The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) in Negros Oriental has allocated about PHP5 million in livelihood assistance this year for over 200 parents of child laborers in the province.
Rubie Cempron, Labor and Employment Officer 2 of the DOLE-Negros Oriental field officer, said on Friday that 210 parents were already profiled since last year to determine their individual needs and requirements.
On Wednesday, the department released the first livelihood assistance for vegetable production to three parents-beneficiaries in Barangay Alangilanan, Manjuyod town, Cempron said.
Seeds, fertilizers, insecticides, and backpack sprayer were distributed to them to support their vegetable production.
Others will receive their aid soon as procurement of their respective desired livelihood based on their profile and evaluation are completed, she added.
The amount of assistance for each parent varies, the official said.
Some of them have preferred to improve their existing sources of income, such as running as sari-sari store, while others even underwent training on baking and cooking, the DOLE official said.
Cempron said the program to provide livelihood aid to the parents of child laborers aims to remove these young workers from the sugarcane fields, business establishments, and other workplaces.
In a related development, the DOLE-Negros Oriental field office on Thursday handed over a glass-bottomed fiberglass fishing boat and peripherals to the Andulay Fishermen Association in Barangay Siit, Siaton.
The project is in cooperation with the Dumaguete Cathedral Credit Cooperative (DCCCO) and will benefit 36 fisherfolk members of the said association, Cempron said.
The assistance worth PHP500,000 includes fishing boats, life vests, snorkel and mask sets. (Judy F. Partlow/PNA)
