Project Marketing and Impact

PAGSAPULAN RANIAG TI MASAKBAYAN

Project Marketing:

 

Pagsapulan Raniag ti Masakbayan is a project of the City Government of Vigan that was conceptualized to minimize the number of families affected by poverty through education and livelihood assistance. 

                             Photo by Mayor's Office: City Officials awards a food cart to selected beneficiaries.

The project started in 2011 as a contribution of the City to poverty alleviation and to uphold the rights and welfare of the poorest family in the 39 barangays. 

The project started with the identification of the beneficiaries through the conduct of research and interview. A composite team from the City Social Welfare and Development Office, Barangay Council, TVi9an and the Local Verification Committee study a list of the identified poorest family in each barangays. The City Social Welfare and Development Office set the following parameters to identify a poor family: a family earning less than PhP 5,000 – 10,000 a month, head of the family (either father or mother) has no stable job, a number of children who are not studying, means of supporting daily life is through relatives and also included in the parameter is the overall house condition of the family. During the first year of the implementation, the City selected the ten poorest families in each barangays and throughout the year other families were also accommodated. 

After the identification of the beneficiaries, social and development workers conducts a situational analysis to find out facts about the status of the target beneficiaries. In this phase, the kind of livelihood assistance most suitable to a certain family is identified base on the information they provided such as their hobbies, interests and practices that will make them progressive. 

The following are the livelihood assistance that the City is awarding to the beneficiaries: Sari-Sari Store Showcase, Carinderia, Ihawan, Snack/Street Food Vending, Rice Vending, Rice and Charcoal, Frozen Goods Vending, Cow and Goat Raising, Ice cream cart, Kalesa (with horse) and a Tricycle with a franchise to operate in Metro Vigan. 

The beneficiaries undergo trainings and seminars on effective management of the livelihood packages before it was awarded to them. 

An annual evaluation is conducted by the Local Verification Committee to assess if the development projects are making its purpose to improve the status of the beneficiaries. Aside from the annual evaluation, one social and development officer is assigned to monitor the beneficiaries.

In the year 2013, the TVi9an (a cable television station owned and operated by the City Government) launched a documentary program with the same title showcasing how the project changes the life of the beneficiaries. It was a sort of a testimonial that encourages the future recipients of the project in the realization of the objective to end poverty. A same format was also aired in one AM radio station heard in the Ilocos provinces.

In summary, Pagsapulan Raniag ti Masakbayan is one of the most successful projects of Vigan City in terms of poverty alleviation because it is well packaged from the identification of beneficiaries and the kind of assistance they will be receiving until its monitoring and evaluation. The use of multi-platform media also helps in the promotion of the said project not only to future beneficiaries but also for other local government units or organizations that would want to emulate the same. These effective marketing strategies define the effectiveness of the project as a contribution towards community development.  

Project Impact:

Data from the City Social Welfare and Development Office shows that nearly 2,000 families were benefited by the project and no longer considered as indigent. More residents were trained to become more self-sufficient. It is considered a good development project because it does not dole out the resources needed by the beneficiaries but instead train them to be self sufficient and not just to progress economically but also in other aspects. More importantly, attitudinal change was instilled in them.

The change or the progress that the beneficiaries enjoy from the project has great impact on their culture.

  

In their daily lifestyle for example, the way they do their living becomes productive as they have now something to prepare for the family like their foods, comfortable space for living and preparing their children in going to the school. Some of the family member’s routine was also changed especially those who are managing the livelihood program awarded to them. They became more pro active and inspired. This may fall under one of the characteristic of culture that it is adaptive. It is discussed that “culture is continually changing. When man needs anything he invents ways of getting what he wants or adapts what other men have discovered to meet his needs.” If the beneficiaries would maintain or much better successfully transformed to a more productive individuals this may defined the kind of living they may give to their children’s personality development. 

Their value orientation is also affected as individual beliefs and values are recognized as important mediators of behaviours. Beneficiaries became more responsible, happy, polite, capable, clean, intellectual, independent, positive, peaceful, friendly, loving, honest, broadminded, and ambitious among others. The Social and Development Officer explained that this is because majority of the beneficiaries were inspired enough to work hard for a better and do their share for a better future for their family. However, during the first few months of the project implementation some are still hard to get away from their vices but were later minimized and controlled. 

Beneficiaries become healthy. Food security is also one of the primary reasons of the City in producing this kind of project. Through livelihood assistance, former indigent families will now have a way to ensure that they can prepare a regular three healthy meals in a day. Aside from the regular meal, medication if needed is also addressed instantly. 

Exposure to technology. Majority of the beneficiaries before they became part of the project have limited exposure or access to technology. Radio is the most common medium for the beneficiaries in acquiring information and entertainment, but with the increase in their earnings through the livelihood assistance majority of them is now enjoying their access to television, mobile phones and even to the internet and social media. The beneficiaries are now more updated. 

Support to education. Aside from the first livelihood assistance awarded, members of the recipient families are also enrolled to different short term courses developed by the Vigan Skills Institute to facilitate advance productivity and livelihood and employment opportunities. The family beneficiaries are likewise encouraged sending their children in school depending on their capability. They have needed to assess and budget how many among their children may be send to school to assure that they will finished it. If the future (the children) of the family will now be educated then the family can have other means of support to improve their quality of life.