TABUK CITY, Kalinga– The Public Employment Services Office (PESO) has initiated a five-day training on macrame bag making for 25 women of Barangay Cudal.
According to Rizal Sta. Inez, Labor and Employment Assistant, the training which began on August 8 gave unemployed mothers and women the chance to learn new, practical skills that they can utilize to help support their families financially.
Sta. Inez said that the trainees were identified by the barangay based on their line of interest. They were supervised by accredited trainers from Barangay Magsaysay namely Rhana Layugan and Mayflor Aligayen.
Each trainee is given 20 rolls of macrame thread, a ring, a slider, a zipper, and fabric, enough to make one macrame bag, according to Ines. Depending on the design, the finished product may be sold for less than P2,000.00.
One of the trainees, Merlinda Paga, 54, a wheelchair-bound person due to polio, expressed her gratitude to the city government and City Mayor Darwin Estrañero for supporting a skills training program to assist women like her in learning new skills that enable them to be productive rather than just stay at home.
In 2018, the PESO also provided training in loom weaving to women in Cudal, which has been a successful initiative to date.
Apart from the macrame bag making, the PESO has also slated other training for both men and women like basic masonry for Sitio Talaca, Barangay Agbannawag, mushroom production for Barangay Calaccad, food processing (tocino, longganisa and tapa making) for Barangay Lanna and Masablang, and macrame bag making for Barangay Calanan. These activities are in close partnership with various agencies like the provincial offices of Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Department and Trade and Industry (DTI), Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), and the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) for funding, marketing and promotion strategies.
