Better Than Maharlika Fund! Raise P1-T/Yr. National Wealth Plant 2-M Has. Giant Bamboo

Planting Giant Bamboo in 2-million hectares of denuded and landslides-prone public and private lands is a better option for growing a sustainable National Wealth, rather than the proposed Maharlika Wealth Fund which is nothing more than a Financial Musical Chair that carries a lot of risks.
The National Bamboo Industry Development Program does not even need funding from the national government and could be implemented by local government units in partnership with independent farmers and the private sector.
I have just succeeded in crafting a model for this program which would serve as a proof of concept.
The lead LGU is the town of Cauayan, Negros Occidental whose young and aggressive Mayor, John Ray Tabujara, has committed to plant Giant Bamboo in 1,000 hectares in the upland areas of his town.
He sees the project as an answer to the perennial problem of flooding and also to create an industry which would provide jobs for his people and earnings for owners of idle lands.
Mayor Tabujara and his team flew in from Bacolod City Friday and on Saturday met with the President of the Bukidnon Giant Bamboo Resources, Bob Tinsay, and the Mother of the Giant Bamboo Program, Myrna Decipulo, in Malaybalay, Bukidnon.
With my facilitation, we were able to draw up the Bamboo Industry Development Program for the town of Cauayan which will be launched this year.
Myrna will supply the planting materials, the people of Cauayan will plant the bamboo while Bob’s company will establish the P150-M processing facility and market the engineered bamboo.
Bob estimates that at current market prices, one hectare of Giant Bamboo could earn P1-M from the value of the poles or a P1-B a year earnings for the people of Cauayan, not counting the added value after processing, the jobs to be generated and the environmental protection provided by the bamboos planted in the denuded highlands.
Now, extrapolate those benefits when the program is adopted by 1,000 rural municipalities all over the country and the National Bamboo Development Program would create a P1-Trillion a year industry.
That amount could increase two-fold with processing and the jobs generated would at least be 2-million plus the bigger benefit of re-greening the denuded highlands of the country.
The market for Engineered Bamboo is huge, both local and international with one construction supply chain in the U.S. requiring 3,000 containers processed bamboo products every month.
Now, with these economic benefits from a literally growing wealth source, planting Giant Bamboo is definitely a wiser option than the very risky and controversial Maharlika Wealth Fund.
#GovernanceIsCommonSense!
#greenphilippinesadvocacy!
#KungGustoMaramingParaan!
(Photos by Rapunzel Galura and Kath Fracesca Bahinting.)