barangay (Community)
Tondo
It is part of the City of Manila, located North of the downtown core, where the majority of the 631 thousand (2015) poverty-stricken citizen reside.
Why Barangay 128?
The City of Manila, much like other areas in the Philippines, is composed of small communities called Barangays, varying in population (2,000-40,000 residents). Due to its pressing needs, PAC has worked closely with Barangay 128, located in the northern part of Tondo.
In the early 1990s, in an attempt to provide housing for approximately 7,000 residents living atop a garbage dump (formerly Smokey Mountain), the Filipino government built 30 tenement buildings adjacent to the dumpsite, thus forming Barangay 128. The population has now grown to around 30,000, exceeding tenement capacity and creating an overflow of residents right outside the tenement boundary of Barangay 128. This led to the formation of the Maralla community – a squatter community whose residents predominantly rely on scavenging in order to make ends meet.
Before we commenced our operations in the summer of 2016, no other NGOs were regularly assisting this community. Today, out of 26 NGOs working in Barangay 128, PAC is the only one solely focusing on the Maralla community, with regular and permanent programs designed to meet their specific needs.
Our survey, conducted in August 2016, identified approximately 300 of the community’s 500 inhabitants to be children (under the age of 18 years old). These demographics point to a need for assistance, but also offer hope for the future generation. With your help, we do our best to assist them in minimizing their barriers to leading healthy, productive, and sustainable lifestyles.
