FILIPINO and American troops have turned over $140,000 worth of projects to the local government of Kalingalang Caluang, Sulu, a US military official said.

Major John Hutcheson, Joint Special Operation Task Force-Philippines (JSOTF-P) public affairs director, said the projects that include an Area Coordinating Center (ACC) and a public market were turned over and inaugurated last Monday.

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Hutcheson said the construction of two projects located in the village of Pang, Kalingalang Caluang town started in July 2008 and were completed last March.

The project was funded by the JSOTF-P and its construction was jointly undertaken by the American troops and personnel from the Marine Battalion Landing Team-3 (MBLT-3).

Hutcheson said the ACC provides citizens and local government agencies a venue to come together to address issues, resolve conflicts, and discuss solutions to problems affecting the entire community.

"The ACC is designed to help improve coordination and communication among community stakeholders so that problems can be addressed quickly and effectively," Hutcheson said.

"ACCs create a hub in the community, a meeting hall, a place where civil society can grow and thrive," Major Lawrence Daley, JSOTF-P's Task Force Sulu chief said.

"Let this ACC remind us all to do our part to support peace and growth in our communities," Daley added. (Bong Garcia)