    info@serve.

ie

News/Events
You are here: Home / News/Events / Development News /
Empowering the Badjao Tribe through the Badjao Integrated Community Empowerment...

Empowering the Badjao Tribe

through the Badjao Integrated
Community Empowerment Project
October 17, 2015 /

By Sue Hargrove
The Badjao Tribe were traditionally expert fishermen, deep
sea divers and navigators from Mindanao. Sadly in the 1960’s
due to rampant raiding and piracy in the waters the Badjao
tribe made the Alaska beach in Mambaling, Cebu City as their
home. They built houses along the shoreline on stilts to store
their boats beneath. However due to the construction of the
UC-METC in the 1990s they had to leave their community and
settled in Sitio Nava. Tragedy struck for the Badjao tribe
when their homes were twice gutted by fire and eventually
the Badjao tribe were settled in three nearby areas in Cebu,
the Philippines.

The fishing trade for the Badjao tribe is

threatened because of marine sanctuaries
and municipal waters are also protected. This
has led to an unemployment rate of almost
60%, leading to acute social and economic
disadvantages. Adding to these difficulties the
Badjao tribe also face a number of integration [https://serve.ie//wp-
issues such as discrimination from the wider content/uploads/2015/10/P1030425-
community, reinforcing their struggle for Medium.jpg]
human rights, education, employment, Traditional Badjao Houses

housing and social services. This along with

poor infrastructure has led to 68 families (544 people approx)
living without dignified shelter, a deficit in education among
the Badjao child and their parents, with a high number of
children not attending education (403) and a very high drop
out rate for those who are. Nutrition among the Badjao tribe
is poor leading to malnutrition and ill-health. An
overwhelming majority of households have no water (98.7%)
or no electricity.

The marginalised status of the Badjao tribe held back the

tribe from accessing resources and rights.
Through partnership with the Presentation Sisters in the
Philippines, SERVE works with the Badjao Tribe in Cebu City.
The main goals of the project are to a) improve community
leadership b) develop member’s capacity building and
livelihood and c) to deliver basic social and infrastructure
support.

Thanks to funding support from Misean Cara, the Dublin

Province of the Redemptorists and SERVE have been able to
support a project, in partnership with the Presentation
Sisters, empowering community leaders through training and
workshops, to represent and organise the Badjao
community. Through this training community leaders have
been able to draft a community constitution in
environmental sanitation, gambling and house ownership
contracts. Community leaders have now taken a diplomatic
role in the organising of the community through council
meetings and general assemblies and represent the tribe
when dealing with civil society and government.

Improving the community members

capacity and livelihood, is crucial for the
tribe to combat their social and economic
disadvantage in the wider community.
Community members are involved in
basic literacy education which targets
[https://serve.ie//wp- children, mother and unemployed youth,
content/uploads/2015/10/DSC_0196-Medium.jpg] to improve their chances of future
Badjao Community Council Members employment. A feeding programme was
introduced targeting orphaned,
vulnerable and out of school children to combat poor
nutrition and ill-health among the community. A skills
training programme to improve the life chances of members
of the community included boat making, pearl design, bead
work and reflexology.

The community regeneration programme, was introduced to

deliver basic social and infrastructural support. The aims of
this project was to provide decent and dignified housing for a
total of 104 families (1,120 people), Construction also
involved the instillation of a septic tank, and running water
and electricity to the newly built homes. However while water
and electricity connections have been built, connection is
slow due to challenges with the resource companies
involved. A fence around the newly constructed homes was
also constructed to ensure the safety of the families residing
there. Family members all contributed to the building of their
houses and developed skills in brickwork. Another aspect of
this was to build a livelihood centre which provides a space to
enhance skills and training, ultimately to increase income for
the tribe.

This project developed in partnership between SERVE, the

Presentation Sisters and the Badjao community has led to a
holistic approach to tackling the issues facing the tribe.
Through training, community leaders are now equipped with
the skills to formulate community policies and work towards
a more inclusive, active and organised community.

Share this entry

    
©Copyright - SERVE - Solidarity in Action | Website Enquiries    