COTABATO CITY—The Department of Agriculture, through its Philippine Rural Development Project, generated 11,510 jobs in various regions of Mindanao for the past three years, a project executive reported here recently.
PRDP Mindanao Cluster Director Lealyn Ramos told the media that “4,175 skilled workers—including engineers, welders, masons, steel men, heavy equipment operators, drivers, carpenters and foremen—were employed while 7,335 non-skilled persons [like laborers and helpers] were hired by the project during the period.”
Ramos said the project hired at least 1,506 workers who were paid P29.69 million in 2013; some 5,232 workers were paid P105.11 million in 2014; close to 3,900 workers received P95.44 million in 2015; and in the first quarter of 2016, some 977 workers who got P23.19 million.
She said the workers were involved in infrastructure activities under the Intensified Building-Up of Infrastructure and Logistics for Development (IBUILD) Component, such as farm-to-market roads, bridges, irrigation systems, and potable water systems in collaboration with local government units and private contractors.”
Engineer Ma. Fe Gabunales, IBUILD component chief, said some 50 percent of hired construction workers were locally secured “as part of our implementation agreement to promote employment and project ownership among the locals.”
Ramos explained that the PRDP—jointly financed by the World Bank, the national government, and local governments in the Southern Philippines—“is a six-year special program of the agriculture department focused on establishing a modern, value chain-oriented and climate-resilient agriculture and fisheries sector.”