Tacloban City – After surviving the havoc typhoon Nona brought in Eastern Visayas, help is finally on its way especially for the victims after the Regional Project Advisory Board (RPAB) for Eastern Visayas approved for funding under the Philippine Rural Development Project (PRDP), three farm-to-market roads (FMRs) and six livelihood subprojects.

“We need these projects very badly. These will help many farmers and fisherfolk, especially those severely affected by calamities,” said Department of Agriculture-8 Regional Executive Director and concurrent RPAB Chair Leo P. Cañeda in a meeting by the RPAB last December 23, 2015 at the Leyte Park Resort Hotel in Tacloban City.

The RPAB are the ones responsible in providing guidance, reviews and approves subprojects for funding under the PRDP.

The I-BUILD subproject proposals recently approved by the RPAB consist of the 2.96 kms Rehabilitation of Salhag to Kailingnan FMR, in Rosario, Northern Samar; 4.38 kms Opening/Concreting of Brgy. Hantag to Bgry. Laboon FMR, in Maasin City, Southern Leyte, and the 5.95 kms Improvement/Concreting of Brgy. Cogon to Brgy. Villa Aurora in Basey, Samar.

“In 2015, the RPAB endorsed 19 FMR suprojects worth P1.5 billion. The bidding process for 3 FMRs involving the municipalities of San Sebastian, Samar; St. Bernard, Hinunangan and Lilo-an, Southern Leyte have already started in November following the issuance of a No Objection Letter 1 by the National Project Coordination Office. The biggest road project is located in the municipality of Lilo-an, Southern Leyte with a length of 19.3 kilometers costing P223 million,” Cañeda disclosed.

Meanwhile, under the I-REAP Small Livelihood Project (SLP), Director Cañeda said, “Region 8 was fortunately able to avail much of the project funds for SLP compared to other regions in the country. This simply indicates our need for such kind of funding assistance.  We should have more of these livelihood projects.”

The newly approved subprojects under the SLP were from the proponent groups of the municipalities of Almeria, Biliran, and; Catarman, Allen, and Mondragon, in Northern Samar.

Earlier on December 14-15, 2015, the RPAB also endorsed for funding 23 livelihood subprojects under the SLP with a total cost of P30 million.  These were proposals submitted from the municipalities of San Ricardo, Padre Burgos, Macrohon, Maasin, Tomas Oppus, Anahawan, Hinunangan, San Juan, Limasawa, Pintuyan and San Francisco, in Southern Leyte; Albuera, Hilongos, Tanauan, Palompon, Mayorga, Barugo and San Isidro, in Leyte; Ormoc City; Basey and Motiong, Samar, and; Guiuan and Quinapondan, Eastern Samar.

The livelihood subprojects endorsed by the RPAB ranges from livestock and poultry production, high value crops, organic fertilizers, and root crops production as well as, aqua culture and fisheries.

Director Cañeda lauded the key officials of the concerned local government units for taking extra steps to ensure that these proposals get firmed up for the RPAB evaluation and corresponding endorsement before the last week of December 2015. (Rodel Macapanas, Info-ACE, Region 8)