By Dhel Nazario
A program for the benefit of the indigenous peoples (IP) to preserve their culture and arts and improve their lives will be organized by the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) in Iloilo this month.
TESDA Director General, Secretary Guiling “Gene” Mamondiong (TESDA / MANILA BULLETIN)
The Community-Based Skills Development Program for the Indigenous Peoples and Cultural Communities, will be held in Iloilo City for five days starting March 19.
Secretary Guiling Mamondiong said the event aims to strengthen government programs they could protect and conserve the culture and arts of IPs in the country
It also plans to teach the youth about 37 various ethnic arts that are already dying. These include beads-making, embroidery, weaving, healing, performing arts (songs, music, dance, chant), and others. The "capability-building program" aims to create sustainable economic development programs tailor-fit for the IPs.
These training programs will be based on the needs of IPs and the available resources of their community. The partnership between TESDA and the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) will provide support to IPs through skills-training program and eventually transform them into competitive and productive individuals.
Also to be discussed in support of the IPs, include curriculum development, learning modules, assessment tools, and trainer/learner guides needed for the training programs to produce graduates who can create authentic traditional arts and techniques.
“In addition, a multiplier training approach will be adopted entailing a support fund of P60,000 per region that will be downloaded upon submission of the approved regional action plans to TESDA Central Office,” Mamondiong said.
Resource persons for the event will come from NICP, National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) and SLT zonal coordinators. The participants will experience cultural tour guiding in Calinog SLT and video coverage of the art form (paghahabi) and profiling of SLT and IP communities.
Data from NCIP revealed that there are currently 110 IP groups and subgroups in the Philippines, while data from the NCCA-SLT showed that many indigenous communities could be found in regions of CAR, 4-A, 6, 7, 8,, 11, 12 and ARMM which have their own respective designs and culture.