AROUND 18,580 families are set to benefit from a new centralized healthcare facility, valued at P24.9 million, which will be established in Libon, Albay. The initiative falls under the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) in Bicol’s Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan – Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services (Kalahi-CIDSS) program.

According to Sheryl Lofamia, the Kalahi-CIDSS area coordinator, the construction of the two-story building has commenced on a 216-square meter plot of land generously donated by the local government unit of Libon. The groundbreaking ceremony took place on Friday, and the project is expected to be finished by November.

Lofamia detailed the facility’s features, describing it as having 22 patient rooms, with a seven-bed capacity on the ground floor and a 15-bed capacity on the second floor, complete with essential amenities. Additionally, the facility will include an isolation room, nurse station, staff house, doctor’s residence, and a power house room. Importantly, aside from serving as a healthcare center, it will also double as an evacuation center during times of calamity.

Once completed, the healthcare facility will be handed over to the local government of Libon. The realization of this project was made possible through the joint efforts of the town’s 47 villages, which agreed to pool their grants to establish this centralized facility.

“The P20 million is the grant from Kalahi-CIDSS for the 47 barangays, while the remaining amount is the counterpart of the local government unit of Libon,” Lofamia explained. Volunteers from various barangays facilitated the procurement processes for the project.

KALAHI-CIDSS stands as a community-driven flagship development endeavor of the government, aiming to empower communities by directly involving them in projects addressing poverty. The initiative focuses on implementing asset reforms, providing human development services, and conducting capacity-building activities.

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