BAYOMBONG, Nueva Vizcaya (PIA) - -  A mine firm here has completed more than 144 kilometers of road project, providing  ease of transportation among upland farmers in the remote communities of Kasibu town.

Lawyer Joan Cattiling, OceanaGold Philippines, Inc. (OGPI) president and general manager for External Affairs & Social Performance, the road project which spans from barangay Didipio and its neighboring barangays towards the communities of Nagtipunan in Quirino province has been one of their successful infrastructure projects with their partner communities.

“This road projects is not only being used as a Farm-to-Market Road but also for other purposes that contributed to the socio-economic and agro-tourism  potentials of IPs in both provinces,” she said.

Cattiling bared their report during the recent Indigenous People’s Congress in Bayombong town initiated by the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) which focused on Healing, Reconciliation and Operationalizing the 11 Building Blocks in the Ancestral Domain.

The congress also supports the Whole of Government /Whole of Nation Approach by Empowering the Former Rebels (FRs), IP Youth and IP Leaders, among others.

The more than 144 kilometer road project has been funded under the mine firm’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) program which also include construction of school, health center, gymnasium and water system, among others.

From 2013 to 2021, OGPI has spent P1.3 billion for the CSR projects in Nueva Vizcaya and Quirino provinces. (OTB/BME/PIA NVizcaya)