Pathway to Panuran seen to boost forestland protection, economic livelihood

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An upland barangay in the municipality of Janiuay named Barangay Panuran is a recipient of a pathway that now allows more than four hundred households, including the adjacent barangays to benefit such provision.

In his message to the people during the Panuran pathway inauguration recently, DENR 6 Regional Executive Director (RED) Livino B. Duran congratulated everyone for working together to make the Panuran pathway a reality.

“This is now the fruit of our labor, of our coordination and partnerships to pave the way for development within the Jalaur River Basin,” he said.

The Panuran pathway is one of the components under the Forestland Management Project (FMP) implemented by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

In Region 6, it is implemented through DENR 6’s Provincial ENR Office in Iloilo. FMP aims to strengthen the  forestland management in Jalaur River basin, one of the three critical river basins covered by the project. It was also implemented using the collaborative and comprehensive Community-Based Forest Management (CBFM) strategies.

Built with reinforced concrete box culvert, the Panuran pathway can drain huge amount of water and has superior strength. It can also outlive many since its life expectancy is at 100 years. It has a length of .83 kilometer and a width of 1.5 meter with a total funding cost of Php 5,602,288.88.

The Panuran pathway will now provide an easier access for the upland farmers to transport their agricultural products namely: rice, corn, abaca, coffee, fruits, rootcrops and other agricrops, to the market.

Moreover, it now becomes a safe lane for the school children as the pathway ends up at the Panuran Primary School. Parents were able to heave a sigh of relief for this development in their area.

Where the roads are built, it usually opens up the ecotourism potentials of the area. Iloilo Governor Arthur R. Defensor Jr. told the folks in Panuran he is planning to also build roads to connect other upland barangays in Janiuay to other surrounding municipalities in Iloilo and Antique provinces.

Janiuay Municipal Mayor Paul Parian was so grateful to the DENR and the provincial government for this support.

“This is really bringing the people closer to the government,” he said.

DENR 6 partnered with the Peoples Organization called Panuran Tasik Upland Farmers Association (PATUFA) headed by its president, Emmanuel Caspe, in this project. (DENR–6)