February is Sibugay Jobs Month February proved to be an eventful and productive month for Zamboanga Sibugay as the province has not only celebrated this fabled love month but also the much highly-anticipated Araw ng Zamboanga Sibugay. Three municipalities havealso celebrated their Founding Anniversaries this month, the Municipalities of Kabasalan and Buug including the Municipality of Kalawit, Zamboanga del Norte which were under the jurisdiction of DOLE Sibugay.Along with these celebrations, the conduct of Jobs Fair was one of the highlights of the event. A total of fiveJobs Fair was conducted this month which was attended by at least 750 jobseekers of which 84 were Hired on the Spot (HOTS), and 135 applicants qualified for the job vacancies out of 226 applicants interviewed.

The five Jobs Fair was sponsored by each of the LGUs through the facilitation of their PESO Managers in collaboration with the DOLE and POEA.

Kalawit Jobs Fair

The jobs month kick-off in the Municipality of Kalawit, Zamboanga del Norte on February 11, 2016 during their celebration of Arawng Kalawit. Mayor Eugenio B. Baliling spearheaded the event together with the Field Office Head of DOLE Zamboanga Sibugay, Supervising LEO, Elamsalih E. Ungad. In his message to the jobseekers, Mayor Baliling encouraged them to become globally competitive throughcontinuous education and upgrading of skills using new technologies. He firmly believes that the solution to poverty isconstant innovation and technology upgrading. There were 9 jobseekers who were Hired-on-the-Spot and 11 Qualified Applicants during the whole-day activity.

Kabasalan Jobs Fair

The Jobs Fair in Kabasalan, Zamboanga Sibugay was held the following day on February 12, 2016 with the theme, "Creativity and Innovation, Catalyst to Progress and Prosperity". DOLE Officer-In-Charge,Elamsalih E. Ungad, graced the event and gave his inspirational message to the jobseekers by instilling in them the importance of creativity and innovation in the world of work. In the labor market today it is not enough that you earn a college degree to land a job, but you also need to be creative and innovative to advance your career for a better position. There were 9 applicants who were Hired-on-the-Spot and 10 Qualified Applicants.

Araw ng Zamboanga Sibugay and Founding Father's Day Job Fair

The Provincial Government of Zamboanga Sibugay together with the Office of Congresswoman Hofer sponsored not one but two Jobs Fair during the week-long Arawng Sibugay celebration. The first event was held on February 22, 2016 with Provincial Governor Wilter Yap-Palma leading the activities and on February 26, 2016 with Congresswoman Dulce Ann K. Hofer at the helm of the one-day event.

There were a total of 270 participants who attended the two events with 43 HOTS and 48 qualified applicants. Congresswoman Hofer was pleased with success of the Jobs Fair as more skilled workers were Hired-on-the-Spot (HOTS) for overseas work and degree holders for local jobs. Simultaneous with the Jobs Fair, the Government Internship Program (GIP) was launched in the second district of Zamboanga Sibugay wherein 102 government interns signed their contracts to work in the different National Government Agencies and LGUs in the province.

Araw ng Buug Jobs Fair

The Jobs Month ended with a resounding success during the Arawng Buug Jobs Fair in the Municipality of Buug, Zamboanga Sibugay. There were a total of 149 jobseekers in attendance with 23 Hired-on-the-Spot and 61 Qualified Applicants.Vice Mayor Marvin Gako of Buugwas present in the opening program to boost the morale of jobseekers by encouraging them to grab the opportunity to be employed and contribute tonation building.

He further emphasized that the increase in employment is a good indicator that the country's economy is growing. The Aquino administration has made decent employment creation one of its central tenets to reduce poverty incidence. Significantly, the employment agenda of the President was realized and made possible through employment facilitation programs of the government with the support and collaborative effort of the LGUs, government institutions and private stakeholders to employment.

Edyll Grace P. Poligrates, ZSFO