COTABATO, October 4, 2021 – Five farmer associations (FA) in Cotabato received 600 layer chickens and three cattle from the Department of Agriculture-Special Area for Agricultural Development (DA-SAAD) Program on October 1.
The Php 525,000 worth of projects which were distributed during the 10th Barangay Extension Service Operations (BESO) Outreach Program in Bacong are under the Layer Chicken Production and Cattle Dispersal Project funded in FY 2020 (Table 1).Table 1. Interventions provided to five farmer groups
| Farmers’ Association | Interventions Received | Project Title | Project Cost |
| Sibsib Senior Citizen | 200 chickens | Layer Chicken Production | 140,000.00 |
| Galidan | 200 chickens | Layer Chicken Production | 140,000.00 |
| Blaan Klayag | 200 chickens 1 Cattle |
Layer Chicken Production Cattle Dispersal |
140,000.00 35,000.00 |
| Bacong Kanyeh | 1 Cattle | Cattle Dispersal | 35,000.00 |
| Laybugal | 1 Cattle | Cattle Dispersal | 35,000.00 |
| Total Project Cost | 525,000.00 | ||
Sibsib Senior Citizen with 25 members started raising chickens for egg production in March 2021. They initially received 232 chickens from SAAD and started earning Php 11,000-13,000 from selling eggs after a month.
During SAAD National Director Myer Mula’s visit on August 3, he committed to provide more layer chickens as he had seen the group’s dedication in taking care of the said project. On October 1, the group was provided another 200 chickens as a reward for their good project management performance.
Galidan and Blaan Klayag FAs also received 200 chickens each and immediately started their poultry farming.
On the other hand, three groups were given cattle in support of their corn and upland rice production. The animals will help them during land preparation and hauling of harvests.
The turnover ceremony, led by the DA Regional Executive Director Arlan M. Mangelen, was done together with the Koronadal City Eagles Club (KCEC) and Local Government Unit of Tulunan.
Dir. Mangelen said, “Ibigay ang dapat na pagkain sa ating mga kababayan, sa ating mga farmers, sa ating mga konsyumers. Yan po ang commitment ng Department of Agriculture.”
(The commitment of the Department of Agriculture is to provide enough food for our farmers, for the consumers, for the community.)
He also highlighted the importance of the agricultural assistance to the farmers and fishers especially during the pandemic.
“Sa panahon ng pandemiya, ang tanging magbigay ng solusyon sa mga pangunahing suliranin natin, tulad ng pagkain, ay ang agrikultura, kaya naman sa pamamagitan ng tulong ng agricultural sector ay ating malalabanan ang kahirapan na dulot ng CoViD-19 pandemic.”
(During the pandemic, the agriculture sector is the only solution to the main problem of food scarcity. We can fight against hunger and poverty brought by the CoViD-19 with the agriculture programs.) ###
Writer: Aisa L. Tina
