DOLE Moves to Rescue Child Scavengers in Iloilo

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) is taking urgent steps to remove children from hazardous work conditions at a garbage dump in Barangay Calahunan, Mandurriao, Iloilo City.

For many underprivileged children, the city’s sanitary landfill had long been a source of income.

Driven by poverty and the need to help support their families, children risked their health by scavenging through waste to earn money for daily needs.

In response, DOLE Regional Director Atty. Sixto T. Rodriguez Jr. directed the agency’s livelihood coordinators to expedite the release of livelihood assistance upon receipt of a proposal from the barangay.

Through its Iloilo Field Office, DOLE Region 6 turned over PHP800,000 worth of livelihood project inputs to 33 parents of child laborers and seven unemployed individuals on Feb. 28, 2025.

The support was part of the Department’s Child Labor Prevention and Elimination Program (CLPEP) and the DOLE Integrated Livelihood and Emergency Employment Program (DILEEP).

The assistance package included tools, equipment, and materials for small-scale businesses such as carinderia operations, frozen food retailing, rice and egg vending, ready-to-wear (RTW) retailing, and kakanin and street food vending.

“It is our utmost desire to take the children out of hard and hazardous works,” said Rodriguez.

“The livelihood we provide is a tool to fight poverty, which is the evil of society that pushes the children out of school to work,” he added.

Rodriguez also noted that empowering unemployed individuals through livelihood grants contributes to local economic growth.

“DOLE remains committed to helping local communities like Barangay Calahunan achieve economic empowerment and resilience through programs like DILEEP, and we are positive of its lasting impact on the lives of the recipients,” he said.

After the turnover ceremony, the beneficiaries expressed gratitude for the assistance and pledged to make their livelihood projects sustainable and profitable.