CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, Philippines – From serving four villages here, the locally created Mindanao Cooperatives Water Service Federation (MCWS) will soon be providing its services to consumers in the cities of Cotabato and Bislig.
On Thursday, July 16, MCWS signed a joint venture agreement (JVA) with Hanabana Construction and Equipment Corporation to provide bulk water supply to the Metro Cotabato Water District (MCWD).
Luis Yap, chairman of First Community Cooperative (Ficco) and MCWS, and Engr. Neil Bryan Oraiz, president of both Hanabana and Kyogojo Engineering Services Cooperative, signed the agreement.
Ficco is one of the 13 cooperatives that organized the MCWS in 2018. Meanwhile, Kyogojo is MCWS’s partner in upgrading the community-based water systems in four CDO villages.
Isagani Daba, MCWS vice president for administration and treasurer, said Hanabana was tapped by MCWD to supply 6,000 cubic meters of water per day to MCWD’s customers in Cotabato City.
In turn, Hanabana signed a JVA with MCWS to provide part of the funds to develop the water source, install a water treatment plant, and the primary pipe.
Daba said the notice to proceed was already issued to Hanabana and the project is expected to start on Aug. 1 with an estimated cost of Php 50 million.
MCWS projected that by January 2021, the joint venture will be able to supply water to MCWD.
“These are just small projects as compared to huge undertakings like Manila Water and Maynilad, but this is to show that cooperatives owned by ordinary people can enter into this kind of enterprise,” Dabao shared.
MCWS and Hanabana also planned to put up the community water supply systems in Bislig City. The project’s first phase will cover Barangay Poblacion and nearby villages with an estimated cost of Php 80 million. The second phase will expand to Barangay Mangagoy which has over 7,000 households.
“As in the Cotabato bulk water supply project, MCWS will provide the bulk of the funds needed to install the water system, while Hanabana will take care of the technical side,” Daba shared, adding that unlike the Cotabato project, the Bislig City water system will be operated by the joint venture.
He said MCWS is also planning to operate in several Misamis Oriental towns. (davaotoday.com)
