Iyagan is the farthest of Baao’s 30 barangays which can only be reached through another town, Ocampo. It is naturally furnished with 107 hectares of arable land where most of the households get their income from rice farming.

But economic growth comes slow in Iyagan due to lack of facilities in the community. During the community research in 2012, it was discovered that most of the 1,557 residents would like a concreted pathway to respond to their need of better access.

Their ambition came true last July 2013 when their concrete pathway was completed through the mustered efforts of the residents who were still uncertain of its realization at the beginning.

Ariel Yanzon, the DSWD employee assigned to Iyagan, saw the transformation of the people in Iyagan.

“At first it was difficult to mobilize them because it was their first encounter with Kalahi-CIDSS but I saw their commitment and support afterwards,” Ariel said.

Teresita Roson, a resident of Iyagan, said that all her 12 children had experienced walking on muddy foot path to reach school. Her daughter, Rowena, now 42, cannot believe that the project was already completed because she was hesitant about it onset of its construction.

“Totoo man kaya ini? Baka raket lang, hambog lang (Is it true? Maybe it’s just a gimmick or a show off?),” Rowena said.

But she was convinced when she saw that the project was completed and inaugurated last July 29, 2013.

Lourdes Aala and her husband, both farmers, now benefit from the project because the hauling cost decreased from P20 to P5 per sack of rice.

Aala also became part of the people who helped in the construction of their project. As an elected member of the Project Implementation Team (PIT), the lead group during the implementation stage, she was tasked to check the duration to complete the work items, manpower and equipment utilization requirements, timing of delivery of materials and storage facilities, quality control program and materials testing requirements, delivery of local counterpart and safety measures during the construction stage.

Because of her commitment, she was able to convince her husband to become the bodegero of the warehouse of the construction supplies. She also monitored the laborers regularly during the implementation because she wanted a quality project.

The 1.71 kilometers concrete pathway in Zones 1, 2 and 5 was funded under Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan-Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services (Kalahi-CIDSS), a DSWD program that seeks to help alleviate poverty through community-driven development (CDD).

Aside from the 240 households in Iyagan, more than 250 households from its neighboring barangays namely, Sta. Teresa, Tapol and Cristo Rey benefit from the pathway.

The pathway is mainly intended for human pedestrian and could also be designed to accommodate light vehicles such as motorcycles and tricycles. There was an increase in the number of motorcycles in Iyagan becoming the chief means of transportation in the area.

“Mas makaskas na ang byahe lalo na pag may emergency (The trip is faster specially in an emergency),” Teresita said.

The pathway’s total project cost amounts to P2,475,544.00 of which P1,390,779.55 was sponsored by Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), a development partner of Kalahi-CIDSS. To date, MCC had already funded 638 community infrastructures and capacity building activities in 25 municipalities for Bicol region alone.

Iyagan got another project in Kalahi-CIDSS last year. The construction of the day care center started in 2014 and was also funded by MCC and expected to be completed this year. This will replace their dilapidated and makeshift day care center.