SULTAN KUDARAT, November 23, 2022 – Twenty (20) members of a newly organized farmers group in Sultan Kudarat underwent multiple capacity-building training under the social preparation component before receiving the plant nursery project from the Department of Agriculture – Special Area for Agricultural Development (DA-SAAD) Program in Region 12.

Prepping the farmers to attain higher rates of adaptability of projects and sustainability of production,  learners are members of the Basak Irrigators and Communal Farmer’s Association (BICFA) mostly engaged in mixed-crop farming. They took the Training on Universal Values for Influencer cum Values Re-Orientation/Clarification; and Redirection and Knowing Self as a Member of a Working Group, People Management Principles and Practices and Basic Steps in Starting a Business that ran from November 8 to 11 in Almirante’s Garden Lodge, Lebak, Sultan Kudarat.

The activity focused on values formation and the role it plays in the group to build a strong team with unified direction and purpose. These sessions are anchored on SAAD’s four (4) components – program management, social preparation, production and livelihood interventions, and marketing assistance and enterprise development. 

Marketing Specialist Mr. Rey P. Ylanan of the DA-Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Division (AMAD) shared his expertise on Organizational Structure and Values Formation, Leadership Skills, and Basic Planning and Decision-Making. He specifically iterated that for a group to engage in a community-led enterprise, they must have the core values to help with the bottlenecks that limit their operation and foster growth across the organization. These fundamental values include integrity, honesty, accountability, teamwork, and commitment.

Meanwhile, Area Coordinator Kristine Benitez also discussed Basic Accounting and Simple Bookkeeping to help the group maintain an accurate and complete record of all its financial information when they start earning from the livelihood project provided by the program. This is important for the group to promote transparency and ensure smooth financial operations.

After introducing the cornerstone of outstanding team performance to the farmers, a series of Training on Nursery Establishment, Plant Propagation, Nursery Operation, and Maintenance and Production Technology (per commodity) in Philippine Agricultural Practices which will focus on the production aspect will be provided to the group in the last quarter to prepare them with the plant nursery project.

Establishment of Plant Nursery

Under the Establishment of BPI-Accredited Enterprise-based Crop Nurseries of FY 2022, BICFA is set to receive plant nurseries and various seedlings of mangosteen, rambutan, pomelo, lanzones, and bamboo.

This project is one of the program’s strategies to provide access to good-quality planting materials within the community.

Sultan Kudarat is one of the country’s provinces producing its own seedlings. With such provision, the group can now propagate and nurture ornamental, herbal, or even nurture plants from seeds.

Their one-hectare nursery will be in barangay Basak, Lebak, Sultan Kudarat. Successful execution of this project will help the group develop their own community enterprise such as selling quality seedlings, saplings, and other planting materials, or get involved in community participation procurement. 

Government Procurement Policy Board (GPPB) issued two resolutions in 2014 and 2015 supporting local procurement, where a procuring entity will engage the community as a contract manager to implement locally-funded community-based projects.

With the improved organizational performance, ensuring efficiency and consistency in SAAD project implementation, SAAD farmers are hoping to significantly contribute to economic contribution in building the local agriculture industry, and attain its goal of helping the marginalized sectors with food production and food security. ###

Writer: Kristine Benitez, DA-SAAD Sultan Kudarat Information Officer