It was not an easy travel for the delegation of the Province of East Flanders-New World, Belgium to reach the far-flung communities of the Cordillera but they made it successfully. Their commitment and sincerity in dealing with their partners in the South had further strengthened our development cooperation and solidarity relations.
The delegation of four from the Province of East Flanders, Belgium headed by Deputy Eddy Couckuyt- Deputy of tourism, youth, and welfare and development cooperation; and with him are Deputy Hilde Bruggeman- Deputy of sports, urban development, and personnel; William Blondeel- Department head for Development Cooperation; and Agnes Verspreet- Administrative Officer for the North and South relations office. With the delegation was Roger Camps- New World (Flemish NGO) country representative to the Philippines. They arrived in the Cordillera on January 29, 2011 to visit, once again, with their CDPC - CPA partners in the Cordillera .
They visited projects, met with peoples organizations/beneficiaries and other development stakeholders, as well as with network partners. The commendable North – South Development Cooperation policy has been a program of the province of East Flanders for decades.
A solidarity program on February 4, with the Center for Development Programs in the Cordillera and Cordillera Peoples’ Alliance network and allies, concluded the six days visit. The network and allies of CDPC-CPA expressed their solidarity with the Province of East Flanders-New World through dances, songs and speeches. The PEF -NW delegation also expressed their warm solidarity and their continuing support to the Cordillera peoples, in a speech delivered by Deputy Eddy Couckuyt, after their delegation solidarity song . According to him, the concrete results and impact of the partnership are seen in the lives of the community peoples and the stronger network of NGOs and POs.
The just concluded successful visit was made possible through the close coordination and cooperation among the NGOs, POs and allies of CDPC-CPA network and with local government representatives of the visited provinces of Kalinga and Mt. Province.
The CDPC management also gives credit to the active participation of the members of the Board of Directors headed by Chairperson Jimmy Khayog- who is also the Executive Director of CORDIS-RDS. He personally joined the visit for its full itinerary and duration. Montanosa Research and Development Center (MRDC) is also cited for sharing its program and experiences.
(cdpc Feb 18 2011)
