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Monday, August 07, 2006
Cauayan's garment industry gaining ground in export biz
By Danny B. Dangcalan
THE garment industry in Cauayan town has been gaining popularity since it was established last year.
It has provided its residents with another livelihood program, which earns a steady income.
Before the establishment of the garment industry in Cauayan, the residents' main sources of income were farming and fishing.
But since both livelihood does not provide income on a regular basis, many women, mostly mothers, had to look for lucrative jobs in Bacolod City or in Manila.
To address the problem, the Cauayan municipal government thru the leadership of Mayor Jerry Tabujara, tied up with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to initiate the four batches of Skills Training on Smocking and Embroidery in 2005.
The training was implemented in four barangays of Cauayan.
It later produced 106 graduates who became sub-contractors of Ace Apparel Associates, a major exporter of smocked and embroidered children's clothings in the Bacolod City.
Later, though, a problem was observed.
The sewers, upon finishing a product, will have to deliver them to Ace Apparel in Bacolod City for quality control. However, not all items presented were approved for exporting. And so the productivity of the smockers and sewers were affected, which resulted to lower net earnings.
Moreover, the trip in delivering the products to the company would take them three hours, and having higher social cost since these mothers have to leave their children at home.
The system also resulted to other problems for exporters. Among these were high labor turn-over, weak quality control, high transport costs, and losses in raw materials as experienced on its product delivery from Cauayan to Bacolod.
Later, the ACE Apparel, upon the suggestion of the DTI, made Cauayan as the center of quality control in its Southern Negros operations, from Kabankalan to Sipalay City.
The LGU of Cauayan for its part, has provided a space near the municipal hall to house the sewing machines, and also installed lighting and electrical outlets.
A 20-day skills training on high-speed sewing was then conducted in November last year.
At present, the garment center has a workforce of 130 employees. The amount saved in transport and airfreight likewise reduced the overhead cost of delivery expenses.
The garment center in Cauayan has also generated an additional of 20 high-speed sewing machines, which resulted to a 50 percent increase in the productivity of its workers. The improved production system has resulted to the increase of the workers' income.
The success of garment industry in Cauayan is an inspiration to everyone. The strong linkage of the local government and private sectors can make a change in the lives of our indigents people.
Just Thursday last week, the Regional Development Council (RDC) 6 conferred to Cauayan the "Best Public Sector Project Award" in a ceremony held at the Sarabia Manor Hotel and Convention Center in Iloilo
City.
Cauayan won in the municipality category. The first ever regional search for excellence in governance is in partnership of RDC 6 with the National Economic Development Authority in line with President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's Medium-Term Development Plan.
(August 7, 2006 issue)
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