PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, Palawan — The Provincial Planning and Development Office (PPDO) has listed an estimated 62,000 tribal families in southern Palawan who could be involved in the promotion of the tourism industry to bring them out of poverty.
In a statement released by the Provincial Information Office on Friday, Governor Jose Alvarez said the identification of Indigenous Peoples (IP) families is part of his goal to reduce Palawan’s poverty index of 55 percent to a manageable 25 percent.
“Nagsimula na kami ng intervention dahil sila ang nagco-constitute ng 55 percent of our poverty index. Pag sila ay naging productive, sila ang magsu-supply ng pagkain sa ating tourism industry that will be rising from 1.5 million to 3 million tourists a year (We’ve started our intervention because they constitute 55 percent of our poverty index. If they become productive, they will supply food to our tourism industry, which will see an increase in tourist arrivals from 1.5 million to 3 million a year),” Alvarez said.
The tribal families will be given assistance to raise goats, cattle, swine, and poultry to supply food to tourism centers, such as San Vicente, El Nido, Taytay, and Coron, he said.
To ensure that they have feeds, the provincial government is currently planting hybrid Napier grass for dispersal, he added.
“Ang Norte pinapa-inventory ko na rin ang mga IPs. I am estimating that if there are 62,000 IP families in the South, mayroon ding ganyan karami sa Norte (I have also ordered an inventory of IP families in northern Palawan. I am estimating that if there are 62,000 in the south, then there is also the same number in the north),” Alvarez said.
He stressed that the IPs would be his focus to decrease the poverty index by 2022 to be at par with the national government’s 25 percent.
Palawan, the largest island province in the country, is home to several indigenous ethno-linguistic groups — the Cagayanen, Tagbanua, Pala’wan, Tao’t Bato, Molbog, and the Batak tribes.
They live in remote villages in the mountains and coastal areas. (PNA)
