Lelanie Anos and Alma Bano both have engaged themselves in constructing a community-built sea wall in Barangay Poblacion 8, Llorente, Eastern Samar. The sea wall is funded under the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Kalahi-CIDSS.
Lelanie and Alma proved that as women and single parents, they have the capacities to rise above the challenges.
-BREAKING THE NORMS-
One of the challenges is to dispute the prevailing notion that building constructions are seen only as work for males.
Lelanie Anos is humbled that as a woman, she engaged herself in mixing cement, haul stones, and sand.
Lelanie said that, “Mismo ako sa sarili ko napatunayan kong kaya ng babae ang mga trabaho na akala ko lalaki lang ang nakakagawa. [ I myself have proven that women can do hard labor that I thought only men could do].
On the other hand, Alma is a timekeeper. She was assigned to monitor the number of hours of labor in a day, ensured that the laborers log their time, monitored the body temperature of laborers, and among others.
These women shared that they are grateful for the DSWD Kalahi-CIDSS that it acknowledges the fair recognition of women’s abilities and their contribution towards development
-HARDWORKING MOTHERS-
The second challenge Lelanie and Alma face is being single parents. Both have acknowledged that they have financial strains considering that they are the only ones to support the needs, raise and build the lives for their children.
For Lelanie, it is the love for her seven-year-old child that keeps her going. in the morning, she would first attend to the needs of her child. After that, Leilani would leave her child to the care of her mother so that she can able to do her duties as a barangay health worker. In the afternoon, she was at their barangay construction site, shoveling sand, and fetching water.
Lelanie is also a proud community volunteer through DSWD Kalahi-CIDSS. She has learned how she can be of help to the community.
Moreover, Alma lost her job last year as a restaurant staff in Abu Dhabi. Ever since then, she came back to her hometown, and sought sideline jobs like selling foods, to sustain the needs of her two children.
Alma said that it takes a lot of strength to be a working single parent. It is “the hardest but is the most empowering.”, she shared.
-DSWD KALAHI-CIDSS PROGRAM HELPS EASE FINANCIAL BURDENS-
Both Lelanie and Alma are thankful because the earnings they get as workers in the construction of the sea wall helped them with their financial burdens during this pandemic.
Lelanie and Alma stated that the small earnings they get as Kalahi-CIDSS workers are income support to their daily basic needs, and the education of their children.
Both asserted that being single mothers was not easy, but they are thriving.
-COMMUNITY PRIORITIZES SEA-WALL TO ADDRESS A LOCAL PROBLEM-
Poblacion 8 is a coastal barangay facing the vast Pacific Ocean. There was nothing to prevent huge waves from hitting their communities. Whenever calamities strike at their village, it meant the possible loss of their livelihood, homes, and lives.
Lelanie had looked back at all the past typhoons, most especially Yolanda where it devastated many houses including hers. “Iyun ang isa sa pinaka-nakakatakot na araw sa aming buhay. Sinira ng bagyo ang aming bubungan. Higit sa lahat, Hindi mailarawan ang aming takot.” [ It was one of the scariest days in our lives. It ravaged our ceilings. Most of all, our fears were unimaginable.”]
“Kami ay habang-buhay na nagpapasalamat habang sa Kalahi-CIDSS sapagkat binigyan kami nito ng pagkakataong magpatayo ng sea wall na siyang mahigit na kailangan ng aming pamayanan sa loob ng maraming dekada. Ngayong mayroon ng sea-wall, mababawasan na an gaming takot kung mayroong bagyo o kalamidad.”
[We will be forever thankful to the Kalahi-CIDSS because it gives us the opportunity to identify and build a sea wall which has been the most pressing need in our community for so many decades. With the sea wall, fears for our lives will be minimized during typhoons or calamities.]”, Lelanie added.
Recently, on May 16 this year, the community completed the 102 linear meter sea wall which will benefit 166 households.
-BOUNCING BACK THROUGH KALAHI-CIDSS-
Other laborers are thankful for Kalahi-CIDSS because it encourages communities themselves to implement the projects, thus the opportunity to earn to help them survive this crisis.
According to Alma, most of the laborers depend on their earnings from the construction to meet both ends for their families.
More than the income from the construction, both Lelanie and Alma were grateful for the DSWD, thru its community-driven development approach as employed by Kalahi-CIDSS, because it strengthened their local resilience through involving community residents in planning and project implementation. It also provided them the opportunity to improve their capacity to withstand and adapt to any calamities.
#DSWDMayMalasakit
#MagKalahiTayoPilipinas
#ThisIs8!
(credits: DSWD AC Doy Glino)
