[Colacling, Lupi, Camarines Sur, November 13, 2024]. The Ambassador of Israel to the Philippines, Ilan Fluss, visited this barangay in the Municipality of Lupi, to inaugurate a sustainable project called Self Help Group (SHeG) Community Enterprise, which the State of Israel is funding in partnership with Caritas Philippines. The project is intended to assist about 80 women, mostly the mothers of students under the CDL’s scholarship program. The Ambassador and his wife, Gila, came to make a site visit and sharing session with the beneficiaries. The couple were welcomed by Lupi’s Mayor, the Honorable Lilian “Gagay” Matamorosa, accompanied by CDL’s Executive Director, Fr. Romulo Castañeda, his assistant Fr. Aldrin Adolfo, and Colacling’s Parish Priest Fr. Juan Paolo Basco.
As a sustainable program, the SHeG is aimed at capacitating and empowering women through community social enterprises. The women will be trained not only to manage their small business. They will also have financial literacy trainings, which will teach them the importance of saving funds for emergencies. A mechanism will also be provided for the SHeG beneficiaries to borrow loans at a small interest, which will hopefully prevent them from resorting to illegal money lenders. Through the SHeG trainings, the women members will also be taught about the importance of sharing care work at home with their partners.
The Diocese of Libmanan is fortunate enough to have been chosen by Israel’s Ambassador among the arch/dioceses in this part of the country as site of SHeG, assured as he was by the reliability of CDL in implementing and supervising the program. The visit started with a short program, during which the Ambassador had the chance to address the hosts and the crowd who welcomed him and his wife. Towards the end of the program, the ribbon-cutting ceremony of the SHeG Community Enterprise was held at the nearby convent of the Missionary Oratorians of Mary (MOM), after which Mayor Matamorosa hosted an early dinner for the guests. The activity concluded with the distribution of food packs to the program’s beneficiaries.
