a drunkard, but this training has opened my eyes. I realize now that my actions were wrong. To my neighbors in Union, let’s plant vegetables so we have something to eat. Thank you so much, DSWD.” Clemencia Jimenez, from Barangay Mahayahay, shared her takeaways from the 3-day training.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Field Office Caraga emphasizes that the project is a collaborative effort between the agency and the partner beneficiaries to fully reap the long-term benefits of water availability and bountiful harvests.