School children in hard-to-reach communities in Quezon Province will soon have an improved access to basic education services through the construction of 20 school buildings and day care centers under the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s Kapit Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan-Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services (Kalahi-CIDSS). These projects are currently undergoing construction and are targeted to be completed and fully-functional by October this year.

The said projects are being constructed in the municipalities of Burdeos, Alabat, Buenavista, Catanauan, General Luna, Perez, Tagkawayan, Calauag, Guinayangan and Unisan.

A total of PhP25.22 Million grant is provided for the implementation of these classrooms through the funding assistance of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) of the Australian Government, one of the Kalahi-CIDSS’ development partners that focus on building facilities in areas with significant gaps in education.

Following the Kalahi-CIDSS’ community-driven strategy, community volunteers are organized in the barangays and trained on proposal development, construction estimates, and community finance and procurement. Through this strategy, local residents are engaged in the planning, decision-making, and implementation of need-responsive projects in their communities.

“Dahil sa Kalahi-CIDSS, nagkaroon kami ng sapat na kaalaman para magpalakad ng ganitong proyekto. Nabigyan pa kami ng pagkakataon na matulungan ang mga anak namin na magkaroon ng magandang classrooms para sa maayos na pag-aaral nila,” said Woderick Nera, one of the community volunteers for the two-classroom school building project in Brgy. San Isidro, Tagkawayan, Quezon Province.

Nera’s two children, who are beneficiaries of DSWD’s Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program, study in San Isidro Elementary School where the school building is being constructed. According to Nera, he is inspired to work on the project since his two children will be among the students who will benefit from the building once completed.

The Kalahi-CIDSS is a poverty reduction program of the DSWD that aims to improve the delivery of social services in poor communities by empowering the people to engage in the local development process. In the CALABARZON Region, DFAT-funded school building and day care center projects are being implemented since 2012. #