RIZAL, Kalinga – The Department of Agriculture-Cordillera (DA-CAR) Research Outreach Station (ROS) in Kalinga, as an implementing arm for research and production, helps provide easier access to the programs and projects of the department to the farmer-beneficiaries. With this, the station in partnership with the Kalinga-Office of the Agricultural Services and the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) conducted a Farmers’ Forum with Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) at the ROS-Rizal, Liwan West, Rizal, Kalinga on June 6, 2024.
Engr. Angel C. Odanos, ROS-Kalinga Manager, said that the activity aimed to inform, educate, and communicate the services being offered by the department and its outreach stations to the farmers. He guided the farmers on accessing the station’s services as per DA-CAR Memorandum Order No. 06, series of 2022. Additionally, Mr. Bentres Goyo, Assistant APCO-Kalinga discussed the Registry System for Basic Sectors in Agriculture or RSBSA registration, Civil Society Organization (CSO) accreditation guidelines, and the Farm and Fisheries Clustering and Consolidation (F2C2) Program in CAR which is the strategies of the DA in transforming the agriculture and fishery sector. Ms. Marvie M. Talanay, LBP-CAR Lending Center Account Officer, on the other hand, discussed the Land Bank Agrisenso Lending Program and the Expanded Rice Credit Assistance under the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (ERCA-RCEF) which the farmers can avail of subject to the existing guidelines and qualifications.
To further capacitate the participants on fruit tree propagation, Engr. Jackson Bagano, ROS-Rizal Nursery In-Charge, discussed how to conduct sexual and asexual propagation for fruit trees. This also aims to ensure the production of quality and true-to-type planting materials. He elaborated on the types of asexual propagation, including chip budding, cleft grafting, side grafting, inarching, and air layering or marcotting.
In his message, Rizal Municipal Agriculturist Mr. Nasser Rey C. Juan assured the farmers that every intervention from the government would reach them directly. This was affirmed by Mr. Narciso Dumanas, Rizal Municipal Agriculture and Fishery Council, noting that all interventions would be distributed equitably to rightful farmer recipients. In response, Mr. Dionisio Atumpa, Indigenous Peoples Mandatory Representative, urged the CSOs to adhere to government rules and guidelines.
The activity was actively participated in by 28 CSOs composed of 110 farmer-members and the Office of the Agricultural Services of Rizal, Kalinga. By Sherry Antonio-Ngongot with reports from Rosana Vicente and Gyslyn Oxina
