By Gina Dizon
The directions of
ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) 2015 is too good to be
true. With free flow of goods meaning zero tariff, free services, free
flow of investments, skilled persons and visa- free mobility within ASEAN
countries, life seemingly shall be good and well.
So
we expect our woven products from different parts of Mountain Province and
the wider Cordillera, coffee Arabica from Sagada, barako coffee and
potatoes from Benguet, jams and jellies, balatinao and other varieties
of heirloom rice freely circulating out from the country to reach
other ASEAN countries and so with ASEAN products freely coming here.
Yet
Manang Raymunda who manages a weaving enterprise is wary and hesitant of
other products coming in and swallowing woven products in the locality.
Department
of Trade and Industry (DTI)director Juliet Lucas, in a press
conference with the Montanosa Press Club (MPCI) said the
quality of our products is the edge.
And
if the quality of other products is equally as good, that is what ASEAN 2015
expects, competition.
Customers
will look for what is either durable, cheaper or more unique. Competition then
means packaging. And with packaging, the better and the more
saleable with the flare and popularity of the product gets more sales.
Are Mountain Province products being packaged good and soaring.
Mountain
Province being a ‘weavers’ paradise, an Arabica coffee center of the north,
apart from being a watershed cradle’ sells woven products and yes the
most trumpeted Arabica coffee.
Volume
is the question. Are we producing enough? While there is no study to note if
Mountain Province is producing a lot for outside buyers along with
buyers’ demand, a quick look at coffee- producing farms and weaving
enterprises note that some enterprises run out of volume
while others have products stashed up their shelves. Generally, volume is
a question.
Ms
Juliet Lucas said skilled workers are needed. A weaving
enterprise manager here in the tourist town of Sagada for example
said she wants her weavers to stay with her. Surely, when one is already
skilled in weaving and another skilled in sewing those precious bags and
wallets, a manager will not like her to leave her business. And weaving
enterprises here are flourishing with already 15 of them from the 1980s’ lone
Sagada Weaving. More weavers are needed. And not only weavers but skilled
weavers. Weaving being a manual job takes hands to do this day in, day out.
Capital
is equally a need among emerging entrepreneurs in food processing, souvenir
items making, silk screening, T-shirt printing/painting, etag production,
muscovado production, jams and jellies, aside from weaving and coffee
production which needs roasters. Surely, capital is a need to let initiatives
kick off and existing ones be equally supported.
Interventions
from government comes as a much needed ingredient in forms of
capital and skills trainings including marketing. DTI has its
training and marketing support. The Department of Science and
Technology (DOST) provides equipment. The Department of Labor and
Employment (DOLE) provides capital and so with other government
interventions. With this and the government’s thrust to yank poverty out
from millions of its inhabitants from this poverty ridden country, it is
equally expected that their interventions are delivered in quantity
and quality so to see realization from what goals and visions say.
Which
reminds me of the intentions of the National Alleviation Poverty Commission
(NAPC) in partnership with the Department of Interior and Local
Government (DILG) and other line agencies supporting programs budgeted by local government
units and civil society organizations (CSOs) in what is called
bottoms up budgeting or BUB to alleviate poverty and spur economy.
A
quick look at Sagada local government unit on where it puts BuB processed funds goes to a big bulk in farm to market roads (FMRs )and pathways seemingly
with the future seeing more and more roads and pathways, as if roads and more
roads and pathways is the answer to poverty. What more, with the Cordillera
Highland Agricultural Resource Management Project (CHARMP) and the PAMANA
program of the Office of the Presidential Assistant in the Peace Process
(OPAPP) already providing FMRs apart from other programs of
the Department of Agriculture and regular funds of LGUs, FMRs is a
much abused project. You will wonder why and of course know the answer
why, so that is why President Noynoy Aquino pushes his slogan
Matuwid na Daan.
With
the very limited BuB identified funds for Sagada LGU for one, FMRs took a big
slice in the 2013 to 2014 BUB itemized projects Next came
waterworks and schools as if there is no budget from the
National Irrigation Authority (NIA) and the Department of Education
(DEPEd) to be sourced from.
The
first P8 million in 2013 itemized the biggest chunk of P3 million
for FMRs where some funds went to an already budgeted P3.5 million
Ato-Engan FMR and an already budgeted P3.5 million Canipawan-Mabbay
FMR sourced from a questionable realigned P10 million from a P15 million
PAMANA funded Tanulong-Madongo road.
Another
P2 million for water pipes from the same 2013 BuB funding added
funds to the already allotted 36 million peso Boasaw works sourced
from CHARMP’s P18 million and P18 million from the Priority
Development Assistant Funds (PDAF) of Senator TeofistoGuingona, and only
P2.5 for improving small scale business. The NAPC
funds here became a ready source for standing projects which are
either poorly budgeted or an appendage budget raising questions of NAPC
funds being a ready source for double funding.
Not
contented with the P3 million FMRs, the LGU of Sagada budgeted
P7 million for FMRs, 2 million for school buildings, and only 800
thousand pesos for scale scale business from the 15 million NAPC funds of
2014. And a zero budget for small scale industries in
the 2015 budget. It is interesting to note if the small scale industries and
the civil society organizations and peoples organizations participating in the
BUB are happy with the itemized projects.
Authorities
monitoring and managing the BuB funds however are
not happy. They came out with a circular for 2015 Bottoms Up Budgetting
slashing farm to market roads, school buildings, training centers,
multipurpose buildings, rescue equipment and directed that what the funds are meant to be for projects that generate jobs and alleviate poverty.
The
2015 budget of the 15 million BuB funds for Sagada then
itemized P4 million flood control projects, P5.5 million for irrigation
canals, P1.4 million for waterworks and P1.9 for core roads and a ZERO budget
for small scale industries.
What
does NAPC and DILG think about these flood control projects which can be
funded by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH),
waterworks which can be funded by WATSAN and irrigation projects which
can be funded by the DA and the National Irrigation Authority. These to
add to the LGU’s regular 20% development fund from its Internal Revenue
Allotment (IRA).
It's a long way for ASEAN 2015 and its ideals to see these blooming in Mountain
Province for one. Talk about volume of products, number of workers,
availability of capital, marketing opportunities, buyer’s preference, and
coherent and consistent decision making and implementation of
government interventions leading to same directions.
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