Mandaue brooms to sweep world market
By Jucell Marie P. CuyosAvillage in Mandaue City wants to promote their local product, the silhig lanot (soft broom) into the export market.
To do this, the barangay council of Paknaan in Mandaue will showcase their product in the Silhig Festival this Sunday, Feb. 3.
Barangay Captain Malaquias Soco said silhig lanot producers in their barangay will showcase the broom made from buri.
The silhig showdown will be held in the open space near the Cansaga Bay Bridge.
The 15 zones of barangay Paknaan were clustered into seven contingents will participate in their Silhig festivity.
Soco said the festival which was launched last year, is aimed at luring businessmen and non government organizations (NGO) into investing in their broom making industry.
As a marketing strategy, brooms produced by Paknaan residents will be bought by the Paknaan Multi-purpose Cooperative (Paknaan MPC).
Emilia Mangubat, Paknaan MPC chairperson said they buy brooms at P11 to P12 depending on the design.
Mangubat said in two years, the cooperative’s assets grew from 20,000 to P2 million.
Paknaan’s broom industry produces up to 24,000 brooms a month. They have expanded their market to Mindanao and Luzon, Mangubat said.
Aside from buri palms in their Mandaue City, raw materials from the towns of Liloan, Bantayan and from barangay Talamban, Cebu City have sustained Paknaan’s broom industry.
Silhig showdown
To showcase their silhig products, producers will compete in street dancing and dance showdown.
Using buri leaves and brooms as props, the dancers will portray the history of silhig making in the barangay.
The showdown winner will receive P25,000. The second and third prizes will receive P20,000 and P15,000 respectively.
The winner in the street dancing competition will receive P5,000.
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