DO NOT ERASE COMMENTS BELOW WHEN YOU REVISE YOUR PAPER:

Nov. 14 comments :

[] From your paper, it seems everything is going well at CCT and that there are no
problems that need to be addressed. Remember, you should imagine that this
is a project proposal for an impact investor. If this will be the tone of your
paper, then it gives the impression that CCT does not need any kind of
financial support for the project that you will propose.

[] There is not enough discussion on the shortcomings and limitations of the

livelihood program being offered.

Endaya, Kaaia Hymna Tala G.

HUMSS 12-A

PROJECT PROPOSAL PART I:

COMMUNITY ANALYSIS

The Center for Community Transformation (CCT) is a non-

government, Christian development organization that aims to empower
and give aid to impoverished Filipinos. Inaugurated in 1991, Dra. Ruth
Callanta sought to provide an avenue for the poor to start anew by
equipping them with skills needed to generate income. Twenty-five years
later, the organization expanded from having six volunteer micro-
entrepreneur trainers to managing 15 groups of ministries that serve
specific poverty groups such as street dwellers, youth, children, small-scale
entrepreneurs, farmers, fisherfolks, blue-collared workers, indigenous
Filipinos, and communities at large.
 CCT’s advocacy on alleviating poverty and social injustice is driven
by their evangelical mission of being of service to others with the gospel
as its foundation. They are committed on implementing various programs
and services among poor communities all over the Philippines in the
pursuit of transforming lives and establishing a just, humane, and caring
society. The organization believes that transformation plays a major role in
the process of development, and that spiritual and social progress
initiatives must work hand-in-hand for holistic change to take place. With
this approach, CCT has been serving 174 urban and rural poor
communities in the Philippines, and has established 24 community centers
that serve as homes for the poor and platforms for leaders to evangelize,
train, educate, and empower poverty-stricken Filipinos who choose to be
a part of the organization’s communities.

One of the ministries that handle CCT’s communities is the Kaibigan

Ministry, Inc. (KMI); the organization’s humanitarian arm that caters to
street dwellers. They spearhead feeding programs, Bible studies,
counseling sessions, educational assistance programs, livelihood and skills
trainings, and resettlement. KMI supervises the Kaibigan Community
Center (KCC) in 2639 Gamban Extension, Pasay City. The center provides
a place for street dwellers to use the toilet, to bathe, and to do their
laundry.

The KCC in Pasay also accommodates in-house residents wherein

the street dwellers agree to stay within the community and undergo KMI’s
processes and trainings for empowerment and self-sustenance. After the
said trainings, former street dwellers will be given means of earning
income through CCT’s partner livelihood ministries and a proper
settlement for their families in the Kaibigan Village in Cabanatuan City.
However, they must first be assessed and assimilated in the Kaibigan
Center.

Currently, KCC accommodates 33 in-house former street dwellers

and ushers 200-300 walk-ins per year. The center has quarters for men,
women and children, and the sickly. The center also has its own classroom
set-up wherein teachers educate children about the basics such as
reading, writing, counting, manners, and etiquettes.
 The Alternative Learning System that is recognized by the
government is implemented in the center. This is to ensure that the
children are fully equipped before they are transferred to the formal
classroom setting in CCT’s partner schools in Puypuy, Magdalena, and
Pagsanjan in Laguna.

The center also initiates worship and bible-reading sessions

everyday for the in-house residents as a part of the organization’s
advocacy on character-formation and establishing gospel-centered
values. Former street dwellers are also encouraged to participate in the
community’s livelihood program of rug making.

The people in the community also share similar stories of hope

amidst the adversities of privation and homelessness. Through KMI’s
programs and activities, former street dwellers are given opportunities to
recover from the hardships of their former lives in the streets. According to
an interview with Angel Diel, a leader in the community, before being a
Commented [JC1]: NOT CLEAR. ARE THEY REQUIRED
TO SHARE STORIES BEFORE BECOMING MEMBERS?
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

part of KCC, the most common way that street dwellers compensate for Commented [JC2]: SAME COMMENT AS ABOVE.
Commented [JC3]: REVISE TO A MORE EFFECTIVE,
their everyday needs is through pamamalimos or begging. Garnering LESS WORDY SENTENCE.
more or less than fifty pesos per day, they use their money for food and
Commented [JC4]: HOW MUCH DO THEY EARN?
other needs, while some, for vices. WHAT DO THEY DO WITH THE MONEY THEY RECEIVE?

Commented [JC5]: INSERT A TRANISTION

As it is said by Angel, life in the streets can be challenging and PARAGRAPH ABOUT HOW LIFE IN THE STREETS LEAD
perilous. The exposure to moral corruption and the feeling of hopelessness THEM TO BECOMING DRUG DEPENDENT OR VICTIMS OF
CRIME.
can lead a person to engage in activities that may involve drugs and
crime. Taking illegal substances such as shabu and marijuana are one of
the street dweller’s ways of coping with the hardships faced in the streets;
that somehow, it takes away the feeling of hunger and makes them
forget their problems temporarily. External influences such as street gangs
can also affect the street dweller’s lifestyles that may involve doing illegal
activities. In most cases, they only result to doing such because of the
Commented [JC6]: EXPLAIN WHY.
plight of being impoverished.

Given that street dwellers do not have proper homes that would
keep them sheltered and safe, they are more susceptible to danger than
most. Due to this, homeless women are at a vulnerable state. They are
more prone to rape and sexual assault due to the lack of safety and
security in not having a home. According to a study by the Australian
Institute of Family Studies, 70% of homeless young women have been
victims of sexual assault in the streets. Being homeless puts women at risk.
Given this, the KCC has handled many cases of former street dwellers that
were victims of sexual harassment and rape. The community center has
Commented [JC7]: DISCUSS WHY THEY ARE PRONE
served as a home for these people. TO BEING RAPED. CITE STATISTICS.

Other than being victims of rape and sexual assault cases, the KCC
also caters to former detainees who have been homeless after being
released from imprisonment. Some were charged of extreme cases such
as homicide and drug-related crimes; all of which are casualties of
poverty. These people share the same mindset of rising up against
indigence and they are grateful that organizations like CCT are doing
major movements in helping the impoverished.

Commented [JC8]: WHAT DOES THIS MEAN? EXPLAIN.

-OMIT- (and some were detained in prison for a long while. One of which is
Ate Lenlen. Her complainant dropped the charges against her 3 months
ago and was finally set free after being detained for 1 year and 5 months
Commented [JC9]: WHAT DOES THIS MEAN? WHAT
in Pasay City Jail. After being detained, she said that she was tired of living WAS HER CASE?
a life of sin in the streets. Like most members of the community, she, too, Commented [JC10]: WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?
wanted to change and to live a better life. The people in the community Commented [JC11]: CHANGE WHAT?
share the same mindset of rising up from poverty, and they are grateful
that organizations like CCT are doing major movements in helping the
impoverished.)

CCT’s goal of transforming the lives of former street dwellers starts

Commented [JC12]: NOT CLEAR. REPHRASE.
with gospel-centered discipline. An example of the leaders’ ways of
promoting discipline is by encouraging the in-house residents to work and
deviate themselves from indolence through projects in the community;
one of which is their rug making livelihood program. This is a way for the
Commented [JC13]: REPLACE WITH A BETTER WORD
residents to hone their craftsmanship and provide means of acquiring
additional income and savings while being inside the community. It is also
through selling the rugs to different suppliers that the organization
generates its funds for sustaining the needs of the people in the
Commented [JC14]: DISCUSS. HOW MUCH TOTAL
community. EARNINGS PER MONTH OR PER YEAR? WHAT
PERCENTAGE IS GIVEN SUSTAIN OPERATIONS? WHAT
PERCENTAGE IS GIVEN DIRECTLY TO WORKERS?
 The livelihood program was only initiated in October 2017, but has
been one of the long-overdue plans for the community. Since it is newly
established, the people in the community have not been very active in
participating in the project. The leaders are still in the process of
determining the percentage on the share of profit with the members of
the community. They are leaning towards the ratio of 30:70 in the
allocation of income – 30% for the residents and walk-ins who will be
participating, and 70% for the needs of the community. They are also
considering on allotting an amount per rug that will be made by a
member of the community.

The leaders are hopeful that the approach of empowering the

residents and walk-ins in the community to work in the rug making business
would be effective and beneficial for the people. However, with the
uncertain number of participants in the project, it would be hard to
determine how the income is to be allocated. One of the possible reasons
why members of the community are not fully engaged in the project is
because they do not have an assurance if they would really get
something out of rug making.

If we are to propose a livelihood program for the community, we

must put into consideration that the people are passionate about earning
or finding means of income; this is how they have lived most of their lives –
through arduous work to compensate for their needs. Although they are a
part of a community that provides for their everyday needs, it is still an
imperative that they are taught on ways to provide for themselves utilizing
their street-wise knowledge. An amalgamation of proper skill sets needed
before they undergo the formal technical programs of CCT in various
training centers and their intellectual capacity on the ways of how the
urban area works, they would most likely be able to rise up against
poverty apace.

Given this, I would like to propose a livelihood program that would

be able to hone the skills of the people in the community, in the same
manner, a program that would maximize the abilities that they already
possess. In doing so, they would be equipped on taking the technical
Commented [JC15]: REPLACE WORD
practices under CCT and be able to lead a better life expeditiously.
-OMIT- (Moreover, I believe that more can be done to hone the skills of
the people in the pursuit of gaining income to help them rise up against
poverty. In producing more livelihood projects for KCC, more
opportunities can be opened for former street dwellers; more avenues for
Commented [JC16]: IF IT’S ALREADY EFFECTIVE AS
sustenance can be produced.) YOU MENTIONED IN YOUR PREVIOUS PARAGRAPH,
THEN WHY PROPOSE A PROJECT TO SUPPORT IT? IF IT’S
STILL A PROBLEM, SUPPORT BY GIVING GOOD
EVIDENCE.