LINGAYEN, Pangasinan – Resident Rodrigo Duterte and the Civil Service Commission (CSC) conferred honors to a team of the Pangasinan provincial government’s agriculture office in recognition of their diligence, hard work and innovative skills that have made the province a consistent top achiever in rice farming all over the country.
The President, assisted by CSC chairperson Alicia dela Rosa Bala and Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales, awarded the Pag-Asa plaque and individual gold-gilded medallions to the nine-member team of Acting Provincial Agriculturist Dalisay Moya and Assistant Provincial Agriculturist and director for rice farming Nestor Batalla.
The others in the team are: Fe Agas, Ramon Claveria, Irene Estrada, Peachy Lozada, Rita Prieto, Gemma Rosario and Danilo Villamil.
Moya’s team also received a cash incentive of P100,000 during the award rites held at the Heroes Hall here in the presence of Gov. Amado “Pogi” Espino III, Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Pinol and family members of the awardees.
In a letter by the CSC Chairperson to Gov. Espino, she commended the provincial chief executive, pointing out that the honor conferred on the awardee extends to the agency (Provincial Government) that has nurtured the culture of ethics and excellence.
The office of the Provincial Agriculturist of LGU-Pangasinan is one of the only two awardees in the group category of the CSC Pagasa awardees. The other awardee is the province of Bulacan.
The province’s agriculture team crafted and implemented the innovative approach to rice farming called “Accelerated Palay Certified Seeds Production,” (APCSP) along with the
“Agricultural Technology Enhancement” (ATE) program during the first term of Governor, now 5th district Rep. Amado T. Espino, Jr.
Under APCSP, the provincial government distributes palay certified seeds to farmers to improve quality of harvest and provides a 50 percent fertilizer subsidy to farmers.
A full-scale irrigation program that involves construction of shallow tube wells, distribution of irrigation pumps to irrigators groups, as well as massive repair and maintenance of irrigation canals, dovetails the baseline innovative approach.
Owing to the success of the two-pronged program, the province was awarded thrice as “Outstanding Rice Achiever” in 2013, 2014 and 2015 by the national government. Pangasinan is now elevated to the Hall of Fame in rice production.
Apart from its success in rice farming, the province also carved a niche in corn production as one of the top three achievers in the sector.
To protect the gains in agricultural production, Espino III has launched the Agro-Industrial Enterprise program to encourage the farmers to become entrepreneurs.
By Dexter A. See
