Palo, Leyte – NEDA VIII joins the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Regional Office VIII and other government agencies and stakeholders in the groundbreaking ceremony of the DTI VIII Regional Office Complex at Pawing, Palo, Leyte, on 29 December 2017. Rev. Fr. Kelvin Joy M. Apurillo from the Archdiocese of Palo led the blessing rites during the event.

The Complex will be composed of a 2-storey main building, a multipurpose building, and separate dormitories for men and women, along with the landscaping of the entire area and complete fencing around its perimeter. Project cost is PhP70 million, with half of the funding coming from the Yolanda Comprehensive Rehabilitation and Recovery Plan (CRRP) budget, and the other half from the capital outlay appropriations of DTI.

In her speech, Regional Director Cynthia Nierras of DTI VIII expressed her profound gratitude to NEDA VIII and OCD VIII, specifically to RD Bonifacio Uy of NEDA VIII and former RD Edgar Posadas of OCD VIII. She pointed out that the two agencies played a major role in materializing the said project. She acknowledged that these two offices were the ones who strived for the budget to be downloaded.

She also extended her gratitude to the RDC VIII, represented by NEDA VIII, for persistently reminding the Department of Budget Management (DBM) to ensure the budget for the DTI building.

The building was extensively damaged during the onslaught of Supertyphoon Yolanda in 2013. Since then, their office occupied the 2nd floor of the Leyte Academic Center in Pawing, Palo, Leyte.

DTI VIII is expected to move in to its rehabilitated Regional Office in December 2018.

Al Rae Zabala, YPMO, NEDA VIII