Sogod: The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) has provided PHP3.6 million worth of livelihood assistance to 120 parents of child laborers in Sogod, Southern Leyte in a bid to address the root causes of child labor through sustainable income opportunities.
According to Philippines News Agency, Norma Rae Costimiano, DOLE-Eastern Visayas regional information officer, stated that their agency turned over the livelihood assistance during a ceremonial awarding at the Sogod Municipal Gymnasium under the DOLE Integrated Livelihood Program (DILP). Costimiano emphasized the agency's commitment to supporting parents of child laborers by offering new livelihood opportunities to address child labor issues across the region.
The assistance included livelihood packages tailored to the beneficiaries' chosen enterprises, such as barbershop services, cake and bread vending, carpentry, dressmaking and tailoring, snack vending, fish vending, fishing, ginger farming, ice cream making, meat vending, painting services, peanut butter production, Piso Wi-Fi business, poultry raising, rag making, tilapia farming, tuba (coconut wine) vending, vegetable farming, vulcanizing, and welding. Each beneficiary received tools, equipment, and materials necessary to start or expand their livelihood projects.
Costimiano mentioned that while initial assistance is provided once, beneficiaries are referred to partner agencies, such as the Department of Social Welfare and Development and local government units, for further assistance based on their needs. DOLE Southern Leyte field office head Eden Ligaya Golong highlighted that the assistance is part of the government's commitment to improving the economic condition of vulnerable families while protecting children from labor.
Golong noted that empowering parents of child laborers with viable income sources not only improves their economic condition but also strengthens efforts to ensure children remain in school and are protected from child labor. Reports indicate that child laborers in Sogod town work in farms and quarry sites.
The livelihood assistance aligns with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. and Labor Secretary Francis Tolentino's commitment to providing sustainable livelihood opportunities for vulnerable sectors. Sogod town Mayor Sheffered Lino S. Tan expressed gratitude to DOLE for its ongoing support through livelihood interventions that directly benefit vulnerable families. Tan assured beneficiaries of the local government's continued assistance to ensure the success and sustainability of their livelihood projects.
The DILP aims to enable disadvantaged workers and vulnerable families to establish or strengthen income-generating ventures, helping improve household incomes and reducing the likelihood of children engaging in child labor.
