• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
This Christmas season, electric lights are no longer a luxury for households in Barangay Banwague, a once-dark, conflict affected community in Guihulngan City, Negros Oriental.
Electricity is expected to change daily life for residents of Brgy. Banwague, where they can now run small businesses, sell frozen goods, and stay connected through Wi-Fi services.
For communities nearly 30 kilometers away from the city proper, access to power for the barangay residents meant access to income and dignity, according to the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG).
In a statement, the DILG said about 3.1 million Filipinos in 759 insurgency-cleared barangays are now celebrating brighter nights and safer days, following the completion of rural electrification projects funded under the Support to Barangay Development Program (SBDP).
From 2022 to 2025, the DILG completed 463 rural electrification projects, bringing power to far-flung communities through on-grid connections and off-grid solar solutions. Streets that were once unlit now have light. Homes that relied on lamps now have electricity. Barangays that used to shut down at sundown are now open to opportunity.
Citing testimonies of concerned barangay leaders, electrification has not only brought light, but also livelihood, safety, and hope, especially during the Christmas season when families seek both celebration and stability, the department said.
The SBDP is a flagship program of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict, aligned with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s whole-of-nation approach to lasting peace and inclusive development.
The DILG said the work continues, with more than 300 additional SBDP rural electrification projects currently in various stages of implementation. Beyond power, the SBDP also funds schools, water systems, health stations, farm-to-market roads, housing, and agricultural facilities in geographically isolated and conflict-affected areas.
For the DILG, every light switched on is a step away from conflict and a step closer to a better life for Filipino communities.*
