ZAMBOANGA CITY – The city government here is one of the biggest pump primers of the economy in Zamboanga Peninsula (Region 9) based on the number of projects implemented since the start of the Lobregat administration in 2007.

In his message during the opening program for “Jobs Bridging,” a two-day jobs fair covering the Zamboanga Peninsula which held at the Summit Center in Tetuan on Wednesday, Mayor Celso Lobregat said the city government from year 2007 to 2009 had undertaken a total of 2,022 infrastructure projects costing some P2.107 billion.

Lobregat said about 20 to 30 percent of the project cost is intended for labor. “With the over P2 billion worth of projects, the city government has created over P500 million worth of employment opportunities.”

“The city government is one of the biggest pump primers of the economy,” the mayor pointed out, adding, “The city creates employment every time a project is implemented here.”

The city also provides an increasing allocation for the Summer Program for the Employment of Students (SPES), which is intended to help indigent students complete their high school and college education.

For 2009, the city allocated some P7.7 million as its counterpart for the SPES program with the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) contributing at least P4 million for the project.

Also because of the global recession, the city decided to come up with an emergency employment program called Community Emergency Livelihood Support Outreach (CELSO) project, employing some 500 indigent individuals for a period of about three to five months, the mayor here said.

Also for 2009, the appropriation for the emergency program reached P15 million, while next year, the allocation is expected to increase to P20 million, he said.

The city also operates two vocational/technical schools – one located in Ayala and the other one in Vitali.

Jobs Bridging is an employment facilitation activity organized by the Technical Education Skills Development Authority 9 (TESDA 9) in partnership with DoLE 9, the city government here and the Zamboanga City Association of Private Technical Vocational Institutions.