BAGUIO CITY – The City Council approved on first reading a proposed ordinance declaring July 28, 2018 and every year thereafter as the highly urbanized city agriculture and fishery council foundation day in the city.
The ordinance authored by Councilor Leandro B. Yangot, Jr. stated that every July 28 will be the declared foundation day of the highly urbanized city agriculture and fishery council (HUCAFC).
The ordinance noted that it is a declared policy of the State as stipulated under Section 2 of Republic Act (RA) No. 8435 otherwise known as the Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization Act to enable those who belong to agriculture and fisheries sector to participate and share in the fruits of development.
On July 28, 2008, the Baguio City Agriculture and Fishery Council was organized and since then, the council has long been engaged in volunteer work for the past ten years not only on the basis of selfless dedication to serve and support advocacies and principles they believe but also as a legitimate way in which citizens from all walks of life can participate in the activities for their community for the protection of their rights and interests and ultimately for the improvement of the quality of their lives.
Further, the council has continuously assisted the Department of Agriculture including advocacy work among concerned government agencies, monitoring of agriculture and fishery programs of government agencies, serving as the agriculture department’s focal agency in public-private partnership in policy development in serving as consultative or feedback mechanism on the policies, plans and programs of the DA.
Yangot underscored that it is significant to recognize July 28 as the highly urbanized city agriculture and fishery council foundation day to celebrate the day when it was founded to reflect not only the beginnings of the council but also to celebrate the significant development of the agriculture sector in the city.
As the center of the foundation day activities where the members of the agriculture sector gather, the ordinance added that it is but fitting for the local government to accord due recognition to the important event in the lives of several agriculture practitioners in the city.
The council is composed of agriculture practitioners who strongly advocate organic farming through urban gardening to serve as an added attraction in the city’s barangays and to provide the supply for the rapidly increasing demand for organically grown vegetables as people have now become health conscious.
The number of organic farming practitioners in the city’s barangays continue to increase because of the local government’s aggressive advocacy in empowering residents to maximize the utilization of available spaces in their homes to produce organically grown crops that will serve as their added source of income and sustainable source of supply for their food requirements.
The local government is supportive of the thrust of agriculture practitioners in the different barangays to advance their cause in convincing more residents to be involved in the production of sufficient supply of organic crops beneficial to good nutrition and healthy lifestyle.
By Dexter A. See
