Beyond the visible inputs of seeds and machinery, effective bookkeeping stands as a fundamental, yet often overlooked, tool for successful farmers’ cooperatives and associations (FCAs). This crucial skill transforms a group of farmers into a transparent, sustainable enterprise, enabling better decision-making, access to funding, and compliance with vital requirements.
Recognizing this need, the Department of Agriculture – Special Area for Agricultural Development (DA-SAAD) Program Phase 2 in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) took proactive steps by investing in its own people.
From May 20 to 22, 2025, SAAD CAR held a Training of Trainers (TOT) on Bookkeeping and Accounting for Non-Accountants in Baguio City. The training capacitated its staff to guide FCAs in managing their financial records more effectively, in support of the Marketing Assistance and Enterprise Development (MAED) component of the program.
Led by resource speakers Sheryl Belwa and Lhea Ablaza from the Northern Luzon Federation of Cooperatives & Development Center, the training covered the basics of accounting – focusing on real-world applications such as transaction recording, ledger balancing, and preparation of simple financial statements.
Hands-on exercises simulated actual scenarios faced by farmers’ groups, ensuring that participants would be able to transfer these skills directly to the communities they serve.
The group also had a session from guest speakers Sonny Bangsail, Grace Caguioa, and Angeli Tarasi of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Baguio City. They discussed the process of applying for tax exemption – an often confusing but vital procedure for associations aiming to formalize their enterprises.
By educating SAAD CAR staff on how to assist FCAs with regulatory compliance, the program bridged a significant gap that has hindered many small rural enterprises from progressing.
In his message, SAAD CAR Assistant Operations Officer Ronan M. Soriano emphasized the significance of Bookkeeping in showing how the program transforms the lives of SAAD farmer-beneficiaries.
“Kung walang kwenta, walang kwento. This means that without proper accounting of our resources – whether it’s finances, time, or efforts – there will be no meaningful story of progress to tell. Bookkeeping is essential in tracking our journey, measuring our impact, and ensuring that every peso and effort translate into real change in the lives of our farmer-beneficiaries,” he said.
This Training of Trainers is a strategic investment that fundamentally empowers DA-SAAD staff to serve as vital mentors, significantly better positioning FCAs to build successful, transparent, and profitable community-based enterprises.
In communities where farming has always been a way of life, the meticulous practice of bookkeeping may initially seem foreign – but it is precisely this tool that allows their stories of resilience to evolve into compelling narratives of economic success. ###