LINGAYEN, PANGASINAN – Another crowd drawing component of the Capitol Complex redevelopment program will have its test run this August.
Gov. Ramon Guico III will lead local government officials in the test run of the interactive fountain which is expected to draw record crowd.
In May 1, a big crowd gathered at the complex to witness a test run of the reflecting pool.
This as improvements at the Capitol grounds are expected to be finished at the end of the year, said Provincial Engineer Amadeo Veras. “(Completion rate) of Phase II is 62.39%,” said the engineer.
The governor also said that there is a need for efficiency in government transactions and that can be realized with the construction of the 11-storey government center/tower that will house all provincial and line agencies offices.
The construction has actually kicked off with the demolition of the former Provincial Training Center 1.
This has prompted the relocation of the Provincial Legal Office to the Finance building. Offices that will be relocated are the Family Court at the Legislative building and the Land Registration Authority to the Narciso Ramos Sports and Civic Center (NRSCC) complex.
The Philippine Veterans Affairs and National Commission on Indigenous Peoples offices are planned to be temporarily relocated in the vacant stalls at the back of Palaris building while a proposed relocation site for the office of the Girl Scouts of the Philippines has been identified.
Engr. Veras, meanwhile, encouraged the public to be patient with the inconvenience caused by the construction of the drainage system which will not only benefit Lingayen town but the entire province as well.
The Capitol Complex will have pedestrian-friendly sidewalks, an intelligent traffic light system, open spaces, improved WIFI and other structures of global standards.
The projects have the needed permits before implementation like the Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC) from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.
LINGAYEN, Pangasinan – The Sangguniang Panlalalawigan Monday confirmed the appointments of the provincial administrator and legal officer during its first session.
Vice Gov. Mark Ronald Lambino and the board confirmed the re-appointment by Gov. Ramon Guico III of Provincial Administrator Melicio Patague II and Legal Officer Baby Ruth Torre, a lawyer.
“I have given my best to support the mission and vision of the provincial government of Pangasinan under the leadership of Governor Ramon V. Guico III and Vice Governor Mark Ronald DG. Lambino,” said PA Patague after completing the three year service as right hand man of the governor last June 30.
He added: “We would like to be a team player, a positive contributor and we would like to participate in the continuation of the big-ticket projects initiated by the administration of Gov. Guico and Vice Gov. Mark Ronald Lambino.”
Patague is a former vice mayor of Binalonan where he also served as a Sangguniang Kabataan chairman and later president of said organization leading to him getting a seat at the municipal board. He also served as a councilor and later as vice mayor until his “graduation” in 2022 just as Gov. Guico won as governor.
He earned his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science at Saint Louis University and finished his bachelor of law at the Baguio Colleges Foundation, now the University of the Cordilleras.
In confirming Torre, the provincial board said: “After careful examination, scrutiny, and review of the qualifications, records and experiences of the recommendee, the Sangguniang Panlalawigan finds the appointment meritorious and therefore interposes no objection to said appointment,..
Torre, an SLU accountancy and law school graduate, was the former Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) Pangasinan President (2015-2017) and the former Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) Governor- Central Luzon Region (2019-2021). She specialized in litigation law before she joined the Guico administration.
LINGAYEN, Pangasinan – The province is the National Grand Winner for Outstanding Kadiwa Implementer in the local government unit (LGU).
Pangasinan was the outstanding implementer in Region 1 earlier for the Department of Agriculture (DA) initiated Kadiwa. The project was given intensive support by the province led by Governor Ramon V. Guico III, through the ‘Kadiwa ed Kapitolyo’. The local version is held twice a month specifically every 10th and 25th at the Capitol grounds here.
The Kadiwa on Wheels, on the other hand, are held monthly in other localities through the assistance of other LGUs.
The Provincial Agriculture’s Office (PAO) reported that around 2,500 farmers and fisherfolk cooperatives and associations have benefitted from the program.
The project is conducted with the support of other line agencies like the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) and the National Food Authority (NFA).
Provincial Agriculturist Dalisay Moya said the Kadiwa kicked off with 20 exhibitors but increased in number in the succeeding months.
At present, about a hundred Kadiwa-related activities are conducted with the support of several partner agencies and LGUs throughout the province.
The PAO said that exhibitors have over P20 million gross sales.
“We have generated a total sales of P20,985,234.60 and we have helped 2,582 exhibitors. The total household that we have served is around 55,710,” said Provincial Agribusiness and Marketing Service Coordinator Ramy Sison, in a mix of English and Filipino, earlier.
Launched in 2022, the Kadiwa ng Pangulo is a marketing initiative of the DA to empower local farmers, fisherfolk and local entrepreneurs through establishing a direct market link to enable them sell their produce directly to the consumers at affordable prices.
Kadiwa offers safe, fresh, and affordable food products like vegetables, dairy products, fruits, fish and meat products, rice, native delicacies, among others.
LINGAYEN, Pangasinan – More projects are expected to benefit the poor of this province, Governor Ramon V. Guico III vowed during his oath taking last Monday at the Sison Auditorium here.
The governor said that thru the provincial government’s ‘Ipagpatuloy Ang Galing, Community Outreach Program” they will be able to reach out to the more than 3.1 million Pangasinan residents in the 1,364 villages.
Launched last June 11 in Brgy. Doyong, Calasiao, the project is an integrated multi-agency program that provides services to disadvantaged rural or urban households and individuals in Pangasinan.
The project provides various services like free medical and dental. Medical services cover preventive care including examinations, consultations, and prescription medications. Dental, on the other hand, encompasses oral examinations and extractions.
Barangay residents can avail of free laboratory services like ECG and X-ray. Health packs containing medicines and vitamins are distributed as well as food packs consisting of rice, salt (from Pangasinan Salt Center), canned goods and eggs.
“Sa taong ito, sinimulan natin ang ‘Ipagpatuloy Ang Galing, Community Outreach Program’ upang paglingkuran ang 1,364 na barangays ng ating lalawigan,” said Gov. Guico.
[This year, we have started ‘Ipagpatuloy Ang Galing, Community Outreach Program’ to serve the 1,364 villages in our province.]
Aside from health and social services, infrastructure projects such as asphalting and concreting of farm-to-market roads or community thoroughfares are continuously undertaken. The province will also establish barangay facilities like multi-purpose buildings and halls and child development centers.
Solar streetlights will be installed also in various barangays to ensure a safer, conducive environment for villagers.
Provincial government offices recently joined in supporting the project by adopting a barangay as recipient for their outreach projects.
“Mas marami pang barangay ang gusto nating maabot sa aking pangalawang termino sa pamamagitan ng all-of-province approach sa outreach program nating ito. Samahan po ninyo ako sa layuning ito para ipagpatuloy Ang Galing ng Pangasinan,” Gov. Guico said.
[We want to reach more barangays in my second term through an all-of-province approach for our outreach program. Join me in our quest to continue how good Pangasinan is.]
Barangay folks are also urged to participate in greening the environment thru the Pangasinan Green Canopy project.
LINGAYEN, Pangasinan – The Pangasinan Polytechnic College (PPC) received its Certificate of Program Compliance (COPC) for its initial four-degree programs from the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) last Monday.
Gov. Ramon V. Guico III received the COPC from the CHED during his inauguration at the Sison Auditorium here.
The COPC serves as a quality assurance certification that ensures educational programs meet the necessary requirements for operation and are aligned with national educational standards.
The four curriculum programs include Bachelor of Science in Agribusiness, Media Arts, Public Administration major in Local Governance and Special Needs Education.
Gov. Guico said the COPC symbolizes the provincial government’s goal to provide brighter future for Pangasinense youth through the provision of free quality education. He further stated that his administration set its sight in building more campuses in the future.
“Ito ang katuparan ng aking pangako noong ako’y umupo sa aking unang termino bilang inyong Gobernador, katuparan ng pangarap ng unang batch na mahigit pitong daang estudyante at libu-libo pang mga nagnanais maging marunong at magaling,” the governor said.
[This is a fulfillment of my promise when I serve my first term as Governor, a fulfillment of the dreams of the first batch of over 700 students and the hundreds more who want to become knowledgeable and good.]
Education is one of the governor’s flagship programs to improve the lives of his constituents by opening the PPC. It was established last year with 700 students coming from poor families which was doubled this academic year. He is also eyeing the establishment of two new campuses to be built in Umingan and Bugallon towns soon.
The governor is planning to establish the PPC School of Medicine and Health Sciences in June 2028, just before he completes his second term. Gov. Guico said that he wants to fill the shortage of nurses and doctors in the country.
Meanwhile, PPC President Professor Raymundo D. Rovillos said the accomplishment serves as a clear testament to the institution’s unwavering commitment to maintaining high educational standards, ensuring program quality, and continuously striving for academic excellence in all areas of instruction and service.
LINGAYEN, Pangasinan – The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation has four million Filipinos enrolled with its Konsulta program and 35 percent or 1.4 million are from this province.
Governor Ramon V. Guico III said this after his induction to his second term as governor Monday, June 30, at the Sison Auditorium here.
The governor said that four million has been enrolled with the PhilHealth Konsulta program, of which half are from Region I and 70 percent of that number, or 1.4 million, are Pangasinenses.
Gov. Guico attributed that to the provincial government’s support project which is the Government Unified Incentives for medical Consultations or GUICONSULTA.
Gov. Guico said that he eyes an initial two million enrollees and will be happy if they could have the entire population of over 3 million enrolled with the PhilHealth program.
Konsulta, a PhilHealth outpatient program was started in 2020.
When Governor Guico introduced the GUICONSULTA late last year, he found out that only 30,000 locals have availed of the program.
Pangasinenses were then urged to enroll that they were even given funds for transportation and food just to do so and that started the ball rolling that saw a massive enrollment in all the 48 local government units (LGUs).
In less than a year, some 1.4 million of the two million targeted by the provincial government are already PhilHealth members.
The feat amazed PhilHealth Vice President for Region 1 Dennis B. Adre that he urged other LGUs all over the country to emulate the GUICONSULTA.
“We have been coordinating with our head office to study and evaluate the Pangasinan Business Model (for GUICONSULTA) and probably adopt and turn it into a policy,” Adre said.
Quezon City is the first LGU to do so when Mayor Joy Belmonte said that she aims to have all her constituents of 2,96 million, Philippine Statistics Agency 2020 estimate, enrolled with the PhilHealth Konsulta.
Adre said that those enrolled with the Konsulta will have a capitation worth P1,700 which is paid to the partner accredited hospitals like the 14 provincial operated hospitals.
The amount will go to the members’ laboratory fees, maintenance medicines to battle diabetes and hypertension as well as prescription medicines like antibiotics.
“In the case of Pangasinan, they have come up with an 80-20 sharing scheme which is provided for in a memorandum of agreement signed by and among the 48 municipalities and cities,” Adre explained.
Adre said the 80 percent is being held in trust by the province in a special health fund as contained in a resolution to that effect while the remaining 20 percent goes directly to the LGUs.
The PhilHealth later accredited all rural health units of the 48 LGUs, which are now organized into one united health network.
Gov. Guico said he eyes the establishment of an Apex Hospital and to upgrade existing health facilities in the province to meet the needs of every sick and poor Pangasinense.
LINGAYEN, Pangasinan – Governor Ramon V. Guico III vowed to continue what he started in his first term, implement vital projects that will further spur development and improve the lives of every Pangasinanse.
Taking his oath of office in his second term Monday, June 30, before presiding Judge Avelina J. Villegas-Rosario of RTC Branch 14-FC at the historic Sison Auditorium here, the governor said that he will continue what he has started.
“Ngayong umaga ay isang napakahalagang yugto sa aking paninilbihan sa publiko. Araw na ibinigay ng Diyos upang ipagpatuloy ang mga nasimulang reporma sa ating lalawigan. Mula sa kalusugan, edukasyon, agrikultura, turismo, kalikasan, pananalapi, at iba pang larangan ng public service,” he stated.
(This morning is an important chapter in my public service. This is a day given by God so that I can continue the reforms I have started for our province. From health, education, agriculture, tourism, environment and finance and other fields of public service.)
Witnessed by local leaders, department heads, representatives of national line agencies, provincial government employees, the governor was enjoined by his family—wife, Maan Tuazon-Guico and their five adorable children; his parents–5th District Congressman Ramon Guico, Jr. And Dr. Arlyn Grace Guico and brother, Binalonan Mayor Ramon ‘RG’ Guico IV, Gov. Guico thanked Pangasinenses for giving him another fresh mandate.
Gov. Guico stressed that he had laid the foundation for development by targeting vital projects as initial works of his administration such as various infrastructure projects.
These projects include the establishment of the Pangasinan Polytechnic College (PPC) and establishment of a concrete plan to modernize all 14 government hospitals with inclusion of two new health facilities like the super Community Hospital in Umingan and the newly-inaugurated hospital in Alcala town.
The inauguration saw the governor received from the Commission of Higher Education (CHED) to the PPC of the certificate of Program Compliance (COPC) for the latter’s four curriculum courses.
The governor said the award symbolizes the provincial government’s goal to provide brighter future for underprivileged young Pangasinanses by getting access to free and quality tertiary education.
“Patuloy tayong magsusumikap na palakihin pa ang Pangasinan Polytechnic College upang mas marami pa tayong matulungan dito sa buong lalawigan,” he said.
(We will continue to persevere to improve and make the Pangasinan Polytechnic College a bigger learning institution so we can serve more people in our province.)
The governor said two new PPC campuses will rise in the towns of Umingan and Bugallon in his second term.
As to health, Gov. Guico said his administration wants to deliver the best services for the people by modernizing not only the facilities to include provision of state-of-the-art equipment but enhancing capabilities of healthcare providers (doctors and nurses) through skills enhancement.
The administration also eyes the establishment of specialty hospitals like a heart center, kidney center and cancer institute that will form part of the governor’s dream to provide the best services for the more than 3.1 million Pangasinenses.
Gov. Guico proudly announced that Philhealth’s Konsulta program has enrolled some four million individuals from across the country. Of this number, about two million are from Region 1 and bulk of which are from Pangasinan with a whopping 1.4 million individuals which was achieved through the GUICONSULTA project which he launched in 2024.
During his first term, Gov. Guico focused on establishing master-planning for the various programs and projects of the province. These include the comprehensive re-development master plan of the Capitol Complex which is focused in the following aspects: construction of the longest reflecting pool and interactive fountain in the entire country; the enhancement of Veterans Memorial Park and World War II Historical Marker; establishment of the 11-story Pangasinan Government Center/Tower and the 1,500-seater Convention Center; the Capitol Flood Control project; and the Tourist Rest Area which is about to be finished.
Gov. Guico vowed that during his administration, the focus will be on grassroots projects that will respond to the needs of the barangay folks through outreach program activities. He said that they will offer different services like free medical-dental check-ups and distribution of food and medical packs; provision of solar street lights; and establishment of farm-to-market roads that are essential in supporting farmers and entrepreneurs throughout Pangasinan.
The provincial government’s excellent works have paid off as it received various awards and recognition like the Department of Health’s 2024 Healthy Communities Award; the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Seal of Good Local Governance; and the Department of Agriculture Regional and National Outstanding KADIWA ng Pangulo Best LGU Implementer.
LINGAYEN, Pangasinan – The Provincial Government of Pangasinan led by Governor Ramon V. Guico III commended four outgoing members of the 11th Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP).
The provincial board last Monday accorded with “deepest appreciation” to outgoing SP Members Rosary Gracia ‘Chinky’ P. Perez-Tababa, Noel C. Bince, Salvador ‘Dong’ S. Perez, Jr., and Carolyn D. Sison. for their tireless and remarkable efforts in crafting impactful and transformative measures during their term of office.
Board Members Perez-Tababa, Bince and Salvador capably served in the last three terms representing the 5th district (for Tababa) and 6th district (both for Bince and Salvador).
BM Tababa actively and effectively chaired the committee on youth and sports; housing and utilization; children, women, senior citizens, family affairs and social welfare.
BM Tababa helped establish measures like the gender-based violence and rape cases response mechanism and protocol, the grant of cash incentives to Pangasinense centenarians, reduction of teen pregnancy cases and other risky behaviors, the revision of the provincial gender and development code and children’s welfare code, and the enactment of the 4Ps anti-pawning ordinance and child protection policy.
BM Bince, on the other hand, chaired the Committee on Good Government and Accountability of Public Officers, Justice and Human Rights of the 9th and 10th SP. During his term, he has ably led the board in the probe and adjudication of cases that involved misconduct or violation of law by the lower local government units.
Known for his tough demeanor during sessions, BM Bince was elected as one of the Regional Director of the Provincial Board Members League of the Philippines (PBMLP).
BM Salvador was Chairman of the Committee on Cooperative, Small Business and Entrepreneurship Development and has actively engaged in the promotion and enhancement of the province’s livelihood and employment activities.
He introduced measures like the institutionalization of the provincial livelihood assistance program, and the condonation of interest of loans in the said program.
BM Perez chaired the Committee on Infrastructure, Public Services and Utilities which ably led to matters regarding planning and construction, maintenance, improvement and repair of public facilities owned by the province.
He took charge in sponsoring measures for the regulation of dredging activities on river restoration projects as well as the imposition of various taxes and fees.
Appreciation was also extended to SP Member Carolyn S. Dizon who served for one term as President of the Philippine Councolirs League-Pangasinan Chapter.
During her stint from April 2024 to June 2025, she chaired the Committee on Inter-Local Government and People’s and Non-Governmental Organizations and steered the board in pursuing harmonious relationship of the provincial government to the different government agencies both national and local.
Gov. Guico and Vice Governor Mark Ronald DG Lambino, expressed their unwavering gratitude to the outgoing officials whose dedication and hardwork contributed much in the success of programs and projects of the present administration. (Ruby F. Rayat/PIMRO)
LINGAYEN, Pangasinan – The Department of Agriculture has recognized the efforts of the provincial office in supporting local farmers when it conferred the ‘Gawad Saka Award’ to the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist as Region 1’s Outstanding Kadiwa ng Pangulo LGU Implementer.
Provincial Agriculturist Dalisay Moya and Provincial Legal Officer Baby Ruth Torre received the award on behalf of Governor Ramon V. Guico III during the 50th Gawad Saka Parangal ng mga Natatanging Magsasaka at Mangingisda Monday, June 23, in San Fernando City, La Union,.
Gov. Guico has vowed to intensify agri-based programs that will bolster agricultural production which will help farmers increase their yields and marketability.
Launched in 2022, the governor ordered for intensified promotion of the program that by January 2024, the project was named ‘Kadiwa na Kapitolyo’ and held twice a month at the Capitol Complex grounds.
Kadiwa is one of the national government’s agri-based programs, which the present administration is actively promoting.
The Kadiwa On-Wheels na Kapitolyo, on the other hand, is a collaborative project of the provincial government with the DA along with various agencies like the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), and the National Food Authority (NFA).
The OPAG report said the Kadiwa started with 20 exhibitors during and more than doubled in the succeeding months.
To date, about a hundred Kadiwa-related activities are conducted with the support of different local government units (LGUs) and several partner agencies.
“We have generated a total sales of P20,985,234.60 and we have helped 2,582 exhibitors. The total household that we have served is around 55,710,” said Provincial Agribusiness and Marketing Service Coordinator Ramy Sison, in a mix of English and Filipino, earlier.
The Kadiwa serves as an opportunity for farmers/fisherfolks and Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) to introduce their products directly to the public.
Kadiwa offers safe, fresh, and affordable food products like vegetables, dairy products, fruits, fish and meat products, rice, native delicacies, among others.
LINGAYEN, Pangasinan – Governor Ramon V. Guico III was one of the recipients of this year’s ‘Haribon Awards’ given by the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (PLM) last Saturday at the Manila Hotel.
He joined Pulitzer awardee and veteran journalist Manuel Mogato and Commission on Elections Chairperson George Erwin Garcia in the awards given by the country’s first and only chartered and autonomous university funded by a city government.
The Haribon award, which was given for the first time to 65 outstanding alumni, is the highest alumni award by the PLM and its alumni association.
The Philippine News Today in a report stated that Gov. Guico, a licensed pilot, was conferred a Doctor of Public Management degree by the PLM after submitting an excellent thesis on the strong potential of expanding the country’s aeronautics industry.
The report added that it resulted for the opening of the Binalonan Airport, the Sky Pasada Airline, and the WCC Aeronautical and Technological College also located in Binalonan, the governor’s hometown.
Among the governor’s outstanding feats include the establishment of two local colleges in Pangasinan – the University of Eastern Pangasinan (UEP) in Binalonan and the Pangasinan Polytechnic College (PPC) here.
Notable Haribon awardees include Pangasinan veteran journalist, author, educator and former National Press Club President Alfredo Gabot; PLM Regent Wilma Valle Galvante; former Ambassador Constancio Vingno Jr., former United Nations Representative Richard Prado; Dr. Reynaldo Imperial; Dr. Lucas Riel Bersamin Jr. and Dr. Sybil Jade Pena of the Paris-based Doctors Without Borders.
This is not the first time that Gov. Guico has received a top-caliber award.
Earlier, he was listed by Edurank.org as among the ‘Top 79 Notable Alumni of the University of the Philipiines (UP) Diliman.
Notable recepients of said awards are: former President Ferdinand Edralin Marcos, Sr., former Vice President Leni Robredo, the country’s sixth President Elpidio Quirino, ace journalist Maria Ressa, politician Jose P. Laurel, lawyer, and former Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan, musician Ely Buendia, broadcast journalist Jessica Soho, actor JM De Guzman, and beauty queen Venus Raj.
LINGAYEN, Pangasinan – Governor Ramon V. Guico III assured his more than three million constituents that all 14 provincial hospitals in Pangasinan will continuously deliver the best healthcare services.
This after the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) commended the province for taking the lead in enrolling about 1.4 million Pangasinan residents in the Konsultasyong Sulit at Tama (Konsulta) thru the Pangasinan Government Unified Incentives for Medical Consultation (GUConsulta) project.
The province completed registering said numbers last month and to date still counting.
The PhilHealth reported that 600,945 of the Konsulta members have already availed of the services or the first patient encounter.
The Konsulta package is a free outpatient benefit package that covers consultation, health screening and assessment, some selected laboratory and diagnostics tests as well as selected drugs and medicines to be availed at chosen Philhealth-accredited facilities or hospitals.
Philhealth Regional Vice President Dennis B. Adre earlier said that there was not a single centavo released by their agency to the provincial government.
In commending the province, the PhilHealth noted that GUICONSULTA played a big role in helping the health insurance achieve the numbers.
Under the GUICONSULTA, the provincial government allocated P300 as incentive per enrollee for transportation and meals of individuals who will register for the Konsulta program.
Some 81 hospitals and clinics, 75 government and six private, all over Pangasinan, are now accredited as Konsulta providers.
“It was a big challenge for us, it seems to be impossible but this is very-very possible,” Gov. Guico earlier said as he further stated that Konsulta plus GUICONSULTA now serve as the backbone of a sustainable healthcare program for Pangasinan.
LINGAYEN, Pangasinan – Gov. Ramon Guico III has given jobs to nearly 20,000 unemployed Pangasinenses since he assumed office in July 2022.
The 19,610 is nearly twice the 10,000 jobs he assured when he filed to run as governor in October 2021.
Of these, more than 99 percent or 19,508 were given jobs locally and 102 or .52 percent are now working overseas, said Pangasinan Public Employment Services Office (PESO) head Richelle Raguindin.
She said that they were able to achieve this by continuously conducting various job generating activities and projects such as regular jobs fair; job fair caravans; employability enhancement program (EEP); and special program for employment of students.
Aside from job opportunities, the Pangasinan PESO also conducts different skills trainings to help equip individuals such as the out-of-school-youths, unemployed adults and heads of families, persons with disability, women to include single mothers among others, for future employability.
Some of the trainings include basic electrical troubleshooting, basic carpentry, livelihood and other entrepreneurial coaching that will transform beneficiaries become self-reliant and skilled.
Gov. Guico aims to address unemployment in the province through provision of intensive employment facilitation and giving easier access to jobseekers especially those the indigents.
For the youth, the provincial government had been fully supportive of the Special Program for Employment of Students (SPES), an employment-bridging program during summer or school breaks. The program provides jobs for students who belong to low-income families as well as the out-of-school youth and dependents of displaced workers.
In the three years Gov. Guico served as governor, the Pangasinan PESO had 670 beneficiaries from July 2022 to present. Broken down, there were 253 beneficiaries in 2022; 150 in 2023; 137 last year and 130 this year.
Recently, an employers forum was conducted by the province in partnership with various stakeholders to come up with strategic plan to basically address various challenges in the labor market today.
“Nais kong mabigyan ng oportunidad ang bawat Pangasinense na magka-trabaho locally at maging sa abroad,” Gov. Guico said.
[I want to provide equal opportunities for every Pangasinense to work locally and even abroad.]
Those who attended the employers forum came from the different government agencies, education sector, private sector associations, local employers, licensed overseas recruitment agencies, and PESO managers from different localities in the province.
