BALANGA CITY, Bataan -The League of Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP) Bataan Chapter has expressed support for the bamboo industry here by allocating at least five hectares of land for the purpose in each of the 11 municipalities and one city in the province.
LMP (Bataan chapter) president and Dinalupihan mayor Gila S. Garcia, has rallied her fellow mayors to support the Bambo advocacy, a project of the provincial government of Bataan under Gov. Abet S. Garcia, chairman of the Bataan Bamboo Council.
In their league meeting recently, Mayor Gila Garcia and her colleagues had agreed to set aside an initial amount as seed capital of the project that will support the P3 million fund that had been initially committed by the governor.
The league noted that the sprawling upland forest areas in Bataan are ideal sites for bamboo propagation. Since the project will create more jobs for the barangays and far-flung areas, Mayor Gila vowed to drum up support to push the project as this will be a source of additional income to the people of Bataan.
There is already an existing Bamboo office in Bagac town with the help of Gov. Garcia and Bagac town mayor Ramil del Rosario. Bagac is an ideal site for bamboo propagation due to its vast area and accessibility.
For her part, Samal town mayor Gene dela Fuente requested the league to come up with a resolution expressing support for the said project and another resolution requesting for additional funds.
It was learned that the Global market value of the bamboo industry has reached $ 7 billion and is projected to rise further due to international demand. Noting its social, economic and environmental benefits, Mayor Gila is bent on endorsing the bamboo program.
