Tag Archives: Philippines

Discovering Livestock’s Potential to End Poverty

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Ursula with her family's pigs.

Freddie Cabrales was a native of Barangay Aurora, Santa Josefa, Agusan del Sur in the Philippines. He is the third son among eight siblings. His parents’ main source of income was farming that supported only the family’s basic needs. As tenant farmers, Freddie’s parents were in constant financial hardship. After graduating from high-school, his parents could not afford to send him to college, so Freddie helped his family by going to work as a farm laborer. He was eventually hired as maintenance worker and harvester in a banana plantation in their province.

Ursula Cabrales is from Barangay Pamotuanan, Lianga, Surigao del Sur. She is the eldest daughter in a family of nine.  As the eldest, Ursula felt obliged to take her part in supporting the family finances, so after graduating from high school she went to work as laborer at the same banana plantation as Freddie. A friendship developed and blossomed into a romantic relationship between Freddie and Ursula. After six years of pre-marriage arrangements, the couple decided to settle down and start a family of their own. When they were married, Ursula was 23 while Freddie was 21.

The couple continued to work at the banana plantation, and att the early stage of their married life, everything ran well. Their modest income was just enough for the basic needs of the couple, and they sent a little savings to their respective families. But when their first baby was born, they started to face financial challenges. Although they were expecting a baby, they were not prepared for Ursula’s difficult pregnancy and delivery. They were financially unprepared for a hospital delivery since giving birth in their village was commonly attended by community health volunteers or a mid-wife.

Because of hospital expenses, the couple became indebted to the company were they worked. Ursula stopped working in the company and focused on her new role as a mother to their newborn, Krisia May. Freddie at this time was the sole earner in the family. Considering the large amount of loaned money that was automatically deducted from Freddie’s monthly payroll, the family suffered a great financial difficulty. They had no one to help them, not even their own families. Prayers to the Almighty and a positive outlook in life kept them afloat. After two years, their second child, Kiar Ian, was born. Even with the financial challenges, the family endured; the happy family welcomed their new baby boy with fresh hope.

Then one day the family was surprised by the news that the banana plantation where Freddie was employed was closing due to bankruptcy. This really bothered Freddie and Ursula — they felt so helpless, and they needed to support their growing family. The couple made use of their skills as farm laborers. Both of them engaged in seasonal farm labor in their neighbors’ farmlands. They asked their neighbors to watch over their two little children while they were worked in the fields. Their situation was not easy as Ursula recalled, “There were times that my husband and I would skip meals because the food was just enough for the two kids.” “We would go to sleep with an empty stomach—thinking where to get food for tomorrow,” Freddie added. “The neighbors were tired already of our promises just to borrow rice and sardines and repay them pay as soon as we could.”

The financial crisis of the family had gotten worse in addition to the fact that two more children were added to their brood. They now had two high school students, one grade-school-age child and a nursing infant. This is when the family decided Ursula would work as a domestic helper in Kuwait. This was the only way they knew that would help them escape poverty.

Ursula was earning US $357 every month in Kuwait, and she was able to send most of that money to Freddie for the family finances. Although still insufficient, the family made do with what they had. After only 18 months, Ursula called up her family informing them that she would be coming home in a week. Ursula arrived home with bare hands: no luggage, no presents, just her old self…but different. Only then the family learned that Ursula suffered maltreatment from her employer in Kuwait. She was abused both physically and mentally, forcefully locked up at her employer’s house and given spoiled food to eat. She managed to escape by jumping from an open window of the second floor and ran to the Philippine embassy in Kuwait to seek help. The family decided not to let Ursula work abroad again.

Ursula’s painful experience caused her psychological trauma. She was afraid of going out of the house or meeting people in their community, and her self-esteem depreciated. Freddie went back to seasonal farm labor work again.

When asked what helped them survive the bad days, their simple reply was “we still had dreams —to be free from poverty. We knew it could be done, and we believed it could be done.”

Freddie and Ursula’s outlook began to improve when they joined Heifer International’s RISE Project. The family is one of the members of the ASFA Self Help Group. They received a swine fattener and a gilt. They also received vegetable seeds, corn and soy beans. The project has a component of feed milling, thus the whole project received one feed mill. The group attended technical seminars and trainings related to the nature of the project, and the families learned about begin part of a coop-enterprise.

According to the couple, they are starting to realize their dreams for their family through the project. Ursula, who is the representative member of her family in one of the self help groups said, “During the Cornerstones workshop — I became hopeful and renewed to go on living for my family; my favorite cornerstone is Sustainability and Self-Reliance. I almost lost this value because of past experiences.”

At present, Ursula ensures the health of the pigs received by providing them enough food rations in reference to the recommended technology they learned from the series of the project trainings. She was also elected as the Project Management Committee (PMC) secretary. Ursula was also selected to participate in the RISE project Farmers Field School on Swine Production.

Freddie, on the other hand, asked his parents to let him borrow a portion of land where he can plant vegetables and corn. Freddie’s parents asked the permission of the land owner, and the latter generously granted Freddie’s request. Just recently, Freddie harvested 10 sacks of yellow corn; it was sold to the group as raw material for the feed mill. He earned Php 7,000.00 ($167) from his corn, which he considered as his first income as a farmer.

Last January 6, 2012, Ursula sold the swine-fattener to the local market of Santa Josefa after 3 months of feeding. She received Php 13,000 ($310) as sales for her 145 kilogram pig. She deposited Php 2,500.00 ($60) to the SHG as her Capital Build Up (CBU) for their feed mill enterprise, and another Php 2,500.00 ($60) was deposited to her self-help group as savings in preparation for the feed her sow and gilt will need. She had Php 8,000 ($190) as cash on hand. Minus the total amount of feed for three months, she is proud to say that she earned an income of Php 4,000 ($95).

Last May, her sow delivered 13 healthy piglets. Since the sow gave birth at midnight, Ursula and her family helped to ensure the sow’s safe delivery. Ursula is very enthusiastic in sharing her experience and stressed the application of the knowledge gained from the trainings on swine production. Upon weaning, one of the piglets was given to the owner of the breeding boar, and she chose two of the healthiest and best piglets for the pass-on. Ursula sold the 10 piglets for Php 2,000 ($48) each. Thus, she earned a gross income of Php 20,000 ($476) for this specific cycle alone. For eight months, Ursula and Freddie earned Php 28,000 ($667) from the pigs and piglets they sold.

Freddie and Ursula are discovering livestock’s potential to end poverty. They never experienced raising livestock until the project came. Now, they bought an additional gilt to expand their swine production. They also improved and expanded their flock of pigpens from the money they earned from the sales of piglets.

Their family is now a picture of happiness; they can now eat three nutritious meals a day. Ursula, when asked what she wants to share about her past, responds with a shy smile, “I do not want to look back. My family’s future is much brighter now. Freddie and I are more hopeful that we can provide good food and a good education for our children. The past is history now; I want to concentrate on the future, that is – to pass on the gifts we lovingly took care of.”

Ursula Cabrales gives a speech at a Heifer International ceremony

Ursula gives a speech at a Passing on the Gift ceremony.

This Holiday Season, Give the Gift of Animal Care

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When a family becomes a Heifer project participant, it almost always involves animals. We’re known around the globe for providing livestock and training to help smallholder farmers overcome hunger and poverty. These animals provide much-needed nutrition, but they also serve as catalysts that improve the family’s livelihood through the sale of wool, milk, honey, or the like, allowing a family to improve their living conditions and attain more education.

Animal care

Mrs. Madeline Nole Quispe of Peru at her veterinary medicine cabinet. Photo by Jake Lyell, courtesy of Heifer International.

But these small farmers cannot do it alone. To keep their livestock healthy and viable, families need access to veterinary services and expertise; but in many countries this animal care is limited or non-existent. This is where community animal health workers come in. These “para-vets” learn valuable skills like animal health, husbandry, breeding, nutrition and housing, and they can fill an important need when local professional veterinary care isn’t available.

Irene Pandosen is a community animal health worker who helps Heifer project participants in the Philippines. Right after her training concluded in 2010, she was put to the test when almost all of the swine in her community were inflicted with a viral disease that affects pregnant pigs and causes miscarriage, premature birth, or even death of the mother and piglets. Irene coordinated closely with the provincial veterinary office to control the outbreak, and as a result, only four pigs owned by the project participants died (compared to more than 50 owned by non-members).

Animal care

Irene with her family and sow. Photo by Jun Dom-oguen, courtesy of Heifer International.

“The epidemic was the turning point. [Prior to the outbreak] most of the families doubted my knowledge. They would ask me things about animal diseases and how to control them, and then go to the veterinarian and ask the same question to see if my answers and explanations were the same,” Irene said. “I take every opportunity to learn so that I can give good service. I talk to veterinarians and research every time I find an opportunity. I take learning as my responsibility to my group and to the community as well.”

Irene has gone on to become a local expert in artificial insemination. This technology means safer and more efficient breeding of pigs — farmers no longer need to transport large boars over poor roads and rugged terrain. Farmers pay Irene directly for her artificial insemination services, and she has seen her income increase about 15 fold as this enterprise has grown to include other members of her family.

This year, you can donate a Community Animal Health Worker Kit to provide quality animal care through our gift catalog. For $200 (or $20 for a share of a kit), you can honor a loved one with a gift that helps people like Irene care for livestock in the communities where Heifer works.

This post is part of our What to Give series, where we’re helping you choose the best Heifer gift for your loved ones. Read previous What to Give posts here, and subscribe to the What to Give series here.

Still don’t know what to give? Check out our entire online Gift Catalog.

Information for this post was contributed by Jun Dom-oguen and Karla Narcise-Rodulfo, Heifer Philippines

Animal Care Worker in the Philippines

A community animal health worker practices her trade at a Heifer project in Magupange Village, Philippines.

Community Animals Health Workers in the Philippines

Community animal health workers tend to a goat at a Heifer project in the Philippines.

Heifer Philippines Continues Rehabilitation Efforts

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Rehabilitation work is underway in the Philippines to help Heifer International project participants begin the long recovery from Typhoon Bopha, which struck the southern island of Mindanao on December 4, 2012.

Philippines recovery.

Elmer Negros and his son, building a makeshift cabin in the place where their house used to stand. His wife watches while washing all the clothes that got soaked during the Typhoon Bopha. Their house was totally destroyed by the typhoon. Photo by Nacho Hernandez, courtesy of Heifer International.

Philippines country staff has asked Heifer International for $50,000 in immediate disaster rehabilitation funding to help provide short-term food relief and materials to repair homes and a feed mill, such as tin for the roofs and raw feed ingredients for surviving animals.

Philippines emergency aid.

At the headquarter of HEED, Heifer's local partner in Santa Josefa. Staff and volunteers preparing bags of rice for distribution to the families that have nothing to eat as a consequence of the Typhoon Bopha. Photo by Nacho Hernandez, courtesy of Heifer International.

On Saturday, representatives of the federation of self-help groups (SHGs), organized by Heifer Philippines country staff, met with HEED, the local partner, to discuss and schedule procuring and distributing supplies to help families who were affected. For Heifer, 366 families in two projects in Sta. Josefa, Agusan del Sur, were significantly affected, with homes damaged or destroyed. More than 250 pigs were lost, as well as 90 goats. Rice, corn and banana crops were significantly damaged.

A banana plantation, destroyed by Typhoon Bopha.

A banana plantation, destroyed by Typhoon Bopha. Photo by Nacho Hernandez, courtesy of Heifer International.

The groups also met with representatives of Save the Children and World Vision to help coordinate rehabilitation efforts and food supplies. Heifer regional staff plans to meet December 21 in Sta. Josefa, Agusan del Sur, with the SHGs and HEED to discuss longer term rehabilitation planning.

Florita M. San Miguel, a Heifer participant, with her pig and recently born piglets. They were born right after Typhoon Bopha hit Santa Josefa. Photo by Nacho Hernandez, courtesy of Heifer International.

Between today and December 23, Hercules Paradiang, Heifer Philippines country director, and his team, will work with the SHGs and HEED to secure, repack and distribute food and roofing materials for repairs. Then, between December 21 and 24, members with carpentry skills and others will be divided into groups to help repair and rebuild homes that were damaged, as well as distribute and help prepare food as needed.

Ariel Alcantara, a neighbour of Santa Josefa, in front of what remains of his house. It was almost destroyed by Typhoon Bopha. Photo by Nacho Hernandez, courtesy of Heifer International.

Between December 26-29, crews plan to reconstruct the feed mill warehouse, and then on December 30-January 2, 2013, to purchase raw materials to put the feed mill back in operation by January 2, 2013. Between January 8 and 10, 2013, Heifer Philippines staff, along with the self-help groups and local government units, will provide Community Managed Disaster Risk Reduction (CMDRR) workshops to five Heifer project communities.

The workshops, which help families prepare for and endure emergencies and disasters, had been planned for December 4-7, but was canceled because of Typhoon Bopha’s assault on the island.

Heifer International plans to send a World Ark writer and photographer to the Philippines in late January to visit the impacted area and report on the families, as well as ongoing CMDRR efforts across the country to better prepare families for disasters such as Bopha, lessons that can be shared with other Heifer International communities in high-risk areas around the world.

Heifer International From the Field: Self-Help Group Members Become Leaders

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This weekly post shines a light on a handful of stories from Heifer.org’s “From the Field” section.

Involvement in Heifer’s Self-Help Groups produces leaders. The process of people advocating for themselves and participating in improving their lives transforms disenfranchised groups into powerful community leaders.

Volunteer trainers of Igorota Foundation, Inc. (IFI) projects in the Northern Philippines belong to various Self-Help Groups. They are the original, first and second-generation pass-on families of two Heifer subprojects.

Self-Help Group Members Become Leaders

Photo courtesy of Heifer International

“They were all reserved at first,” Jun Dom-oguen, a Heifer program officer, said. “You really had to ask them to speak their minds. Seldom would they volunteer. But soon after they understood the Cornerstones, they began to share, discuss among themselves and volunteer to share their ideas.”

These Self-Help Group members now conduct workshops on Heifer’s 12 Cornerstones for Just and Sustainable Development. Through their participation in these Self-Help Groups, they have transformed into trainers for their neighbors.

In Cambodia, Phuong Nen, from O’Nornorng village, had lost hope in the future of his village, believing it couldn’t be saved because of its extreme poverty. Nen became involved with Heifer and joined a Self-Help Group.

“Now I understand that a poor community can be saved,” Nen said. He is the leader of his Self-Help Group and an innovator, looking for ways to further improve his community. He plans to apply a new micro-finance management system in 2013 to further the Self-Help Group’s savings.

Advocating for themselves through Self-Help Groups creates change in individuals and the communities that they are a part of.

Help start a Women’s Self-Help Group today.

Heifer Philippines Staff Assess Typhoon Bopha Damage

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Heifer International sent a photographer to the Philippines over the weekend to document damage from and record existing state images in the wake of Typhoon Bopha, which struck the southern island of Mindanao last week with hurricane-force winds and heavy rains. The photographer will return to the area in late January, along with a World Ark writer to record the situation and report on long-term agriculture rehabilitation plans.

Update 12/12/12: The following photographs are preliminary photographs; images from the professional photographer will be shared as they are made available.

Heifer Philippines

Meanwhile, Heifer International country staff in the Philippines continues to assess damage in the south from last week’s typhoon strike, and to help prepare for the rehabilitation efforts that will be needed to help project families get back on their feet.

Hercules Paradiang, Heifer Philippines country director, and his team are also working and talking with other nonprofits that are experienced in disaster response, as well as a federation of eight Heifer-organized self-help groups that have been supporting relief efforts since last week and will play an important part in on-the-ground rehabilitation work.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development has also assumed direction of NGO efforts and is discussing longer-term rehabilitation partnerships.

Officials said 647 are confirmed dead, with another 780 missing. Total affected population is 487,364 families, or 5,412,140 people in 30 provinces in eight regions. Estimates of overall damage are as high as $173 million.

Specific to Heifer, at least 366 families in two projects in Sta. Josefa, Agusan del Sur, were significantly affected, with homes damaged or destroyed. More than 250 pigs were lost, as well as 90 goats. Rice, corn and banana crops were significantly damaged, and initial estimates from Heifer communities place damages at $550,000.

Heifer Philippines country staff is asking Heifer International for immediate $50,000 disaster rehabilitation funding to help provide short-term food relief and materials to repair homes and a feed mill, such as tin for the roofs and raw feed ingredients for surviving animals.

Update from Heifer Philippines Staff

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Initial Philippines’ post-Bopha assessment shows loss of animals, crops

Heifer Philippines country staff continues to assess damage from Typhoon Bopha, but project officers and partners in the Sta. Jose community in South Philippines are reporting a number of homes damaged or destroyed, drowned livestock and lost crops.

Philippines Typhoon Bopha

Photo credit: NASA Goddard Photo and Video, used under Creative Commons license.

According to Hercules Paradiang, Heifer Philippines country director, 366 families in two projects in Sta. Josefa, Agusan del Sur, were significantly affected, with every family’s home either damaged or destroyed. More than 250 pigs were lost, as well as 90 goats. A building owned by a community group, comprising a feedmill and raw materials for feeds, which were just purchased, was also damaged.

Staff is reporting significant damage to rice, corn and banana crops in the fields as well. The reports, which are still sketchy and unverified, are trickling in due to continued difficulty reaching and communicating with families and staff in the field. Initial estimates of damage to Heifer’s projects overall is $550,000.

The official death toll from Typhoon Bopha, which roared ashore early Tuesday with 160 mile an hour winds, the equivalent of a Category 5 hurricane in the Atlantic, stands at 418 with 383 missing and hundreds injured, according to the Philippines national disaster agency.

The storm has weakened and is moving slowly north-northwest toward the South China Sea, with central winds of up to 68 mph and gusts of up to 87 mph.

Aid continues to pour in from pre-positioned government stores, and international aid organizations are responding to the immediate, short-term needs. Heifer staff in the Philippines and at the headquarters office in Little Rock is collecting updates and information to prepare for the rehabilitation work that will begin soon.

In that, Heifer Philippines country staff will work with project families to repair and replace homes, replace lost livestock, repair animal pens and replace and replant crops.

“Right now, our role is to give the government and first-responders the room to do their work, to help the families who need them so badly,” said Mahendra Lohani, vice president of Heifer International’s Asia/South Pacific area. “Then, when some order is restored, we will work with families and partners to rebuild their farms and shore up and restore agricultural production.

“Only that will provide them the resources and assets, such as income, food and goods for sale, that will start the real long-term recovery that is so important to a sustainable life.”

Updates will continue to be provided as events warrant.

Heifer Philippines Update

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Heifer Central Philippines Projects Unharmed; Impact on South Being Reviewed

Heifer Philippines country staff report that project communities in the Central Philippines, which received high winds and heavy rains from Typhoon Bopha, suffered no damage, injuries or other adverse impact from the storm, so efforts are being directed at understanding the impact in the South in the Caraga region—Agusan del Sur, Agusan del Norte, Surigao del Sur and Surigao del Norte.

Typhoon BophaPhilippines

Photo Credit NASA Goddard Photo and Video

Assessments are expected to take several days as staff is being dissuaded from moving too quickly into affected areas as it may create expectations of immediate relief, a service Heifer is not positioned to provide.

“In an emergency like this, the urgent need by affected communities is to get immediate help like food, clothing, water, etc., within the next 24-48 hours,” said Hercules Paradiang, Heifer Philippines country director. “These needs are being met for now by the government and emergency response agencies, so it is not yet the appropriate time to go visit individual families to ask questions related to rebuilding or rehabilitation at this point.

“We will respect the request to delay, but will collect other information about livestock, agricultural impact, infrastructure, etc., from the province or municipality National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council and provide it back to headquarters.”

Paradiang has been able to determine that 439 homes were damaged in Heifer project communities, of which 422 were partially damaged and 17 destroyed.

Across the Southern Philippines, rescue teams continue to try to reach isolated communities Wednesday in the wake of Typhoon Bopha, which struck the southernmost island of Mindanao on Tuesday. The death toll is estimated at 270, with reports that 170,000 people were forced to flee their homes.

The storm, dubbed “Pablo” in the Philippines, made landfall early Tuesday (the Philippines is 14 hours ahead of Central Standard Time in the United States) with sustained winds greater than 160 mph—the equivalent of a Category 5 hurricane in the Atlantic Ocean.

Rescue teams are reporting seas of mud, upended trees, toppled electrical poles and flattened buildings or lost roofs in their search and rescue efforts. Wide areas of the island are without electricity for the second day, including one of Heifer’s primary regions, the Caraga, and the government continues to use trucks and boats to bring supplies of food, blankets, medicines and cadaver bags to stricken areas.

The Philippines weather bureau said that Bopha, which means “blossom” in Khmer, is expected to exit Philippine territory by late Thursday.

Provincial officials in Mindanao are estimating the economic damage to infrastructure and agriculture could run into billions of pesos (tens of millions of dollars), with several bridges cut, roads washed out, power lines severed, and banana, coconut, vegetable and rubber plantations ruined.

Updates will be provided as events warrant.

Heifer Philippines’ Staff OK, but Homes Damaged, Animals Lost in Typhoon

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Typhoon Bopha

Photo Credit NASA Goddard Photo and Video

Heifer International Philippines country staff are all reported to be okay after Typhoon Bopha, with top sustained winds of 130 miles per hour, slammed into the Southern Philippines early Tuesday, setting off landslides, uprooting trees and destroying fragile homes in its path.

Hercules Paradiang, Heifer Philippines country director, said that while staff are safe, with one staff member’s parents’ home under water, damage is being reported among project families, including loss of homes, livestock, animal pens and fodder. There is no word on injuries or conditions of families at this time due to limited communications and impassable roadways.

“We are very pleased to hear that Heifer staff members are safe,” said Steve Denne, Heifer’s chief operating officer. “We are working to learn more about the situation there and the impact upon Heifer project partner families, so that we may, as quickly as possible, support long-term agricultural recovery.”

According to Paradiang, a Farmer’s Field School for swine was destroyed in one project community, and 250 homes were damaged, with 75 of them destroyed in another project area, along with damage to animal pens and lost feed and fodder. There has been a definite impact on animals, but an assessment will be needed for a better understanding.

Immediate needs of those affected by the storm are being met in the short term by the government, which pre-positioned goods and services, and by immediate-response agencies suited for the kind of work needed in the aftermath of a storm such as this.

The United Nations also plans to begin an official damage assessment in the country Wednesday, and Heifer staff in Little Rock continues to reach out to colleagues in the Philippines for updates and information about project families and their possessions.

What is known, from news reports, short-wave broadcasts and other official sources is that the nearly 400-mile wide storm has killed a number of people (unconfirmed reports range from 43 to as high as 80), according to the Philippines News Agency, the country’s official news outlet.

The death toll is expected to rise once soldiers and police gain access to some far-flung villages isolated by floods, fallen trees and downed communications, but more than 57,000 people have been directly impacted as the storm demolished houses and stranded people in two Mindanao regions and parts of the Visaya islands.

A Philippines governor says at least 33 villagers and soldiers drowned when torrents of water from the powerful typhoon rushed down a mountain, engulfing the victims. Gov. Arturo Uy said the victims included villagers who had fled from their homes to a village hall, which was swamped by the flash flood. An army truck carrying soldiers and villagers also was washed away.

By mid-afternoon Tuesday (the Philippines is 14 hours ahead of Central Standard Time in the United States), a weaker Bopha headed for the Sulu Sea in the late afternoon, the Philippines weather service said.  But it continued to soak a wide area with heavy rain, raising the risk of mudslides and flash floods.

The storm, dubbed “Pablo” in the Philippines, had blown up into a super typhoon at one point Monday as it moved over the ocean, with sustained winds greater than 160 mph—the equivalent of a Category 5 hurricane in the Atlantic Ocean—but it weakened before making landfall over the city of Baganga.

Officials in the Philippines report that early warning of the storm allowed people to prepare. Tens of thousands of people sought safety in evacuation centers and government shelters.

Because so many Heifer International project communities are in areas sensitive to climatic events—hurricanes, fires, floods, mudslides, etc.—country programs develop Community-Managed Disaster Risk Reduction (CMDRR) plans to help prepare for and to mitigate events just such as this.

In the Philippines, identified as Heifer’s No. 1 country of concern for natural disasters due to typhoons and tropical storms, staff have instructed families how to prepare for events such as Typhoon Bopha, teaching them how to secure livestock and feed, to harvest ready crops for food for the family and to secure water and firewood. They’ve also been instructed to safeguard important papers, education material and cash and where to go for safety and shelter.

Heifer program officials plan to conduct an evaluation of the planning in the Philippines following Typhoon Bopha and to use the learnings to strengthen and improve the program so that all country offices and projects benefit from the disaster preparedness trainings.

Updates will continue to be provided as they become available.

 

Reaping the Fruits of Hard Work

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A Heifer International project participant works at a food cooperative in the Philippines

Jane Lutong at work at the Barangay Food Terminal in the Philippines

Story by Jun Dom-oguen and Marifee A. Lucaney; Photos by Jun Dom-oguen

Over the past three months, Jane Lutong began to reap the fruits of her hard work and has gained empowerment through participation in Heifer International’s project in Bauko and Sabangan, Philippines. Barely 10 months after receiving gifts from Heifer — including a gilt (a young female pig) — Jane was able to sell eight of the pig’s offspring.

“I am lucky with the gilt I received because it costs more than the project budget per gilt, I added one thousand pesos to be able to get the gilt, which was really big and matured. True enough, just after the original placement celebration, the gilt already was in heat so I mated her immediately. She gave birth after four months and I fattened all the piglets,” Jane says. “I sold eight of them which gave me a gross sale of [US $1,364] I still have one left in preparation for my pass on. I am again taking care of three piglets, which my mother pig gave me for the second time.”

Jane is a very active self-help group member, and she is very proud to say that she has perfect attendance at all the group’s activities.

“I strongly believe that the success of the cooperative is due to the fact that they are living most of the cornerstones we learned from our project. These include full participation, accountability, sharing and caring, genuine need and justice, training and education and spirituality,” she says. “There is also good leadership and all are committed to the cooperative vision. We have started with good foundations, which are Heifer’s Cornerstones.”

Jane is also a very active member of the Maggon Rural Improvement Club (RIC) in Maggon, her community. As a demonstration of her personal development, she was selected to represent Maggon to the National Organic Agriculture Congress in Baguio City in June. “I can’t believe that I was able to present the result of our earthworm composting project during the Congress to the Secretary of Agriculture of the Philippines. I was trembling at first but my self confidence really grew, thanks to our Heifer project, which honed my skills in public speaking. Who would have thought that a sixth grader in me could speak in public and teach others about a technical subject?” Jane said proudly with a big smile.

Jane used part of the proceeds from the sale of her pigs to renovate an old house inherited from her parents. As if the universe conspired to bring her luck, their Rural Improvement Club (RIC) project (called Barangay Food Terminal) was approved. She leased the renovated house to RIC for a very minimal amount. At the same time, Jane became the sales clerk of the terminal.

“I accepted the offer because I can still take care of my pigs while doing the job. I also practice what I learned from the recording and book keeping training I attended sponsored by Heifer International,” Jane says. “I will only get 30% of the net income of the store, but it will help our self help groups as it will also serve as an outlet for our products — especially vegetables.”

Jane enthusiastically took on more duties, leading the monitoring of families and livestock to update information for each pass on. She reported that 20 families were ready to pass on in September based on the sizes of livestock offspring. “I will be happy if all the members of this project will be able to pass on gifts by November. The earlier the better so that other families will have the opportunity to receive gifts. It will also be an honor for our community if we pass on early,” Jane says.

Since Jane is also a member of the feed formulation group, she had the opportunity for a co-learning visit to the Sun Jin Feeds Milling factory in Bulacan. “My goal was to learn more about feed formulation, taking into consideration that Sun Jin feeds are better. True enough, I was able to see the processes of feed formulation from preparation to packaging. I was able to validate the facts we learned – that quality ingredients give quality feeds, and in formulating grower feeds, it is very important that crude protein should be 18% because if is less or more, pig growth will be affected. I think we are now really ready to formulate our own feeds.”

With several months to go before project completion, Jane continuously demonstrates the levels of impact Heifer wishes to see from the partner families. From a reserved mother, she is now gaining the respect of her fellow partner families as she is empowered to lead others by example and hone her skills and develop leadership capabilities, not only for her benefit, but in service of the community.

Editor’s note: This post is part of a series that follows the progress of specific families, starting at the beginning of their work with Heifer. You can read the first post about Jane Lutong and her family here.

Jane’s newly renovated house which is now a Barangay Food Terminal.

Jane feeding her new fatteners (second generation offspring of her pig)

 

Disaster Reduction and Gender in the Philippines

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Today is the United Nations International Day for Disaster Reduction. This year’s theme is Women and Girls – the [in]Visible Force of Resilience.

The rural poor suffer greatly from disasters of all kinds every year. It is because of their poverty and often precarious living conditions that they are particularly vulnerable. In many of Heifer International’s projects, we provide training and support in Community Managed Disaster Risk Reduction (CMDRR) Efforts.

Gender roles vary widely between cultures. Although women’s social, economic and cultural position in many societies makes them more vulnerable to natural hazards, they are important agents for change, development and advocacy. For more than four years, Heifer Philippines has worked hard to incorporate women in disaster reduction efforts.

Disaster Reduction: Disaster Drill at a school

Students perform a disaster drill as part of their Community Managed Disaster Risk Reduction Plan. Photo courtesy of Heifer International.

Evelyn Martinez, 39, is a mother, wife, village leader, educator and ardent advocate of CMDRR in Lamba, a coastal village in Legazpi City, Albay. Lamba is a quaint village of 1,286 residents who have suffered countless typhoons, floods, landslides and the fury of the most active volcano in the country, Mayon Volcano. Mayon’s eruptions in December 2009 displaced 12,000 people, causing serious, longterm damage.

“We lacked knowledge and skills, we just left everything to fate, we were scared and helpless, we just looked at these hazards face on and admitted to ourselves that there was nothing we could do to help ourselves. Looking back, our community just realized that lack of knowledge is vulnerability, and vulnerability kills. When Heifer came to our community and extensively trained us on CMDRR, life was never again the same. We are no longer vulnerable, because we understand everything that needs to be done before, during and after hazard events.”

Evelyn became very active in all disaster reduction trainings. In fact, she was chosen to be the CMDRR committee chairwoman in their barangay (village).  She is one of the most knowledgeable resource speakers on disaster reduction in Lamba. She trains other project members, other communities, academics and anybody who wants to learn from Lamba’s disaster reduction experience.

Disaster Reduction Plan

Evelyn shares the risk and capacity map, indicating families living in high-risk areas and where families should go for safety during a disaster. Photo courtesy of Heifer International.

Heifer Philippines’ view on gender roles in disaster reduction is elaborately explained in one of the United Nations documentation on Women and DRR, to wit:

Women and children are particularly affected by disasters, accounting for more than seventy five percent of displaced persons.  In addition to the general effects of natural disaster and lack of health care, women are vulnerable to reproductive and sexual health problems, and increased rates of sexual and domestic violence.  Moreover, gender roles dictate that women become the primary caretakers for those affected by disasters – including children, the injured and sick, and the elderly – substantially increasing their emotional and material work load.  Women’s vulnerability is further increased by the loss of men and/or livelihoods, especially when a male head of household has died and the women must provide for their families.  Post disaster stress symptoms are often but not universally reported more frequently by women than men.

With this reality, the Heifer project families of Lamba took specific gender roles in relation to disaster reduction to heart. Before and during typhoons, Evelyn and the women in the community:

  • Secure family assets, clothing and important documents
  • Prepare food, medicine and first aid kits
  • Prepare other members of the family, especially children, pregnant or nursing mothers, the disabled and the elderly, to evacuate if needed

Older children are tasked with assisting their mothers in food preparation, taking care of younger siblings, running needed errands ensuring their own safety.

These roles are clearly defined and well explained to all families. When facilitating trainings, Evelyn ensures nobody is left out. Everyone has a role to play and can contribute, no matter their conditions.

These roles were put to the test when a strong typhoon hit the community in 2010. Everyone remained safe.

In addition to specific disaster risk reduction trainings from Heifer, the overall improvements in families’ livelihoods has dramatically increased their resilience. Self-help groups form savings groups to ensure that no matter what happens, after each hazard event, the community can easily bounce back. They also plant climate-resistant crops such as sweet potatoes and other root crops to have a secure food supply. They have planted mangroves along coastal areas near their community, which act as windbreakers, protecting the village from destructive winds.

Disaster Reduction: planting mangroves in Lamba

Heifer project participants plant mangroves in Lamba as part of the community's Disaster Risk Reduction efforts. Photo courtesy of Heifer International.

“Preparedness is the key. We cannot be complacent. Hazards can come anytime.  We are prepared, and we know what to do”, Evelyn proudly shared.

“We used to lack knowledge and skills on how to deal with hazards and were always scared out of our wits whenever the typhoon season came, leaving our livelihoods and our very lives to fate. Damage from typhoons caused more hardships to our already poor community. Through the Heifer project, we learned a lot from the Cornerstones and through trainings such as CMDRR. We learned how to take care of our livelihoods and safeguard our lives against disasters and avoid suffering the indignity of just waiting for relief. We have become a disaster resilient community.”