BESAO, Mountain Province (PIA) — With the theme “SUMYA: Bridging Heritage and Innovation”, the municipality of Besao celebrated its 121st founding anniversary and 14th Ubaya Festival on February 27 to March 2, 2025.
“The theme ‘SUMYA: Bridging Heritage and Innovation’ perfectly encapsulates our commitment to honoring the past and embracing the future. The theme emphasizes that there is a need really to bridge or connect traditional practices with innovative approaches. And as we celebrate this festival let us encourage, encourage tako nan farmers tako tapnu i-adopt da met nan new technologies so that our products will be upgraded,” Department of Trade and Industry – Mountain Province Provincial Director Mabel F. Banggawan during the opening of the agro-trade fair.
Among the local products for sale at the trade fair are coffee, muscovado sugar, cacao, and fresh vegetables.
“Truly we cannot take away our culture and heritage from our tracks to development, rather we look from it, we build and keep on innovating from our heritage,” Department of the Interior and Local Government Provincial Director Daisy A. Payang added.
The event featured the rich culture of Besao through street dancing and cultural showdown among barangays and indigenous games, as well as national and international influence with folk dancing and barn dancing performances, and literary and choral contests. Other activities included a symposium on road safety awareness, service caravan, and the Sumya Circuit Run.
There was also a Rescue Olympics participated by the barangays.
Sumya is a Besao dialect which means development or progress. The local government unit adopted SUMYA which stands for Sustained community development, United community, Managed and protected ancestral domain, Yearly high yield produce, and Achieved, empowered, healthy and resilient umili, as its development goals for 2022-2025. **JDP/VJLT-PIA CAR, Mountain Province
