More than 1,000 indigenous peoples (IPs) gathered in Barangay Sto. Ni\u00f1o of this town on Wednesday for the opening of a three-day medical and dental mission caravan.<\/p>\n
The outreach program was spearheaded by the Youth With A Mission (YWAM) Ships Philippines, in partnership with the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), the Philippine Coast Guard, the Philippine National Police, and the Armed Forces of the Philippines.<\/p>\n
In an interview, YWAM Ships Philippines president Rheo Loseo said this is the group\u2019s first caravan in the Davao Region, intended to deliver basic social services to geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas (GIDAs).<\/p>\n
\u201cTalaingod was recommended to us by the NTF-ELCAC, being a GIDA. We also chose this community because IPs here have limited access to healthcare and social services,\u201d Loseo said.<\/p>\n
He said the initiative aims to bring hope and promote peace, development, and community transformation.<\/p>\n
Aside from medical and dental consultations, the caravan also offers free haircuts, medicines, circumcision and clothing.<\/p>\n
Vice Governor Clarice Jubahib lauded the effort, saying it sends a strong message that healthcare must reach even the most remote communities.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour dedication, time, and heart for service inspire our local government to continue strengthening healthcare programs,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Mayor Jonie Libayao also expressed gratitude to the national government and partner agencies for supporting the initiative.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverybody is welcome here. I thank all the agencies involved in this caravan,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The caravan aims to serve over 3,000 IPs here for the three-day activity. (PNA)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Medical and dental missions were conducted to support the health needs of IP communities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":75,"featured_media":264106,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19579],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-264105","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health"],"zyndk8_nxtgen_metadata":{"nxtgen_comments":[{"8175":"sna wlang delay sa services \ud83d\ude0c\r","8176":"laban lang sa serbisyo \ud83d\udcaa"}]},"yoast_head":"\n