TACLOBAN CITY– City government employees alongside active socio-civic organizations of Tacloban gathered on Wednesday (March 8) to kick off this year’s National Women’s Month celebration.

This year’s theme “WE for gender equality and inclusive society” and the official hashtag #WEcanbeEquALL, campaigns to emphasize not only women themselves but also everyone in the society in the pursuit of ensuring equal rights and opportunities regardless of gender.

The program started with a motorcade joined by representatives from Tomeco, Highway Patrol Group (HPG), Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP), Tacloban City Police Office (TCPO), National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), Rotary Club Kandaya, Federation of Women’s Association, Tacloban City Council of Women (TCCW), and various government offices and departments in the city.

Councilor and GAD special committee chair Aimee Grafil ended the program by commending women and their efforts to protect the rights and privileges that they get to freely enjoy at present.

“We have come a long way to achieve empowerment; to achieve equality. Asya it aton gin ce-celebrate today. Gin ce-celebrate naton an tireless work of women, especially ha workplace. Women nga aadto ha balay. Women liwat nga hasta yana, naniniguro nga ipakita kung ano it iya kakayahan,” she said in her speech.

Additionally, it was announced that there will be a “Tacloban City Government Women Employees Week” from March 27 until March 31 wherein personal care services such as hair cutting, manicure, and pedicure will be offered exclusively to the city government women employees on March 30.
(SAMANTHA JANE B. CRUZ, LNU Student Intern)

KANANGA, Leyte – Leading Cebu-based construction firm, Primary Structures Corporation (PSC), has renewed its partnership with technical-vocational institution, Keitech Educational Foundation, Inc., to support its on-the-job training requirements for its regular trainees and at the same time, provide potential employment to its graduates.

“This renewal signifies both parties’ strong and fruitful partnership that began 14 years ago in the same year when KEITECH was founded. We are thankful to PSC’s solid support all these years,” said KEITECH Administrator Erwin Magallanes.

Established in 2009 by the country’s 100% renewable energy company, First Gen-owned Energy Development Corporation (EDC), KEITECH aims to help address poverty incidence in the province that was estimated at nearly half of its total population at that time.

KEITECH has been providing a revolutionary curriculum consisting of technical training combined with life skills and values formation that help capacitate local out-of-school youth and enhance their success at gainful employment both here and abroad in sectors such as hospitality, food and beverage services, construction, engineering and many others.

Since its establishment, KEITECH has trained over 1,200 students and has consistently held the record for 100-percent passing rate in national certification exams among its graduates, thereby making them highly in demand among employers here and abroad.

A critical part of its curriculum is the on-the-job (OJT) training that all trainees need to undergo to hone their skills prior to graduating from the 10-month course. This is where PSC has been helping KEITECH by providing an opportunity to be accommodated as OJT Trainees or better yet, be employed in the company.

“We are more than glad to be one of KEITECH’s conduit of change and progress since its inception through the OJT and jobs that we have been providing to its highly qualified trainees,” said Ms. Paulette D. Liu, Senior Vice President for Human Resources and Administration at PSC.

To date, more than 300 of its trainees have completed their OJT training in PSC while at least 15 of its graduates are now gainfully employed by the construction firm. This school year, 30 out of KEITECH’s 60 trainees who have undergone the Heavy Industrial Multi-Process Welding course will be deployed in PSC for 3 months. This batch is set to graduate on June 30, 2023. (PR)

NSSDEO, Brgy. Burabud, Laoang, Northern Samar-– The Samar Pacific Coastal Road (SPCR) has provided the Northern Samar 2nd District Engineering Office (NSSDEO) their latest monthly accomplishment report as of January 25, 2023. Costing P 1.241 billion (KEDFC LOAN NO. PHL-14), its actual accomplishment is now 81.306%.

The SPCR project is envisioned to link the so-called “Pacific Towns”. Its completion would complement and eventually establish a circumferential road lop of Samar Island. Further development of the regional industries would stimulate further growth and reduce poverty rate incidence in the area. It will also provide benefits to the local economy and improve economic situation in the area as a result of an improved transportation system.

It aims to construct an 18.6472-kilometer Portland Cement Concrete Pavement (PCCP) including the construction of three (3) bridges located in Barangays Simora and Jangtud with total length of 261.0 linear meters. It will directly connect by land travel población Palapag with Brgy. Simora in the mainland Northern Samar.

The project is expected to be finished on June 30, 2023 based on proposed C.T.E. No. 10. (LYCA MAE T. QUILICOL, PIO Alternate