Energy Secretary re-affirmsgovernment’s commitment to rural electrification

Energy Secretary Vincent S. Perez, Jr. re-affirms government’s commitment to rural electrification during the Village Power Conference sponsored by Preferred Energy Inc. (PEI) and the World Bank-ESMAP last June 21 in Makati.

Perez says, "One of the most successful accomplishments of the Arroyo administration is that more than 50% of rural households were electrified in the last 3 years." He cited the Department of Energy’s program (ER 1-94) to jumpstart the electrification of rural communities with the help of the private sector. "More than half of barangays electrified in the last 3 years came from independent power companies," Perez pointed out.

At the conference, Perez was presented with a case study of the Bagong Bayan Community-Based Electrification and Livelihood Project. This is an integrated energy (hybrid micro-hydro/diesel genset) and livelihood (ice plant) project implemented through the collaborative efforts of multi-sectoral groups, namely: the Samahan ng Magsasaka sa Bagong Bayan, UNDP-Small Grants Programme, Winrock International and Winrock REPSO Philippines, Sibol ng Agham at Teknolohiya (SIBAT), the Department of Agriculture’s Bureau of Postharvest Research and Extension (DA-BPRE), Palawan Center for Appropriate Technology (PCART), Palawan Electric Cooperative (PALECO), Philippine Fisheries Development Authority (PFDA), Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), the Municipality of Roxas and Barangay Council of Bagong Bayan.

Perez stated that the government would support the replication of sustainable energy-livelihood projects, such as the one in Bagong Bayan, to more rural communities in the country.

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