Book features success stories of govt. water program

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – The Interior department has launched a coffee table book which highlighted the impact of the SALINTUBIG program or the Sagana at Ligtas na Tubig Para sa Lahat in northern Mindanao.

 

The launching of the book was in partnership with the Regional Hub and Sanitation and shows a compilation of the SALINTUBIG’s best practices, stories of hope, change, and triumph of the beneficiaries since its implementation in 2013.

Over 15,600 families in waterless communities in the region now have access to potable water because of the SALINTUBIG program which was created by the national government in response to the ongoing struggle of access to clean and safe water in the country. 

Regional Director Arnel Agabe, of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), said through the program, thousands of families who belong to waterless communities are now enjoying the water supply. 

“We laud the efforts and contributions of our local governments in ensuring that these water resources are properly utilized, and to give their people an opportunity for a better quality of life. Together with our local governments, we aim to make these projects sustainable over time and will be enjoyed in the coming generations to come,” he said.

The coffee table book contains accounts of personal stories and testimonies from the people who experienced the struggle of water scarcity, hardships, and the program helped them surpass the challenging situation and how it provided them with economic opportunities. 

Through the partnership with Peace Crops Incorporated, the launching of the book captured stories from four provinces and 10 municipalities in the region that spring hope to communities who struggled their way to better quality of life.

“Our formula for capturing the stories was simple: Find the hugots. Hugots we got to hear from the mayors, engineers, teachers, students, women, fisherfolks, health workers, barangay kapitanes, plantitos and plantitas, religious Imam, entrepreneurs. The whole lot whose lives and living are intertwined with water as an elixir of life,” said Robert dela Serna, Executive Director of Peace Crops.

DILG Assistant Regional Director Yvette Sunga also lauded the fruitful works of the storytellers and emphasized the importance of documentation in communicating the government’s efforts in public service.

“We are elated and grateful because the hard work of the matino, mahusay, at maaasahang DILG 10, together with our partners, has come to reality and this documentation is a testament that we are doing great and we have shown to the community that the government is working for them,” said Sunga. (Mindanao Examiner)