“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.”
This quote from Hellen Keler, a famous American author and advocate of disability rights, underscores the importance of the massive power of collective action that will lead to the achievement of impossible dreams.
An example of this kind of collective action can be found in Barangay Calawit, a geographically isolated and disadvantaged area (GIDA) in San Jose, Camarines Sur, which is home to 228 households.
Community members needed to walk on a rocky and winding road while crossing rivers just to reach the essential services such as schools, markets, and health centers, which is an additional burden in their everyday life. And this has been their perennial problem, affecting their quality of life and access to better opportunities.
But those difficulties are but a sad memory. Barangay Calawit now boasts of a newly-built concrete footbridge with a pathway which is now tangible proof of the community’s empowerment and ‘bayanihan’ made possible through the Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan – Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services (KALAHI-CIDSS) of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).
The KALAHI-CIDSS is a development program of the DSWD that uses the community driven development (CDD) approach in empowering poor communities, teaching them to identify their needs and propose for a sub-project responding to their needs.
Community members identify, propose, plan for and implement the sub-projects based on their collective need. The DSWD funded the footbridge with a total cost of Php3.58 million, which enabled the safe and easy passage, connecting residents to opportunities and a better quality of life.
More than concrete and steel
The footbridge with a pathway made from the sweat and hard work of Barangay Calawit’s residents was completed and turned over last October 25.
A joyous inauguration and turn-over ceremony was held by the DSWD offices and local leaders led by Mayor Jerold B. Peña. But the true VIPs (very important persons) in that ceremony were the community volunteers who made the project a reality.
Mayor Peña emphasized that the program’s value extends far beyond the physical structure. “The main objective of this activity is not actually erecting establishments, edifices, or concreting pavements but is to actually empower the people,” the San Jose Mayor said.
This emphasis on people empowerment is the very core of the KALAHI-CIDSS program — entrusting the community with the responsibility of planning, implementing, and sustaining their chosen interventions.
A Volunteer’s Journey: Joy in sacrifice and perseverance
Emily Onsay, a dedicated community volunteer, who served as the chairperson of the Barangay Development Council – Technical Working Group, recounted her journey with KALAHI-CIDSS.
Emily highlighted the personal transformation that comes with genuine service and her happiness in realizing their community’s long-dreamt project. “Napakahalaga sa akin ang karanasan na ito. Noong una, madali lang maging bahagi ng proyekto, ngunit habang tumatagal doon ko nakita ang halaga ng sakripisyo, pagtitiyaga,” she narrated.
Emily’s experience is a microcosm of the whole community’s effort. She witnessed firsthand that authentic public service is rooted in the hearts of the residents.
Her time as a volunteer taught her profound lessons in humility, cooperation, and the enduring Filipino tradition of bayanihan—a collective heroism that sees a community uplifting itself.
The concrete footbridge does more than connect two physical points. It also serves as a powerful symbol of a community that has found its collective strength.
“Ang tulay na ito ay hindi lamang daanan na nagdudugtong ng kabilang panig ng aming barangay. Ito ay simbolo ng pagkakaisa, pagtutulungan, at malasakit ng bawat mamamayan,” Emily proudly said.
The experience of Barangay Calawit is a vivid example of the KALAHI-CIDSS program in action.
By placing the power of decision-making and implementation into the hands of the people, it continues to empower residents, ensuring that the interventions—like this essential footbridge—are not just built for the community. That the residents were the builders themselves signify a lasting ownership that promises to sustain the improved quality of life for years to come.
More than 20 years of grassroots development
Barangay Calawit is just one of the success stories in more than 20 years of the KALAHI-CIDSS’ existence. To date, the program has already completed 92,501 sub-projects benefiting over 24 million individuals over the country.
Among the developmental infrastructures usually overlooked especially in GIDAs are barangay health centers, farm-to-market roads, pathways, concrete bridges, hanging bridges, day care centers, water systems, electrification projects, multipurpose hall, and other livelihood-infrastructures.
But aside from the concrete sub-projects that would remain a monument of every community’s hard work, the KALAHI-CIDSS also left behind an empowered grassroots, ready to take an active role in nation-building.
Just like in Barangay Calawit whose residents have been totally empowered through the KALAHI-CIDSS. Just like what Hellen Keller said. (NT)
