Tribal community thrives on TVIRD livelihood program
Siocon, Zamboanga del Norte / June 2021 – Darkness still envelops his tiny village, yet Jimmy Lingala is already on his way to his rubber tree plantation. Unmindful of the cold mountain air and the barking dogs that blocked his way, he increases his pace in order to reach the plantation before 3AM – the best time to tap his rubber trees.
A member of the Subanon tribe, Jimmy has been planting, growing and tapping rubber trees for six years now. Actually, it is not only him. His younger brother, father and most of his tribesmen are also engaged in the same livelihood!
The rubber tapping process is how latex is harvested from a rubber tree by slicing a groove into its bark. Latex is the primary source of natural rubber and extracting it in the morning is a good way to optimize one’s yield.
Jimmy works as a farmer and rubber tapper during his off-duty hours from his “day job” as security guard. He is detailed to secure the employees and properties of TVI Resource Development Philippines, Inc. (TVIRD) in Sitio Canatuan of this municipality. This has become his routine after his family and the rest of the community were given rubber seedlings by the company.
Rubber experts say rubber trees become ‘tappable’ five or six years after planting. And this year marks the beginning of the Subanons’ harvest. They have already been selling to local traders and rubber is now one of the main income sources of the Subanons of Canatuan where TVIRD concluded its mining operation in January 2014.
Jimmy said he is earning an additional Php4,000 a month from his one-hectare rubber tree farm. He will earn more if the market for rubber latex improves.
Life after mining
Lope Dizon, TVIRD’s Community Relations Officer in Canatuan said that TVIRD has provided the Subanons with rubber seedlings as early as 2007.
“The objective was to provide our Subanon partners with a sustainable livelihood when mining ends. Putting this in place will ensure the survival of the community,” Dizon said.
The first to receive the seedlings were residents near the mine site. However, in 2009, residents from the nearby sub-villages of Paduan, Tanuman, Solonsongan, Tabayo and Kilometer 8 were also provided with the seedlings.
TVIRD’s Mineral Production Sharing Agreement (MPSA) area covers 508 hectares of more than 8,000 hectares covered by the tribe’s Certificate of Ancestral Domain Title (CADT). This MPSA area has already been planted with rubber trees and a team is now assigned to conduct an inventory of tappable rubber trees within the company’s property.
Dizon also shared that two young Subanons were recently hired to start tapping this month. “If the result is positive, we will implement a plan that will sustain the rubber industry in Canatuan,” he added.
In 2015, the company has distributed a total of 114,773 rubber seedlings in Canatuan and nearby communities. These seedlings have been planted and grown in a total area of 229 hectares and farmers have already beginning to harvest the fruits of their labor.
Today, Canatuan is surrounded with rubber plantations in host Siocon town as well as neighboring RT Lim and Tungawan Municipalities.
Deep appreciation
Jimmy’s father Antonio is one of the tribal leaders in Canatuan. He deeply appreciated the company’s gesture of giving him rubber seedlings. He said that the added monthly income from his plantation helped his family survive the pandemic.
“Ako nagpasalamat gyud sa TVIRD sa ilang gihatag nga rubber seedlings sa akoa. Karon ako na kining napahimuslan. Kun wala pa kami hatagi, mosamot gyud ang among kalisud kay wala man mi laing panginabuhian.” (I really thank TVIRD for providing us the rubber seedlings that we are utilizing now. If these were not given to us before, we will be in a difficult situation because we do not have any source of income,” said Lingala.
Subanons Marelyn Taconing and husband, Dadao, take care of the company’s Exploration Staff House. They are proud parents to a daughter who is now a degree holder, thanks to the rubber trees that they planted in their six-hectare property. Marelyn said that her daughter is now helping them send her younger brothers to school.
In addition to Jimmy and his father, Antonio, more have benefitted from TVIRD’s livelihood program. There’s Bonifacio Patoh, Zenaida Dandana, Miguel Sapian, Romy Sapian, and others – all have testimonies. All have benefited from responsible mining and the subsequent livelihood that ensured their future.
In Canatuan, coffee, coconut trees and rubber trees stand tall and continue to sustain the Subanons’ livelihood – proof that there is definitely life after mining.
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