ZAMBOANGA SIBUGAY, October 23, 2023 – To increase local livestock production and diversify farmers’ income sources beyond traditional crop farming, the Department of Agriculture – Special Area for Agricultural Development (DA-SAAD) Program Phase 2 in Region 9 granted 48 cattles to two (2) farmers’ associations (FAs) in Zamboanga Sibugay on September 21 and 29, 2023. 

Beneficiaries of SAAD’s FY 2023 Cattle Dispersal Projects worth Php 1,363,760 are the 25 members of San Roque FA (SRFA) in Mabuhay and 25 members of Matim FA (MFA) in Olutanga, Zamboanga Sibugay. Each FA received 16 cattles (15 heifers and 1 bull), mineral blocks, vitamins, and biologics.

For each member to have a large ruminant to take care of, each group received another batch of 8 cattle (7 heifers and 1 bull) worth Php 382,800 from the current fund’s savings. This is also one of the strategies of the regional management to ensure maximum fund optimization while nearing the last quarter of 2023. 

Of the 25 beneficiaries in each association, 22 members received the heifers and the association chairperson, Mr. Rene Potestad and Mr. Pablo Terro, were assigned as caretaker of the four (4) bulls. As part of the group’s roll-over scheme, once one of the distributed cattle produces an offspring, Mr. Potestad, Mr. Terro and the remaining three (3) members of each FA will be the first to receive the turned-over livestock before the next grantees. 

FA members also devised a policy that requires first-in-line beneficiaries to pay Php 1,000 for capital build up, which will fund the procurement of biologics for the cattle and their proposed micro-financing service with 5% monthly interest to assist members in need.

The said project was identified as one of the farmers’ needs in their communities after incorporating the results of the Beneficiary Needs Assessment (BNA) carried out by the program implementers in the first quarter of FY 2023.

Prior to receiving the project, training on cattle production and management and capacity-building for SRFA and MFA members were provided to prepare them both for organizational and livelihood project management.

Mr. Teofilo H. Cleto Jr., SRFA member, expressed gratitude for the cattles they received as this will serve as an additional source of income once traded as meat or liveweight.  “Nagpasalamat ko sa SAAD Program kay gihatagan nila among asosasyon og proyekto. Tungod sa SAAD naa na koy baka, ug kini magsilbi nga puhunan ug makahatag ug dugang kita sa amoang panginabuhi,” said Mr. Cleto.

(I thank the SAAD program because they gave our association a project. Because of SAAD I now have cattle, and this will serve as an investment and additional income in our livelihood.)

Farmers in Zamboanga Sibugay customarily rear cattle in their backyard as a long-term livelihood source. As a result, beef meat is rarely displayed in their market. In Zamboanga Sibugay, a kilogram of beef is sold at Php 300 to Php 350, while liveweight cattle weighing 200 to 250 kilograms (kg) are sold at Php 40,000 to Php 50,000.

With the program’s ultimate objective to transform livelihood projects into community-based enterprises, the Marketing Assistance and Enterprise Development (MAED) Sub-Unit of the DA-SAAD Zamboanga Peninsula will conduct an entrepreneurial mind-setting and values formation training for SRFA and MFA on November 7 and 9, 2023. These sessions will allow the farmers to grasp how project sustainability moves them towards economic stability. ###

Writer: Ellaine L. Quiamco, DA – SAAD Region 9 Information Officer