Livelihood

 

Today, it is a sad reality that a great majority of our countrymen live in poverty - the poor comprising 80% plus of the country’s socio-economic spectrum.

 

Beneath the veneer of towering skyscrapers and glitzy malls of Manila’s metropolis, poverty provides a stark contrast to the modern landscape. It stares us point-blank in the face with the child selling strands of Sampaguita flowers in the corner, the blind knocking on the side window of your car begging for coins,   the vendor hawking his cigarettes and candies in the streets, petty crimes committed in the name of poverty, and squatters in ramshackle huts encroaching on private and public land.

 

Outside of   Metro Manila in the provinces, poverty is reflected on the farmer tilling his land in the heat of the sun, the child going to school bare-footed, the thatched hut made of nipa, and the ‘tambay’ in the corner sari-sari store betting on his favorite ‘jueteng’ number combination.

 

We might as well describe these scenes straight from the Bicol region which shares the ill-famed distinction of being one of the top 3 poorest regions in the country based on National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) statistics. In our own district of Rinconada in Camarines Sur province, we continue to be witnesses to the vicious cycle of poverty particularly in the rural communities of the towns of Baao, Balatan, Bato, Buhi, Bula, Nabua, and Iriga .

 

It is clear that developmental programs to alleviate poverty in the past, if there were any, which should have been initiated by the district’s political leadership, have had no positive impact at all in the lives of the poor in Rinconada. Where have all the millions of countrywide development fund gone – in the past and at present?

 

On their own, with their lack of education or none at all, the poor need developmental interventions for them to get jumpstarted, and in the process have a solid source of income for them to feed their families. Without a steady source of livelihood, the endless cycle of poverty is perpetuated, and this creates a host of chain-reaction effects that negatively impact on society.

 

But we can do something. We can help as sponsors. We can give them hope in their lives with LIFE,  the livelihood program created by the Go Rinconada Movement to help spur economic development in the community. LIFE stands for Livelihood Initiative for Financial Empowerment. LIFE is not a piece-meal or one time approach similar to the dole-out strategy which characterize government programs. This simply will not work.

 

With LIFE, we teach the poor how ‘to fish’ or improve traditional knowledge with the latest best practices in agro-livestock, cottage industries, or vaious types of mico-business undertakings. It is a livelihood program with end-to-end capability to ensure a viable and sustainable source of income for the poor. It is an ambitious program envisioned to eradicate poverty, and elevate the poor in Rinconada to middle-class status in the medium to long-term.

 

You can help too. Be a LIFE sponsor. Your generosity will return in thousand-fold blessings. With your sponsorship, we help them lead decent lives and be productive members of the community. With your help, change and transformation will come into their lives. Go Rinconada Move!