“e-PDAO Network” Launched
September 4, 2012
To seal the recently concluded ‘’Philippine Disability Affairs Office (PDAO) Congress”, held in Bayview Plaza Hotel on August 15-17, 2012, PDAO Officers/focal persons signed the Manifesto of Commitment/”e-PDAO Network”, to spur and serve as hub in rolling out national disability programs most effectively.
“Manifesto Signing of “e-PDAO Network”
NHE Forum Closing Marks Opol and New Lucena Success Stories
August 14, 2012
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- New NCDA ED Carmen Zubiaga commends LGUs’ action plans like Mayor Garin’s, shown above.
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- More inspiring action plans….
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- ….and thanks big partners like JICA and APCD, led by ED Aki Ninomiya shown above right.
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- Most of all, featuring the main bearers of ‘the spirit of NHE’, New Lucena and Opol Mayors Licelle Seville (extreme right5) and Dexter Yasay, (extreme left) respectively, shown above.
Mary Jane Villanueva, Opol’s Most Outstanding PWD 2012
August 14, 2012
Proud Mayor Dexter Yasay recently awarded Mary Jane Villanueva, Opol Federation of PWDs’ Vice President, as the “Most Outstanding PWD” for 2012. Launched to kick off Opol’s 2012 NDPR Week with a motorcade, this aims to raise awareness on the beauty and potentials of PWDs as productive citizens of Opol.
Besting 9 other candidates, Ms. Villanueva is among Opol’s staunch disability advocates, who are highly instrumental in their high impact ‘’Non-handicapping Environment” pilot project, in sync with the Japan International Cooperating Agency (JICA) and the National Council on Disability Affairs.
CHEDROD on Program Accessibility
June 28, 2012
CHEDRO 9 is an active member-agency of the Regional Council on Disability Affairs which is mandated as the governments’ focal agency on disability-related concerns at the regional level. As part of its commitment the office regularly attend the quarterly meetings of the RCDA, which is the working body to promote, implement and monitor various programs and projects for the sector. For SY 2011-2012 there are six (6) PWDs scholars of the Commission in region 9 among the many on-going grantees. Slots for persons with disabilities for scholarship is a continuing program every year. Some PWD graduates manifested their gratefulness to CHED and even write us letter of gratitude.
Yearly, CHEDRO9 is a proud partner in providing social protection, economic development and in helping promote the rights and welfare of the poor, vulnerable and the disadvantaged individuals, families an communities as a whole as we carry on the government programs in the education sector.
(Report by: Ms. Evelyn Dolencio – Regional Programs Coordinator)
2011 Outstanding Micro-entrepreneur of Naga City
May 28, 2012
FABCARR Food Products, Panicuason, Naga City
Fe Carranza at one time was president of the persons with disabilities in Panicuason, Naga City. One time when she was bringing some goods to employees of the city hall of Naga, Atty. Leni Robredo, wife of former Naga City Mayor Jesse Robredo, who was then the president of the Naga City Council of Women (NCCW), took notice of how Fe started the engine of her motor tricycle, that is, by kicking the starter with her left foot so that she is facing the back of the motorcycle. This is because her right foot was the one stricken with polio. That was the story of NCCW’s facilitating support from the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) to provide her with technical assistance for her soya production.
Fe’s soya production started simply in 2004 when some college students from Infanta, Quezon did some study visit in Panicuason but got stranded by a typhoon. The students came to her house and asked to stay for a while until the typhoon had passed. In gratitude one of those students who knew how to make tofu or “tokwa”, taught her how to prepare soya beans in making tofu. With the new skill that she has learned from those students she began a tofu business.
The Grow Negosyo program of the Naga City local government was also instrumental for the success of Fe’s food business by facilitating technical skills and linking her to potential clients. Today she is now supplying soya bread and chilled “taho” to some 29 schools in Naga City under a contract with the Naga City Local School Board, and in 27 Barangay Day Care through a contract with the City Nutrition Council. She has generated jobs for more than ten workers by her micro-enterprise which she named FABCARR Food products – the acronym for her name. Aside from nutritious soya bread and chilled taho, FABCARR also produces soya milk, soya choco, soya coffee, tofu, and a soya beans-based vegetable meat called soya ham.
Prior to her Soya food production business, Mrs. Fe Carranza, who finished only high school, engaged in a buy-and-sell business in Navotas, Metro Manila, as a wholesaler of vegetables and maintaining a small stall in a private market. Unfortunately with her absence at home her husband, who was a driver for a Filipino-Chinese businessman, had strayed for a while, and so she decided to go back to Panicuason to take care of her four children and to rebuild her family from the setback caused by her estranged relationship with her husband. That was how she got involved with the PWD of Panicuason and then the tofu making prior to the DOST.
The DOST assisted Fe to put up the FABCARR Food Products in 2011. Then the NCCW linked her up with the local school board, as well as with the nutrition council of Naga City. When her soya production picked up she asked her estranged husband to get back home to lend a hand. Her husband’s employer would not let go of him though and even increased his salary, but in the end he was able to negotiate with his employer for an on-call basis arrangement. Now Fe’s husband is happily assisting her in the business.
In 2010 Fe was awarded as the happiest Nagaeña or resident of Naga City by the NCCW. Today she is being nominated as the happiest Filipino by the Metro Naga Development Council.
What is her secret? Perseverance and hardwork, she says, and faith in God. Of course she is happy with the assistance from the local government of Naga City through the Naga City Council on Women and the LGU’s Grow Negosyo program, the Metro Naga Development Council, the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), the Department of Trade and Industry, the GREAT Women Project of the Philippine Commission on Women, and the local Adventist Church where she is a member and whose encouragement inspired her to continue to build her dream for her family, and to show to the world that physical disability and personal setbacks can be overcome. (end)
[1] Adapted from “A Tale of Two Women: Stories from the GREAT Women Project” (GREAT means “Gender-Responsive Economic Actions for the Transformation of Women”)
[2] Philip Emmanuel C. Peñaflor, is an independent monitoring and evaluation consultant, currently assisting the GREAT Women Project of the Philippine Commission on Women (philip.penaflor@gmail.com).
Cebu Province declares JULY as “Persons with Disabilities Month”.
June 21, 2011
The Cebu Province has passed Ordinance NO.2011-02 declaring the month of July of every year as “Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) Month” in Cebu. Authored by Board Member Arleigh Sitoy, the ordinance seeks to advocate the triumphs as well as the plight of our Filipino PWD brethren. The City Council in partnership with the Cultural, Historical, Sports and Tourism (CHEST) of Cebu has prepared entertainment and sports activities for Persons with Disabilities as part of the yearly celebrated Mandaue fiesta Celebrations.
For full text of ordinance please click links below: