ILOILO CITY — The National Museum of the Philippines (NMP) Iloilo has embarked on a novel initiative called the Pambansang Museum sa Barangay (PMB) project, aimed at enhancing public awareness and appreciation of Filipino heritage through traveling exhibits. This project is designed to bring replicas of the museum's national collections directly to the barangays, making them more accessible to a broader audience.
According to Maricyn De Los Santos, officer-in-charge at NMP Iloilo, the PMB features mobile boxes that contain various elements from the museum’s collection, including the biodiversity of West Visayas fauna and the national cultural treasure Oton Gold Death Mask. "We came up with the program for everyone who has difficulty accessing the museum—we can go to their place. It is called Pambansang Museum sa Barangay because we bring the boxes to the barangay. The mandate of the National Museum is to make the national collections accessible to everyone," De Los Santos explained in an interview on Monday.
The initiative, which started in 2022, has already made stops at several educational institutions, including Passi National High School, Santa Barbara Central Elementary School, and Northern Iloilo State University (NISU). Recently, the exhibition was hosted by the Iloilo State University of Fisheries Science and Technology (ISUFST) at its Dingle campus and in Barangay Hibao-an Norte. The next scheduled visit is to Barangay Ingore in Iloilo City, as the museum continues to expand its reach.