Department of Labor and Employment Sec. Bienvenido E. Laguesma is set to visit Baguio City on Dec. 27 one of the DOLE-Cordillera’s livelihood project beneficiaries and Baguio City’s tourist attraction: the horseback riding experience of Barangay Lualhati, Wright Park.
Laguesma will grace the program’s highlight for the memorandum of agreement signing among line government agencies and partners to scale up the implementation of the “Trabaho, Turismo, Asenso: Ang Pony Boys Project.”
The MOA features the joint commitment of the regional offices of the Department of Tourism, Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board, Professional Regulation Commission, Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, and Department of Environment and Natural Resources; City Government of Baguio; Barangay Lualhati, The Pony Boys; and DOLE-Cordillera as the lead agency in providing overall coordination of the series of projects.
The MOA aims to contribute in poverty reduction of the pony boys, their community, their families, and capacitate them in improving sustainable employment opportunities through the DOLE Integrated Livelihood Program while they resume their businesses as tourism regains traction in the city.
The Convergence Project will culminate in the ceremonial awarding of vests, cowboy hats, and ID cards as uniforms for the pony boys. Attendees of the Service Quality Improvement Program Training from DOLE-RTWPB held on Dec. 19 to 20 at the DOLE-Cordillera office will also receive their respective certificates.
The association members will be provided with basic health and wellness services from the Philippine Medical Association-Baguio Benguet Medical Society, Baguio Optometrist Association, Philippine Dental Association, and grooming services from Tesda-Cordillera at the Barangay Lualhati covered court.
With livelihood and tourism interventions from stakeholders, they foresee a better future for the pony boys, as they take the reins, saddle up, and lend a blissful freedom of flight for tourists and locals alike. – Daryll B. Ponard
April 27, 2024
