Four newly reconstructed communal irrigation systems (CIS) in Banaue, Ifugao are expected to help farmers rehabilitate abandoned rice terraces, expand the production area, and increase heirloom rice production in the locality.

Funded under the Department of Agriculture’s Philippine Rural Development Project (DA PRDP), the four CIS has a total project cost amounting to more than 26 million. Aside from these, five others are still under implementation with more or less than 50% physical progress.

Most of the barangays where these irrigation subprojects were constructed are inscribed by UNESCO as Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Sites (GIAHS) with a total area of more than 80 hectares planted with rice. The lack of efficient irrigation facilities has left many farmers without steady and sufficient water for agriculture, including the production of heirloom rice.

In 2017, the local government of Banaue has entered into a memorandum of agreement with the DA for the construction of these irrigation systems with funding from PRDP.

Initially, the MLGU of Banaue proposed nine CIS subprojects to help farmers increase production.

“Idi haan pay nga na rehab daytoy irigasyon mi ditoy ket kasla na abandon dagitoy daduma nga rice terraces ta haan ma trabaho agsipod ta kumurang jay water nga agflow idjay canal and some of the parts are damaged (when the CIS was not yet rehabilitated, some of the rice terraces were abandoned because of insufficient water flowing from the canal and some of the parts are damaged),” said Patricia Talango, a beneficiary of the Aparnga-o – Ligligan CIS improvement.

The completed CIS subprojects are located in the top heirloom rice producing barangays of Banaue. These subprojects are: improvement of Nabalit CIS, construction of Dalipe CIS, Improvement of Aparnga-o – Ligligan CIS, and improvement of Luutan-Imbangnge-Bayungon CIS.

Back in the mid-90s, Manual Allama, Dalipe barangay official recalled how the residents moved to other municipalities due to lack of irrigation facilities in their barangay.

“There are existing irrigation systems but calamities cannot be avoided so people who used to live in Dalipe moved to the municipality of Hungduan or elsewhere. There was no one to repair or clean up damaged canals during typhoons. So farmers won’t be able to get enough water to cultivate their lands,” he said.

The overall objective of these CIS subprojects are to increase the number of irrigated areas, and increase yield of rice. More than this, the LGU of Banaue aims to attain rice sufficiency through sustaining steady supply of irrigation water and rehabilitate abandoned rice terraces. (Elvy S. Taquio, RPCO-CAR InfoACE)