Life in Libi

Sitios Rancho and Kolambog, are villages located at the hilly eastern part of the barangay Libi, and inhabited by the B’laan tribes since the 1930”s. About 30 households make up the two sitios with a total population of 259. The land area of Rancho spans 205 hectares while Klambog 664 hectares.

There are no health and educational facilities within the two sitios. Prior to the clearing of the road in 2003, the residents and students of the two areas normally had to walk over five kilometers to reach the barangay site where the elementary school and the health center are situated. If one is lucky, horses are available for an easier transportation.

Potable water system was also lacking in these locale. Inhabitants were dependent on open and unprotected springs located far from the settlement areas. Corn is the prominent crop in both sitios with normally two cropping in a year. Rice is grown for consumption but corn, cassava, sweet potato and banana are alternative staple food.

In essence, life in Libi is a miniature reality of basic, simple, and unsecured lifestyle…crying out for a space to grow and advance their lot.

‘To win, you have to risk loss’

These two sitios in barangay Libi are in the town of Malapatan in the province of Sarangani. They became recipients of UDP sometime in July 2004. The latter engaged the Families in the Holy Spirit Mabuhay Multi-purpose Cooperative, a business development services provider, to conduct an organizational diagnosis and to assess their existing, and potential village-based enterprises that can be managed by the upland barangay association. The FHSMMPC was again contracted to assist KRANFO, an upland barangay association formed from the two sitios, in preparing the business plan and operations manual. Also, they are there to provide coaching and training in the management of the enterprise and install enterprise systems.

To date, KRANFO has written their business plan and operations in June 2005 but their proposed enterprises are not yet started. The organization is composed of 62 members, 30 of whom come from Rancho and 32 from Kolambog.

UDP’s partners in the implementation of its projects in Libi include the municipal government of Malapatan that allocates counterpart funds to the Programme, maintains a municipal project team headed by the town’s agriculturist, and assigns technicians and other personnel to provide technical assistance and facilitate the implementation of the various UDP projects in Libi. There is also the Rural Bank of Sarangani, a partner financial institution, has also been tapped by UDP to extend loans to farmers using the loan model packages developed by the Programme.

During the business planning stage with the business service provider, the farmers identified the trading of agricultural products, particularly banana and peanuts, and of consumer goods as the enterprises to be managed separately by each of the villages. Of late, however, the villages in Libi still struggle with the changes. Their pitfalls usually mean backward steps for the association. It was realized that so much are still left undone and every step to progress would somehow lead them astray from their goals. Notwithstanding the present scenario, the farmers are still willing to make a stake at progress because they are given first hand experience how helpful UDP’s ideas on development.

Pastor Guinang Fucal, one of the chairmen in Libi in their dialect said, ‘Before, we were always short of cash. Before UDP came, we only had corn and coconut. But UDP taught us to plant all types: from the long-term crops, coconut, mango and coffee; and then medium term, banana; and then short term crops which are mongo beans and peanuts.’

Here, we will somehow see that communities are like the people who make up the organization. Their issues, small successes and torrential set backs are part of the process. Let us uncover the continuation of community struggles in Kiamba, Palo 19, Tagaytay, Sitio Mapaso, Albagan and Upo… as we keep track of their tales by uncovering real stories of community formation, orientation of new ideas for development, their pitfalls, challenges and feel for success…