At the mining town of Cagdianao, Claver, Surigao Del Norte the Platinum Group Metals Corporation (PGMC) has not just made a huge increase in nickel ore export within a mere 5 years but also a huge jump in the number of scholarship grantees for their free education program.
Aina Mae Arecto is a BS Physics student at Caraga State University who’s felt the big ease of being a scholar under PGMC with a full pass on expenses.
“All my expenses are paid for including my boarding house, my monthly allowance,” she said. “They’re all covered by the program.”
Through scholars like Aina, responsible mining has become synonymous with a thrust that doesn’t just aim for mere profit but building a balanced partnership with the community. And it’s recognizing that it is how you invest in the community’s future that will assure the town sustains its full value.
For someone like Reynalyn Catalogo, a Cagdianao local, a full scholarship has been a godsend and the only way he could have had access to the finances needed to continue higher education.
“Iniisip ko parang di po talaga ako makakapag aral kung wala ang mining,” he said.
“Maraming naitutulong ang mining hindi lang sa aming mga estudyante at scholar, kung di para na rin sa barangay.”
Almon Ladrido, a Daywan local, agrees and narrated that the only way he could likely fulfill his dreams of becoming an educator himself was through a scholarship.
“With the full support of PGMC I was transferred here in Surigao State College of Technology,” said Almon.
“This is how I will continue my dreams of becoming a teacher. Binibigyan nila kami ng magandang kinabukasan para sa susunod na henerasyon,” he added.
The scholarship fund is part of PGMC’s Social Development Management Program (SDMP) with a mission to recognize how the value of the minerals found below ground can only be realized if there is trust and goodwill above.
Shared value perspective may just be a fancy term bandied around at board meetings, but in a mining town like Claver it’s a constant reminder that social good can indeed fuel high business performance.
A scholarship sends ripple effects throughout the community and makes people realize that there are indeed options available.
Specially for PGMC employees and their families.
“Nagbigay sila ng mga notebook, uniforms, bags sa mga high school at elementary,” said Archer Congayo a current PGMC employee and also one of the scholars.
“Sa pamilya ko po hindi ko talaga matutulungan yung kapatid ko sa pag-aaral kung wala yung scholarship. Malaki talagang tulong para sa buhay kahit ipit ka na.”
The Health & Education Support Program doesn’t just support a traditional scholarship, but also an Alternative Learning System Program (ALSP) and a Brigada Eskwela Program specifically for the main Claver Municipality where most of the mining employees are housed.
“Nung dumating ang mina, unti unti na talagang nakapag-aral yung mga tao dito.”
For those who grew up in the community even before it became a mining town, the new educational status of the youth is always something to celebrate, but it’s also a grim reminder of the dismal state of the area in the old days.
“Dati dito [sa Cagdianao] maraming illiterate,” said Retchie Lareza, a midwife who was born and raised in the town. “Yung di marunong magsulat.”
Things got better later, though. And Lydia Andoy, a local health worker, literally saw the daily improvements with her own eyes: “Nung dumating ang mina, unti unti na talagang nakapag-aral yung mga tao dito.”
“Many children in the community have been given the chance to go to school,” said old time resident Joiser Arena.
“My three children were able to finish school because my husband was employed by the mining industry,” said Brenda Samontina.
It’s the kind of empowerment that touches lives deeply and acutely, serving the community through positive transformation as a pillar of responsible mining.
Pastor Rey Forcadilla of Bgy Cagdianao sums it up succinctly: “My children would often ask me ‘Papa why does PGMC always give school supplies, even shoes and uniforms and paper, but no one gives in other places?’ What I tell them is this: because PGMC is a responsible miner.