Afu Amparo of Mt. Province is third GAMABA awardee in Cordillera

Paracelis, Mt. Province – Amparo Balansi Mabanag was officially conferred the Gawad sa Manlilikha ng Bayan (GAMABA) or National Living Treasures Award, becoming the third recipient from Cordillera Administrative Region.

Mabanag of Poblacion, Paracelis, Mt. Province followed in the footsteps of musician and dancer Alonzo Saclag from Lubuagan, Kalinga, and casque maker Teofilo Garcia from San Quintin, Abra, who received the country’s highest honor for traditional arts in 2000 and 2012, respectively.

What is GAMABA or National Living Treasures Award?

Institutionalized through Republic Act No. 7355 in 1992, the GAMABA honors indigenous artists who exemplify exceptional dedication to their craft and contribute to preserving cultural identity through traditional folk arts.

The law defines “Manlilikha ng Bayan” as ‘a citizen or a group engaged in any traditional art uniquely Filipino, whose distinctive skills have reached such a high level of technical and artistic excellence and have been passed on to and widely practiced by the present generation in his/her community with the same degree of technical and artistic competence.’

To become one, an individual or group candidate must have consistently produced works of superior quality, engaged in a traditional and folk art which has been in existence and documented for at least 50 years, command respect and inspire admiration of the country with his/her character and integrity, among other qualifications.

Mabanag as National Living Treasure

Mabanag, known to the community as Afu Amparo, is renowned for her expertise and artistry in embroidery, particularly of Ga’dang traditional garments.

She is a highly esteemed gumabukat (beadwork/accessory maker) and gumasinnun (weaver), as stated in her National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) profile.

NCCA, the implementing agency of GAMABA program, said Afu Amparo’s meticulous beadwork, expert embroidery, and precise weaving of Ga’dang textiles serve as a testament to her fervor, and devotion in producing outstanding works for her community members, subsequently safeguarding the continuity of the Ga’dang cultural heritage. Her artistic legacy safeguards the Ga’dang cultural heritage from potential extinction.

With her unwavering commitment, Afu Amparo joined the eight other esteemed culture bearers to be awarded with GAMABA for 2023, as proclaimed by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. through Proclamation No. 427.

The 2023 National Living Treasures awardees finally received their title and gold-plated medallion during the conferment ceremony on Wednesday, May 07, 2025.

Aside from the commemorative plaque, Afu Amparo also got a P200,000 cash award. She will likewise be guaranteed a lifetime personal monthly stipend of P50,000.

The National Living Treasure took to social media to express gratitude to all those who exerted efforts for her to achieve such prestigious award.

Overall, there are now 25 GAMABA recipients since the first award in 1993.