Cambodia's Koul Panh receives the prestigious Magsaysay Award

Photo courtesy of Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation

Negros NGO among 2011 Ramon Magsaysay awardees

BEA CUPIN, GMA News
07/28/2011

A small non-profit organization based in Negros Occidental has been conferred the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award for its work in helping workers and farmers displaced by the sugar industry collapse in the 1980s.

The Alternative Indigenous Development Foundation, Inc. (AIDFI) is among this year’s recipients of Asia’s highest honors, alongside a Cambodian, two Indians and two Indonesians.

In a statement released Thursday, the Ramon Magsaysay Awards Foundation (RMAF) said, “the six Award recipients in 2011 enlarge the community of Magsaysay laureates to 290 individuals and organizations spread across twenty-two countries of Asia."

The awardees will formally receive their distinctions on August 31, 2011 at the Cultural Center of the Philippines in Manila.

Beginnings of AIDFI

AIDFI is a social enterprise that was set up by a group of social activists because of the sugar industry collapse in the 1980s. However, meager funds and the exit of key members prompted the group to close down.

In 1997, when Dutch marine engineer Auke Idzenga, who was part of the group that founded AIDFI, returned to Negros, the organization was reinstated.

According to the RMAF website, AIDFI’s first success came when they redesigned the ram pump, which uses kinetic energy of flowing water from rivers and springs to push water up to an upland reservoir. After AIDFI’s redesign, the ram pump was able to pump 1,500 to 72,000 liters of water a day.

Since then, over 227 ram pumps had been fabricated, installed and transferred to benefit 184 upland communities in the area. AIDFI has also brought the technology to other countries including Afghanistan, Colombia and Nepal.

Among AIDFI’s other innovations include an essential oil distiller that processes lemon grass into organic oil for industrial users, a “technopark" that showcases and demonstrates AIDFI technologies and a windmill that can generate up to 800 watts of electricity.

The RMAF added that because of their work, “AIDFI has placed the premium on small-scale, accessible, low-maintenance technology that is customized for local needs, energy-efficient, environmentally sound, and one owned and managed by the people themselves."

Other awardees

Aside from AIDFI, Koul Panha from Cambodia is also set to receive the award. Panha is recognized for his work in campaigning for responsible voting and electoral reforms in his home country. The Committee for Free and Fair Elections (COMFREL), under Panha’s leadership, initiated a citizen parallel “quick count," the first of its kind in Cambodian history. COMFREL is also credited for pushing for an increased involvement of women in Cambodian politics.

Harish Hande from India will also be awarded for promoting solar energy in India, where nearly half of households do not have electricity. Another Indian, Nileema Mishra is honored for her work with villagers in Maharashta, India.

Two Indonesians are also recipients of the award. Hasanain Juaini is recognized for being a champion of a “holistic, community-based approached to pasentren education" in his come country while Tri Mumpuni is awarded for her work in promoting hydropower technology to communities. — KBK, GMA News