Livelihood is the means of making a living. Livelihood is about the capabilities, assets, income, and activities used to secure the necessities or needs for a life of well-being. Livelihood becomes sustainable when people can cope and recover from stresses and shocks such as from natural calamities or economic crisis. A livelihood program helps enhance the well-being of the current generation which in turn affects the next generation and future generations to come.

According to World Vision, building a sustainable community will help families have sustainable sources of income, giving them the capability to support the most basic needs of their children. Eramen Minerals Inc. helps provide a sustainable life to members of the Sta. Cruz, Zambales community by helping those in need even in the most remote barangays. They teach and give them access to livelihood programs, which are elaborated on below.

Eramen Minerals Livelihood Programs

  • Dressmaking Training

Eramen Minerals hosted a dressmaking training program for women in Sta. Cruz, Zambales. The training program was supported by TESDA Zambales and helped those aspiring to pursue the profession.

  • Organic Farming Training

Amid their mining processes, Eramen Minerals helps train the residents in Sta. Cruz, Zambales in organic farming with the hope of helping them start their own farms. This kind of farming is unique and safe in that it does not use chemicals or any poisonous commercial goods. Instead, they utilize an organic system of farming which is more sustainable and helps farmers with a fully organic production.

  • Charcoal Briquette Production

Through EMI, DENR, and LGUs, these charcoals generate income, save trees, and lessen biowaste. This was the first community-based livelihood project of the company and the Charcoal Briquetting Training was facilitated by the experts from the Ecosystems Research and Development Bureau (ERDB). The project is aimed both creating an alternative source of livelihood as well as targeting those that are in the practice of charcoal making, decreasing the pressure on the remaining vegetation that is in constant threat due to the traditional practice of charcoal making.

  • Tree Planting

Eramen Minerals Inc. plants trees within their mining area as soon as the mining process is completed. In September 21, 2013, over a hundred different tree species were planted in the mined-out land on the mountain of Sta. Cruz, Zambales to restore the land to its former stat. The tree planting activity is a part of the ongoing progressive rehabilitation program of the mined area that started in 2012. Members of staff, workers, and scholars of Eramen Minerals Inc. all participated in the activity.

 

To know more about Eramen Minerals Inc., visit https://eramenminerals.com/.