As part of its corporate citizenship programs, Aboitiz Construction, in collaboration with Aboitiz Foundation, Inc. and the Philippine Disaster Resilience Foundation (PDRF), conducted the “Y-LEAD: Engaging the Youth as Champions of Disaster Risk Reduction and Resilience Training” for the Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) Federation of Balamban on September 21-22.

The two-day training aimed to enhance decision-making, communication, and teamwork skills among youth participants, equipping them with the knowledge to draft effective disaster response programs tailored to their communities’ unique challenges, empowering them to lead initiatives, and raising awareness of disaster preparedness concepts. An online orientation session was conducted beforehand to prepare participants for the training.

Facilitators from the PDRF led the training, while a First Aid session was conducted by the Reavo Cebu Chapter.

“The youth are key players in building a more resilient and prepared community. The knowledge, skills, and experiences gained are more than just lessons; these learnings will be their tools for action,” said Karmine Andrea Ching, Sr. Assistant Vice President for Business Transformation at Aboitiz Construction.

Hon. Bethany Señoron, SK Federation President of Balamban, added, “This program will be very beneficial for us as youth in responding to natural disasters. We have the capability to influence our constituents to be prepared and take action towards disaster preparedness and resilience.”

Participants included staff from the Balamban Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction Office, Local Youth Development Affairs Office, and Municipal Environment and Natural Resources Office, who joined the training to enhance their skills in disaster management.

At Aboitiz Construction, contributing to disaster resilience is one of our focus areas in community programs, aligning with its massive transformative purpose of building for business to prosper and communities to thrive.

Article by MyCebu