In Tanauan, Leyte, mothers build a school for their children

TACLOBAN CITY, Philippines – Two years after Super typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan), Lola Lucia could still recall how she would fear for her grandchildren’s safety whenever they go to their typhoon-damaged school in Tanauan, Leyte.

The strong winds of Yolanda have destroyed parts of San Victor Elementary School, which has left mothers, including Lucia Cinco, constantly worried that their kids’ safety are always at risk.

“Natatakot kami baka pagdaan ng mga bata… natatakot kami baka lumipad yung mga kahoy… tumama sa bata, yung mga yero,” Lucia recalled in an interview with Rappler.

(We are afraid for the children. We are afraid they might get hit by the galvanized iron roofing and wooden debris.)

For more than a year, after Yolanda’s devastation in 2013, the mothers not only faced this anxiety but also the inconvenience of having to conduct their parents-teachers meetings outside – either under the scorching heat or slightly soaked in a tent. 

They also felt bad for their kids who did not have a decent venue for their school activities.

That is why when aid to reconstruct their buildings finally reached their humble school, they did not hesitate a bit – even if the mothers themselves would have to be the one manning construction. 

Women carpentry 

The concept of women carpentry in the disaster-hit area started when construction materials for shelters in Tanauan and Tacloban City were not utilized because there was no one to handle the construction. 

“Nagbibigay kami ng shelter kits pero walang nagpapanday,” Katlea Itong of local non-government organization Uswag Kita shared their group’s struggle during a project with an international aid group. 

(We gave away shelter kits, but no one was building anything.)

“Then the mothers volunteered, ‘why not train us, ma’am?'” Itong told Rappler in Filipino. 

The project then trained mothers in the coastal communities in Tanauan and Tacloban City technical carpentry skills such as woodcutting, masonry and painting. 

This inspired them to employ mothers of Barangay San Victor to construct the rehabilitation of their elementary school. The project was in partnership with the International Labor Organization (ILO).

57 mothers, 28 days 

Advocating gender equality, ILO aimed 60% of the project’s workforce to be women, which was not difficult to achieve since all the mothers in the barangay were eager to provide a decent learning environment for their kids. 

Fifty-seven (57) unskilled mothers were chosen and trained by 38 skilled carpenters and masons. They were introduced with the equipment and trained on the job proper. 

The mothers, although first timers, were very willing and keen on learning construction know-hows, said Itong.   

“They were excited because they were learning additional skills. They said they can use those skills to do minor repairs at home,” she added.

In less than a month, the project was completed.

Empowered housewives

Through out the project, each mother received a daily wage of P265 that served as their source of funding for their everyday needs. 

But beyond the money they regularly received and the school built for their children, the mothers who previously thought they were only good for household chores found a new sense of being.

“Isipin mo babae kami, ‘di mo akalain na makakagawa kami ng ganun. Walang babae, walang lalaki basta ‘di ka tamad,” Lola Lucia said with fervent pride. 

(Who would have thought we can be able to do something like that? [I believe] gender doesn’t matter as long as you are hardworking.)

Having facilitated the project, Itong and her colleagues at Uswag Kita saw how the mothers’ confidence grew and outlooks changed upon the accomplishment of their hard work. 

“One mother told us how empowered she feels now that she able to do house repairs without her husband. Now, she doesn’t rely on her husband,” Itong said in Filipino. – Rappler.com