Lubuagan MLGU accepts Governor Edduba’s challenge to operate the Kalinga Weaving Center in Mabilong

Tabuk City, Kalinga – During a meeting at the Kalinga Provincial Tourism Office on September 29, 2025, for the preparation of the inauguration and blessing of the Kalinga Weaving Center (KWC) to be held at Belalao Hills, Mabilong,

Lubuagan, on October 9, 2025, the Local Government Unit (LGU) of Lubuagan formally accepted the challenge of Governor James Edduba to operate the center.

“The Governor said if you can take the challenge—the responsibility to run the Kalinga Weaving Center—the PLGU will give it,” explained Atty. Priel Balnao to Atty. James Tagaotao, the Municipal Administrator of the Lubuagan LGU.

“The Mayor said kaya ng Lubuagan (Lubuagan can do it)… so we will accept the challenge,” replied Atty. Tagaotao.

In a move to support cultural preservation and local enterprise, Governor Edduba, as relayed by Atty. Balnao, offered the operational rights of the Kalinga Weaving Center to Lubuagan. The weaving center serves as a living facility where traditional weaving techniques are practiced, preserved, and passed on through hands-on activity.

Atty. Balnao, together with Provincial Tourism Officer Lorraine Ngao-i, land donor Engineer Max P. Duguiang III, Atty. James Tagaotao, and other partner agencies, discussed the operation of the center as well as the scheduled inauguration and blessing of the KWC following the acceptance. This means Lubuagan will assume sole management of the center and will provide all necessary resources for its operation.

The KWC is expected to feature 32 traditional weaving designs and patterns of Lubuagan, further boosting the municipality’s efforts to promote traditional weaving and empower local artisans.

The Kalinga Weaving Center

Overlooking the scenic hills of Lubuagan in the Mabilong Weaving Village, the P10-million weaving center stands as a symbol of cultural pride, preserving and promoting traditional Kalinga weaving while supporting local livelihoods.

Driven by the efforts of local weavers, tourism advocates, and Kalinga leaders, the completion of the establishment was made possible.

To recall, the center was backed by Senator Loren Legarda and the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA). It is one of only five nationally funded weaving centers in the country.