New Bataan to benefit from flagship program on peace and development

The local government unit of New Bataan, Compostela Valley is the new beneficiary of a flagship program of the government on peace and development aiming to address the insurgency problem.
The LGU is now under the Payapa at Masaganang Pamayanan or PAMANA program of the Department of Agrarian Reform and the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process.
New Bataan is the only town in Compostela Valley that made it to the list of PAMANA beneficiaries covering the seven barangays with high incidence of insurgency, namely: Magsaysay, Katipunan, Panag, Batinao, Camanlangan, Bantacan and Cogonon.
OPAPP-PAMANA point person Dennis Joseph A. Cruz said the Compostela Valley-Caraga Corregidor Cluster that includes New Bataan is the seventh beneficiary of the OPAPP-PAMANA in the country.
The program seeks to close the gap between what happens on the negotiating table and the realities on the ground through a converged strategy of resource allocation and utilization, Cruz stated.
Anchored on President Benigno Aquino’s National Security Policy, the OPAP-PAMANA aims to reduce poverty and vulnerability through community infrastructure and focused delivery of social services.
“Each barangay will receive P300,000 annually for three consecutive years which shall be used to finance a specific project that will eventually address peace and order issues in their community,” stated Cruz.                                 
The program also intends to improve governance through partnerships with national and local institutions, building capacities for governance, and enhancement of transparency and accountability mechanism.
It further empowers communities and strengthens their capacity to address issues of vulnerability and peace through activities that promote social cohesion.
The first six beneficiaries of this program are the Cordillera Administrative Region, Quezon/ Region 4-A/ Mindoro/ Bicol, Samar Island, Negros Island, Zamboanga/ Basilan/ Sultan Kudarat (ZamBaZulTa), and the Central Mindanao Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.