Aklan LGU validated a five-year Pina Handloom Weaving Safeguarding Plan

KALIBO, Aklan- The Aklan Provincial Government, led by the Provincial Tourism Office, has led the validation of the five-year Piña Handloom Weaving Safeguarding Plan as required by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). UNESCO, in December 2023, officially inscribed the Aklan piña weaving industry as an intangible heritage.

The announcement was made in Botswana during the Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage and the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH).

Roselle Ruiz, the provincial tourism officer, presented the five-year plan (2023-2027) at the Corazon Cabagnot Memorial Tourism and Training Center in Barangay Old Buswang, Kalibo, on March 16. Among those who attended the presentation of the safeguarding plan for validation were representatives from academia, the media, non-government organizations, and the representatives from the National Government Agencies (NGA’s).

“The importance of the safeguarding of ICH is to ensure the sustainability of the pina handloom with budget appropriation in the implementation for preservation, transmission, recognition, and promotion. The Akllan Pina weaving industry has been practiced by Aklanon families for centuries, where the (current) master weavers inherit the weaving skills and pass on their knowledge to young members of the family,” said Ruiz.

Paterno Tambong, president of the Fashion and Design Council of Aklan Philippines Incorporated (FDACAPI), said in an interview on March 19 that while the weaving tradition is a practice in all 17 towns of Aklan, at least five towns have been identified where several weavers are concentrated.

The key measures of safeguarding include the transmission, preservation, recognition, and promotion of knowledge and skills; increasing the depth of knowledge among the incoming generation through cultural education; networking and coordinating with relevant national or local institutions in the safeguarding efforts, and promoting and developing the annual fiber festival.

“These towns include the towns of Kalibo, Balete, Banga, Makato, and Tangalan,” said Tambong. Currently, the tourism office, in coordination with the Philippine Fiber Development Authority (PhilFIDA), and entrepreneurs are yet to come up with a database of weavers in the province of Aklan.

According to the PhilFIDA, they noted that weavers age ranges from 17 to 70 years old. Anna India Legaspi, who advocated for the declaration of piña weaving as an intangible cultural heritage, said that among the challenges faced right now in the sustainability of piña weaving is the transmission of skills to young Aklanons and also the continuous training for knotters, scrapers, warpers, dryers, embroiderers, and embellishers.

Rhea Rose Meren, the head of the Kalibo tourism office, said the local government has allocated a budget of P5 million for the ICH programs and promotions this year.