DAR-Cagayan Valley turns over rehabilitated Garab CIS

The Department of Agrarian Reform Provincial Office-Cagayan (DARPO-Cagayan) recently turned over an irrigation project in Garab, Iguig, Cagayan a component barangay of the Eastern Iguig Agrarian Reform Community (Eastern Iguig ARC).

The Rehabilitation of Garab Communal Irrigation System (CIS) Project involves the restoration of the concrete hallow block (CHB) canal linings and canal structures.  It has an original length of 3,000 linear meters with a total project cost of Php7,948,900.17 funded under DAR-Agrarian Reform Infrastructure Support Project Phase III (ARISP-Phase III). The project was started in July 12, 2013 and completed last November 16, 2013. The rehabilitation of the Garab communal irrigation system was implemented by the National Irrigation Administration.

Communal irrigation systems  are small-scale schemes and constructed with the participation of  the agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) thru their Irrigators Association (IA). The operation and maintenance of CIS is turned over to IAs upon project completion subject to a cost recovery arrangement in order for the IA to be able to sustain the operation and maintenance of  the irrigation system.

The communal irrigation system will benefit the agrarian reform beneficiaries through increased rice production in the barangays covered by the project, that is, barangays Garab and Campo in the municipality of Iguig. Eastern Iguig ARC has a population of 2,485 consisting of 590 households. Around 465.2782 hectares of agricultural land have been redistributed to 378 agrarian reform beneficiaries in the ARC pursuant to Operation Land Transfer (PD No. 27) and the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP).

Historically, irrigation has been established as a major factor in increasing rice productivity in the Philippines. It raises the productivity of farmlands by providing sufficient water supply to raise the yield per hectare per crop. It also provides opportunities  for farmers to plant a second crop during the dry season when production is potentially higher.

Irrigation also makes  it possible to increase the yield by allowing the adoption of modem rice varieties and fertilizer use. As such, farmer-beneficiaries in the Eastern Iguig Agrarian Reform Community are expecting to harvest a minimum of two cropping seasons a year to doubling their traditional income.  /christiandsales

DAR-Cagayan Valley resumes radio program

The Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) regional office in Tuguegarao has resumed the early morning radio program for agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) after a brief absence from the airwaves. The Rang-Ay Ti Away radio program provides farmer-beneficiaries the latest news and information about what’s going on about the agrarian reform program. It is being broadcasted over PBS-Radyo ng Bayan’s DWPE in Tuguegarao at 5:00 A.M. to 5:30 A.M. co-anchored by Provincial Agrarian Reform Officer (PARO) Joselito Garcia and DAR Information Officer Ms. Luthgarda Sibbaluca. The radio program has a wide following among farmers as it has been on the air for a long period of time previously anchored by veteran broadcasters MARO Arthur Urata and CARPO Francisco Dela Cruz who have retired. Other DAR personnel have also briefly held the radio program and successfully sustained the information campaign on agrarian reform and rural community development.

A Radio program has a wide array of formats which can reach various listeners and can be complemented with a specific advertising message, in this case, information about agrarian reform.  In Cagayan provinces, many people listen to radio while going to and from work. Additionally, it is the main source of entertainment in far flung places where television reception is poor, people listen in the evening while relaxing or while waiting for dinner.

Radio also delivers your message to everyone quickly, that is, your message or advertisement can be heard immediately. Radio advertising is intrusive, that is, it interrupts on your listening, and your only choice is to listen or change the channel, or put the radio off. It also reaches a wider range of audience than television or the newspaper and can be targeted to specific consumer segments, in this case, the farmers and their households. Your ads/message can also be repeated often and will register in the minds of the listeners.

The Rang-Ay Ti Away radio program will feature agrarian reform activities throughout the Cagayan valley region such as regular information on DAR’s land acquisition and distribution, activities on support services delivery like infrastructure projects in agrarian reform areas, institutional development especially farmers’ cooperatives and other agrarian reform beneficiaries’ organizations, agrarian justice delivery, matters promoting gender and development and agrarian reform beneficiaries’ success stories, among many others.

A Research conducted in Europe disclosed that radio is chosen as a lifestyle support system, to help people feel better as they go about their daily lives. Additionally, Michael C. Keith, a professor at Boston College and a leading scholar in history and electronic media, disclosed that "Radio is like ice cream," he said, "You choose the station that tastes best to you - the flavor you like the best is going to give you enjoyment." /christiandsales

DAR and CSU train farmers to become businessmen

In preparation to the emergence of the One-ASEAN economy, the Department ofAgrarian Reform-Provincial Office of Cagayan-Batanes (DARPO Cagayan-Batanes) and the Cagayan State University (CSU) have entered into an agreement to provide business development extension services to members agrarian reform beneficiaries’ organizations on the province of Cagayan.

It is an undeniable fact that globalization and trade liberalization are already affecting the way local economies are performing. In these cut-throat business competition, victory shall be achieved only by those who are prepared to meet the challenges of open market competition.

Building social enterprises manned by agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) are now being undertaken by the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) by strengthening the capabilities of peoples’ organizations, cooperatives and individual farmer-beneficiaries by transforming them from operators of partitioned cluster farms into united producers and managers of large production scale, plantation type farmer-entrepreneurs.

In order to make the once small farm tenants now small landowners-cultivators competitive,  the DAR has partnered with the Cagayan State University-College of Business Entrepreneurship and Accountancy (CSU-CBEA) to provide trainings and assistance in the preparation of financial statements, drafting of feasibility studies/business proposals and business management, among others, in favor of marginalized farmer-beneficiaries in agrarian reform beneficiaries’ organizations.

These activities will further improve the capabilities of these organizations and cooperatives to access loans from the Land Bank of the Philippines and other financing institutions to enable them to improve and expand their business operations to meet the demands of economies of scale.

The DAR-CSU/CBEA partnership to this effect was formalized through a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) executed on January 28, 2014 by and between the DAR Regional Director, Atty. Marjorie P. Ayson; CSU President Romeo Quilang; and Provincial Agrarian Reform Program Officer (PARPO) Virgilio M. Acasili. Other officials of the DAR, CSU, and the various ARBOs and cooperatives witnessed the MOA signing. /christiandsales