City to gather single moms in kibbutz-like community

Around 200 single mothers will be screened by the Cebu City Government to serve as pioneers for its communal settlement program.

Loosely patterned after the kibbutz in Israel, the project is an experimental program jointly organized by the City Government and Azpired, a private company.

It aims to give single mothers qualified to work as call center agents a place in the business process outsourcing industry.

The City is accepting applicants who will be consulted for six months to assist in the design and formulation of house rules. The consultations will be done mostly through social media.

If accepted, the applicant will be given a monthly allowance of P1,000 during the consultation and construction process of the residential establishment, which will run for 12 months.

The building will be built in the IT Park in Barangay Lahug, so that the mothers will not have to worry about traffic or transportation costs.

Qualified single mothers will have a monthly take home pay of P5,000.

However, they are entitled to free lodging, meals for them and their dependents, nursery care, day care, medical assistance, laundry, transportation, and public edCebu ucation for their children in a place close to the IT Park.

In a Facebook post dated March 11, Mayor Tomas Osmeña said the program is in response to factors as to why mothers settle for menial jobs or work abroad to support their children.

“You are sacrificing so much. (But) I do not want you to have to make that sacrifice anymore,” he said.

Living wage

The qualified applicants will be employed by Azpired. They will all live together in the same building to minimize expenses and maximize their time with their kids.

“I do not want you to waste your life in a job you had to take just because it’s closer to your parents’ house. I don’t want you to force yourself to live separately from your child just because there are no good jobs in your area.

I want you to have the option to bring yourself and your child somewhere where you can make a living wage while starting a career and building your resume,” Osmeña said.

Once it begins operation and if it succeeds, the mayor said, the City may also establish the same program for single fathers and young married couples to give them a jump start.