EASTERN VISAYAS, June 2, 2023 – In pursuit of strengthening the program management structure and Social Preparation for the Phase 2 implementation, the Department of Agriculture – Special Area for Agricultural Development (DA-SAAD) Phase 2 Eastern Visayas conducted a series of preparatory activities to equip implementers prior to community entry.

Heralding the Phase 2 implementation in the region, SAAD Eastern Visayas conducted FY 2023 Orientation and Briefing for the program’s implementation on May 5, 2023, at the DA Regional Field Office (RFO) 8, Tacloban City.

Attended by 38 SAAD regional and provincial staff, together with the Agricultural Program Coordinating Officers (APCO) headed by Mr. Francisco Rosaroso, Human Resources Management Office (HRMO) Chief, Ms. Raquel G. Negradas, and Regional Technical Director (RTD), Larry U. Sultan, the said meeting was presided over by the Regional Executive Director, Dr. Andrew Rodolfo T. Orais.

The orientation mainly revolves around scrutinizing the SAAD guidelines as ratified in the Department Order No. 6, series of 2023. They also discussed the yearly plans and directives and the Human Resources (HR) Manual.

Preparing for social preparation

Preparing to implement social preparation in the region, 42 regional and provincial implementers completed the Beneficiary Needs Assessment (BNA) training, spearheaded by the SAAD National Program Management Office (NPMO). The training was held in Tacloban City from May 15 to 19, 2023.

The training was led by NPMO Deputy Director, Dr. Pedro S. Dumaraos Jr., along with NPMO Region 8 focal person Ms. Christine Joyce Velez who discussed the SAAD Phase 2 BNA Guidelines and its proper implementation in the field.

Present in the training as well are other DA partner-implementers, APCOs, representatives from the Field Operations Division (FOD), and a representative from the Regional Agriculture Engineering Division (RAED).

Discussed during the said training were the three (3) tools and approaches in the BNA which are:

(a) document review, where the Regional Program Management Support Office (RPMSO) and Provincial Program Management Support Office (PPMSO) shall review all necessary secondary data concerning the beneficiaries; 

(b) BNA interview and observation where the validation of consistency of data acquired from the qualified beneficiaries using BNA guide questions. It also includes the interviewer’s observation as to the reactions of the group during the flow of the interview; and

(c) site validation, where actual site validation of the project target areas and verifying the feasibility of the proposed projects occur.

Further, the RPMSO and PPMSO participants underwent simulation of the focused group discussion (FGD).

Moreover, the RPMSO and PPMSO conducted a BNA field pilot implementation. Part of the activity was an FGD with around 21 members of the Telegrafo Farmers Association, in the municipality of Tolosa in Leyte, as well as site validation and documentation, while the NPMO implementers observed. 

Dr. Dumaraos highlighted how FGD, document review, and site validation and documentation become vital processes in conducting the social preparation component of the program, for the results will be the basis for crafting interventions and implementing projects that are objectively suitable to the beneficiaries’ condition and responsive to their communities needs. 

Ms. Ana Mae Ebero, one of the RPMSO’s Associate Project Officers, formerly assigned as Area Coordinator (AC) in Biliran Province during Phase 1, shared, “With the experience during my time as AC, combined with the BNA training, I am more confident to coordinate with the farmers. I also learned through this training to give a heartfelt, passionate, and dedicated service to our clientele.”

In its Phase 2 implementation, SAAD Eastern Visayas is set to cater to a total of six (6) provinces namely: (1) Eastern Samar, (2) Northern Samar, (3) Western Samar, (4) Southern Leyte, (5) Leyte, and newly covered province (6) Biliran accounting to a total of 60 Local Government Units (LGUs)  which are categorized as 5th and 6th income class municipalities.###

Writer: Justine May A. Delloro, DA-SAAD Eastern Visayas Information Officer