Entrepreneurial skills of informal sector workers from Tungawan, Zamboanga Sibugay get a new lease on life as they were provided with livelihood starter kits by the labor department.

The department’s Zamboanga Sibugay Field Office (ZSFO), in coordination with LGU-Tungawan local government, led the turn-over of kabuhayan starter kits composed of tools and jigs for carpentry, gardening, commercial cooking, bread and pastry making, vulcanizing, small engine repair, welding, dressmaking, e-loading station, commissary store, and Piso-WIFI station.

At least 122 informal workers in Barangay Datu Tumanggong of the town benefitted from the livelihood assistance totalling about P2.6 million.

“Providing support for our informal workers is critical especially at this time of pandemic when they have lost many income-generating opportunities. We hope that the assistance provided by the department will go a long way in providing their respective families with the income support they need,” Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said.

DOLE 9 Regional Director Atty. Roy Buenafe said that the assistance provided by the department forms part of the DOLE Integrated Livelihood Program (DILP) which aims to give opportunities to skilled workers, decommissioned combatants and home based workers to earn a living and augment their income.

“Dili kini mahatag sa atong igsoon, dili kini mahatag sa atong ginikanan. Ang gobyerno lang ang nakahatag nato niini mao nga ampingan nato kini. (Our parents and brothers cannot provide this for us, only the government. That is why we must take care of these.)”, said Ustadj Aylan Jalal as he expressed his gratitude for the livelihood assistance.

Source: DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT REPUBLIC OF PHILIPPINES