Seeking to bridge gaps in access to essential government services, a group has proposed a science and technology-driven development program for a Bukidnon-Magahat Indigenous Peoples (IP) community through the Department of Science and Technology’s (DOST) Community Empowerment through Science and Technology (CEST) program.
The initiative is part of Hope Builders Organization Negros Island Inc.’s (HBONI) Project Tikang (Step) in Sitio Madaja, Barangay Buenavista, Himamaylan City, which aims to bring government services and development opportunities closer to isolated and underserved communities.
Project Tikang Lead and journalist Reymund Titong said the effort was born out of the widening gap in access to services between urban centers and hinterland communities, and that CEST components are seen as fitting for the community.
“While government agencies already have mechanisms to address these challenges, this project proposed to DOST seeks to accelerate the delivery of interventions by bringing together available resources and services for the people, with respect to human rights, and free from political maneuvering,” he said.
Titong, however, emphasized that the success of the initiative will largely depend on community participation and ownership, not only among the project’s proponents.
“No initiative can succeed without the support and participation of the community itself. The people must be at the fulcrum of the development efforts because even the best programs will not prosper unless they are embraced and sustained by those they are meant to serve,” he said.
Luckily, he noted that the community has been receptive to development efforts, citing the continued practice of tikog weaving despite geographic isolation and limited resources.
“Since we visited the community with the Association of Negros Producers (ANP) in 2022, we have witnessed their dedication to preserving tikog weaving. This commitment really shows their willingness to seize opportunities that can enhance their lives. With this, I strongly believe that the project will become a perfect model of how services should reach the uplands,” Titong added.
Meanwhile, DOST-Negros Occidental Director Engr. Glady Reyes said the proposed interventions include farmer training programs, particularly in the ube industry; the modernization of tikog weaving through a DOST-developed tikog-flattening machine; nutrition support for undernourished pupils at Madaja Elementary School; and the installation of solar power systems in households to allow weavers to continue working after dark.
The proposal also includes the development of DOST-developed ready-to-eat meals for personnel of the 94th Infantry Battalion, as well as communication equipment, protective gear, and emergency response training for Bantay Gubat volunteers who help monitor portions of the more than 10,000-hectare Ilog-Hilabangan Watershed Forest Reserve (IHWFR).
A water filtration system is also being proposed for Madaja Elementary School to provide pupils and teachers with access to safe drinking water and to support proper food sanitation practices.
Reyes said the initiative aims to help transform the community into a more resilient and self-sustaining one by harnessing science and technology to create opportunities in an area that has long faced geographic isolation and development challenges.
The proposal has gained support from barangay and city officials, as well as representatives from the City Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO)-Kabankalan, which oversees environmental protection and forest monitoring efforts across southern Negros Occidental.
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