FIVE towns in the province of Tawi-Tawi and Sulu have received millions of pesos infrastructure projects and other forms of assistance as the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (Armm) launched this week a convergence program aimed at strengthening the delivery of basic government services, officials said Friday.
The beneficiaries of convergence program dubbed as HELPS (Health, Education, Livelihood, Peace and Governance and Security) are the towns of Simunul, Bongao and Panglima Sugala in Tawi-Tawi and the towns of Jolo and Parang in Sulu.
The convergence program was launched in Tawi-Tawi from Monday to Tuesday while in Sulu from Wednesday to Thursday, according to Armm Communications Group head Amir Mawallil.
Mawallil said Armm distributed scholarship packages under the One Town, One Scholar and Student Financial Assistance Program during the launching of the program in Tawi-Tawi.
The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) in the region also distributed fishing gears to deserving beneficiaries in the island-province.
“Our aim really is to bring the regional government closer to the people, unlike in the past administration that provincial governments are at the mercy of those who were in power in the Armm. We are now bringing basic services and infrastructure projects right at the doorstep of those who really need them,” Armm Governor Mujiv Hataman said.
Aside from Tawi-Tawi and Sulu, Armm comprises of the provinces of Basilan, Lanao del Sur and Maguindanao.
He said the other projects for Tawi-Tawi include: one-kilometer road concreting of Parangan-Balimbing Road in Panglima Sugala town; concreting of five-kilometer provincial road from Bato-Bato, Panglima Sugala to Kapatagan, Bongao; concreting of circumferential causeway 2nd docking port (Phase I); and the concreting of 500-meter Mindanao State University (MSU) campus access road in Bongao town.
ARMM-BFAR director Janic Musali said they have distributed 10 units of gillnets, 20 sets of hook and line, 20 sets of squid jigger, and 20 sets of handline to the Bus-Bus fisher folk association in Jolo, the capital of Sulu.
Hataman committed to release P2.5-million assistance for the public market in Maimbung town and a P1-million support fund for the Barangay Health station of the same town.
Other activities during the launching of the convergence program include mangrove planting in Kanaway village and the ground-breaking of modified shelter in Alu Layag.
Mawallil said the convergence package under health includes construction of health centers and birthing clinic with complete facilities, provision of supplies and medicines, deployment of personnel-midwife, and capacity building.
For the education cluster include day care centers, manpower, supplies supplemental feeding, school buildings, water and sanitation, school supplies, teaching materials and instructional support for the kinder and elementary levels, madrasah and secondary including scholarship.
Under the livelihood cluster deliverables include “Gulayan sa Paaralan,” skills training, capital assistance, support infrastructure, farm-fishery inputs, pre and post-harvest facilities, livestock dispersal, credit access and eco-tourism and economic enterprise while for peace and governance include functional municipal peace and order councils, disaster risk reduction management councils and regulation and reduction of loose firearms, Mawallil said. (Bong Garcia)