Antique weavers, potters, marginalized workers get help

By Jennifer P. Rendon

More than a hundred workers in the weaving, pottery making, and similar industries received livelihood assistance from the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) – Region 6.

The agency, through its Antique Field Office, released P2.38 million in livelihood assistance to 121 beneficiaries, which includes handloom weavers, pottery makers and marginalized workers from 21 barangays of Tibiao town, Antique.

The assistance aims to jumpstart the beneficiaries’ projects and for the local industry to bounce back.

“The current pandemic has not just affected the workers but also the micro-entrepreneurs and local producers who are vital in the municipality’s tourism industry,” Atty. Sixto Rodriguez Jr., DOLE-6 regional director, said.

He added that DOLE-6 provided livelihood assistance to help them restore their sources of living and to revive the local industry, as well.

Like the rest of the country’s tourism industry, the handloom weaving project in Tibiao also suffered a downturn when the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020.

Meanwhile, Carmela Abellar, DOLE-6 Antique head, said the livelihood assistance provided to 15 members of Tibiao Active Weavers and Knotters Association (TAWKA) is expected to boost the thriving handloom weaving project of the association whose products are gradually penetrating not just the local but also the global market.

Several months ago, Antique established weaving centers to boost the local textile industry.

The move is in apparent acknowledgment of the significance of weaving traditions to preserve the history of Antique, cultivate traditional knowledge and artistry, generate income, and create opportunities for residents.

Antique weavers have been producing hand woven cloth made of abaca-silk, piña-silk, cotton and polyester.

Meanwhile, 12 beneficiaries from Barangay Bandoja who are skilled in pottery-making opted to enhance the existing clay pottery industry in their barangay through the tools and materials provided by DOLE.

The support to the local industry may open an opportunity for product enhancement that could attract local patrons and international clients.

Beneficiaries residing in upland areas surrounded by wide grazing lands engaged in cattle and hog fattening, goat and poultry raising projects.

On the other hand, beneficiaries with entrepreneurial skills ventured into sari-sari stores, carinderia (eatery), rice retailing and other income-generating livelihood projects with potential market in the area.