THE onslaught of Typhoons “Ondoy” and “Pepeng” did not spare the province of Tarlac leaving small-medium scale businesses and farmlands destroyed. Many families had lost their home and livelihood in the process.
But last December 23, folks in that town were given hope as the Department of Labor and Employment (Dole) in Central Luzon, in coordination with the different Public Employment Service Offices (Pesos) of Tarlac provided emergency employment and livelihood opportunities under its "Kabuhayan Program" amounting to some P1,674,500.00 to 304 beneficiaries from all over the province.
Of the total assistance provided, Dole and the Pesos have identified the municipalities of Anao and Ramos as having the hardest hit areas of the typhoon.
The assistance will cover some 100 beneficiaries composed of 50 marginalized farmers from the town of Ramos, while the remaining 50 are from the disadvantaged workers from the Anao. Both municipalities received P337,500.00 each.
The programs included an emergency short-term employment via the Tulong Pangkabuhayan sa Ating Disadvantaged Workers (Tupad) and livelihood assistance packages via the Kabuhayan Starter Knowledge-sharing, Inputs acquisition, Training on entrepreneurship and Skills acquisition (Kits), which is a livelihood formation strategy that is intended to bring improved socio-economic well-being of workers in the informal economy, in groups/sectors with special concerns, and displaced wage workers (local and overseas) and their families.
The rest of the livelihood assistance is a “Capability Building for Livelihood Formation and Enhancement for the Tarlaqueños,” that will be provided to three rural workers' associations (RWAs) amounting to some P999,500.00.
It will involve 204 workers from the informal sector, in cooperation with the Offices of Congressman Jose Yap and Gov. Victor Yap.(Press Release)