SANTIAGO CITY, Isabela—The Department of Agriculture gave P1.6 million to members of the Bugkalot tribe in Alfonso Castañeda town in Nueva Vizcaya to start up their livelihood projects.
Nueva Vizcaya Gov. Carlos Padilla said the funds were sourced from the Casecnan Social Measures Fund through the DA-Region 2 office for the Bugkalot Livelihood Association in Barangay Lipuga in the town.
Lipuga is one of the impact areas of the more than US$580 million Casecnan Multi-Purpose Irrigation and Power Project built in the early 1990s by California Energy.
Composed of a power plant and two impounding dams, the project is connected by a pair of P26-kilometer tunnels from the Casecnan and Taan rivers in the area.
It now produces 100 megawatts of power for the Luzon grid and irrigates some 300,000 hectares of farmlands in Central Luzon and parts of Pangasinan.
Padilla said the fund will be used by the Bugkalot tribe for their ginger production project.
“This is very significant since our Bugkalot tribe has been yearning for alternative livelihood after the construction of the CMIPP,” Padilla said.
He said the Bugkalot tribe’s source of livelihood was also affected with the construction of the CMIPP particularly their supply of “ludong” fish species in the Casecnan and Taan rivers.
“This fish has been part of the traditional livelihood of the Bugkalots sold at P5,000 a kilo commercially that is why it is considered and named as the President’s fish,” Padilla said.