U.S. Senator Daniel K. Inouye Presides Over Turnover of Rural Electrification Projects in Mindanao
12 August 2006

Zamboanga City – Development assistance from the American people and local private-sector contributions are helping bring electricity to rural communities in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

Rural electrification projects for some 5,000 remote households in the ARMM were recently endorsed to heads of local government units in the region by the Alliance for Mindanao Off-grid Renewable Energy (AMORE) Program of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the Department of Energy, Mirant Philippines Foundation, the ARMM, and Winrock International.

The renewable energy systems, consisting of solar home systems and microhydro power, which AMORE installed in 185 conflict-affected communities in the ARMM that cannot be connected to the power grid, were endorsed to the ARMM government in a ceremony presided over by U.S. Senator Daniel Inouye of Hawaii.

Sen. Inouye is the third most senior member of the U.S. Senate.  A World War II combat veteran decorated with the Medal of Honor, he is an advocate for improved education and healthcare for all children, better health and human services in rural communities, affordable housing, and the protection of natural resources..

Representatives of the village associations, called the Barangay Renewable Energy and Community Development Associations (BRECDAs), which AMORE organized and trained to operate and maintain the RE systems, witnessed the ceremony.  The BRECDA representatives performed a Muslim thanksgiving prayer ritual with the special guests.

The local governments will monitor and support the BRECDAs in ensuring the sustainability of the systems, and will help the associations to expand the systems to more households.

In the same event, National Anti-Poverty Commission Secretary Zamzamin Ampatuan signed a Memorandum of Agreement with AMORE to support the program’s construction of solar-powered drinking water pumping systems in a number of its electrified villages, in support of President Arroyo’s thrust to provide both electricity and water to all villages in the country by 2008.

Former undersecretary and AMORE Chief of Party Theresa Cruz-Capellan said, “These renewable energy systems and solar-powered potable water systems will contribute to alleviating poverty especially in the ARMM, the poorest region in our country.  Now, it is up to the BRECDAs and the LGUs to work together to sustain and expand these systems so that the government could move closer to its goal of achieving 90 percent household electrification by 2017.”