APECO President and CEO Atty. Gil G. Taway IV (2nd from left) awarded to one of the IP youth beneficiaries the 60 percent of his salary from a 30-day demographic survey work during the opening of the APECO Week 2025 at 1 Corporate Campus Sitio Motion, Brgy. Esteves, Casiguran, Aurora on July 9, 2025. Joining the APECO chief in the awarding ceremony are (from 3rd from left) IPMR and Board Member Randy Salo, Provincial Government of Aurora Treasury Cash Clerk II Allan Fernandez , and Provincial Government of Aurora Public Employment Service Office Manager Virgilia P. Gomez.
(16 July 2025, Casiguran, Aurora) — The Aurora Pacific Economic Zone and Freeport Authority (APECO) has partnered with Indigenous Peoples (IP) youth to conduct a demographic survey in Casiguran, aiming to produce localized labor data that can be presented to the agency’s prospective investors.
The project was made possible through the Special Program for the Employment of Students (SPES), with salaries funded by the Provincial Government of Aurora’s Public Employment Service Office (PESO), headed by its Manager Virgilia P. Gomez.
On 09 July 2025, 26 IP youth beneficiaries received 60 percent of their salary amounting to more than PHP7,000, with the remaining 40 percent of the total salary to follow upon completion of the demographic survey’s output.
According to APECO Community Relations Chief Luzed Anne J. Jandoc, the student workers helped gather essential data that will guide APECO in responding more effectively to community needs and preparing for future investor engagements.
“Thirty days po silang tumulong upang magkaroon po kami ng demographic survey sa buong Casiguran, ‘yan po ang kanilang output. Kung saan naman po magagamit ng APECO ang mga datos nito kapag merong mga investors na kailangang malaman ano ang mga skills na available natin at kung ano pa po 'yong pangangailangan ng community,” Jandoc explained.
Aurora PESO Manager Gomez also expressed her office’s gratitude to APECO for providing short-term employment opportunities to the IP youth of Casiguran. She also thanked the province’s IP Mandatory Representative (IPMR) and Board Member Randy O. Salo for his strong support to the IP communities.
This initiative reflects Bagong APECO’s commitment to inclusive development that recognizes the importance of empowering local youth and IP communities as well as partnering with the local government while investing in reliable data to shape the economic zone’s future.
