Health care, education, infrastructure – even security. In remote areas of our country, and especially those where the Indigenous People live, the State is unfortunately not able to be present to the extent it would wish – or to the extent it will be able to do, in a future of economic development.

So where there are companies like TVIRD bringing development to the countryside, we can get a head start: young mothers can take their sick children to the community clinic established by the project.
It’s one of the really rewarding aspects of running a project like Canatuan: the opportunity for the Company to bring meaningful social and economic benefits to a long-time disadvantaged indigenous community; to contribute to enduring sustainable socio-economic development to this remote post-conflict zone in Mindanao, Southern Philippines.
 
For the Subanon indigenous people, TVIRD is not just an employer, but also the government’s all-too-willing substitute in the mountains: the provider of many of their needs, including, among others, security, road maintenance and repair, as well as such basic services as education, housing, and health care.
 
Since the nearest hospital for Canatuan’s over 1,200 residents is hours by rough road away, the Company clinic ministers to the health needs not only of TVIRD employees, but residents of the community as well. A doctor is on call 24 hours a day, while a full-time nurse and a full-time midwife double as teachers in regard to health, hygiene and nutrition to the community.
 
The next level is sustainability. TVIRD is also working on education, training, and interaction with the Local and National governments to ensure that in years to come, the clinics and the schools will be independent of the Project, and endure for the long-term social and economic empowerment of the region’s people.