It was an event marking a milestone in the history of the Department of Agriculture – Special Area for Agricultural Development (DA-SAAD) Program implementation nationwide, for Regional Program Management Support Office (RPMSO) 8 is the first region ever to establish a hog facility that would enable swine producers to breed and fatten their animals more systematically.

And, it wasn’t a lone facility, but two big-ticket infrastructures, which were established to benefit identified farmers’ associations in Libagon, Southern Leyte, and Tabango, Leyte.

Groundbreaking of the facilities was conducted in Brgys. Pangi, Libagon and Butason 1, Tabango on October 15 and 22, 2018, respectively.

Attended by Provincial and Municipal Agriculture Office (P/MAO), and Provincial Veterinary Office (PVO) personnel, Local Government Unit (LGU) officials, SAAD Program staff, the contractor, and FA beneficiary officers and members in the two sites, each project area held a brief ceremony to commemorate the event.

Stakeholders expressed their gratitude to SAAD Program for these grants, while implementors pledged to help the recipients sustain the facilities’ functionality and usefulness.

Immediately thereafter, construction work began on both facilities. As of the present, one of the hogstels has been fully completed, while finishing touches were being installed in the second. Noteworthy was the contractor’s endeavor to tap local labor, thereby generating employment for the association members.

The United Farmers Association of Brgy. Pangi in Libagon, Southern Leyte and the Butason Uno Farmers Association in Tabango, Leyte stand to benefit from these hogstel projects, each costing PhP1.2M. ###

Writer: Michael F. Dabuet, DA-RFO 8 Adminstrative Officer III
Copy-Editor: Ela Arciaga, SAAD PR & Communications Officer