Lucita Doroin, 67 years old,  of San Vicente, Baao, Camarines Sur, has been working as a coco sap sugar cook for several years now, it is her only job and her only source of income.

“Mayo na kaya akong ibang pwedeng maging trabaho… gurang na ako, iyo na lang ni ang pinagkakakitaan ko,” she said.  (I can no longer do any jobs, I am old and this is my only source of income).

Doroin was one of the respondents in the Proponent Group Profiling for I-REAP sub projects conducted by the Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) team of PRDP. She is a member of the Federation of Baao Women Multi-Purpose Cooperative (FBWMPC), one of the regular I-REAP sub-projects.

The Proponent Group Profiling will be conducted in five regular I-REAP Sub-projects and 16 Small Livelihood Projects (SLPs) around the region. This was initiated in 3 regular I-REAP sub projects that have already received  the No Objection Letter 1 (NOL1).

It aims to establish the baseline sources of information required in obtaining the Enterprise Development Sub-project Profile that the PRDP will provide technical and financial support.

The baseline data gathered will be used to track the progress of the Proponent Group (PG) that will benefit from the various enterprise development sub-projects supported by PRDP. The questionnaire include queries regarding the members household profile, production information, access to services and market outlets.

The survey was spearheaded by South Luzon Cluster B- M&E Officer Lorenzo B. Villacorte Jr. together with  Arvin R. San Juan and  Perseverando V. Sinogba, assisted by  Rhodelia Remot, RPCO V M&E Officer and other members of PRDP.

One of the Proponent Group is the Labo Progressive Multi-Purpose Cooperative (LPMPC) whose main product is the  pineapple juice,  using “batterball” or the small pineapple to produce the product. During the profiling, only 38 members or 0.41% of the total number of members answered the survey out of the 9,140 total beneficiaries. According to Mario Espeso, the coop manager, only the active members had participated in the survey, but he would still gather the other members to help complete the needed data.

On the other hand, 34 or 32% of the 106 members of Tunay Tapat Lahing Pilipino Cooperative (TTLPC) of Libon, Albay  answered the survey. Coco geonets is the product of TTLPC headed by Mr. Josiah Pedrocillo.

Problems and difficulties faced by the members were also shared during the assessment. According to them they stopped processing coco geonets for two months due to the unavailability of the  coco husks and the absence of transport facility.

Moreover, 16 members or 13.9% of the 115 of the total members of the Federation of Baao Women Multi-Purpose Cooperative headed by Lucy Buena answered the survey forms. Coco Sap Sugar is the prime product of FBWMPC.

There are many beneficiaries like Lucita Doroin, who relies on the project, that’s why continuous production of the product and support is very important for them to sustain the needs  of their family.

The Profiling of the Proponent Group for I-REAP sub-projects will help determine the things PRDP can provide to the Proponent Groups. Monitoring and Evaluation will secure the baseline information so that I-REAP can focus on the management of the business plan.

The result of the survey will also serve as one of the basis for the Midterm Assessment for PRDP Sub-projects happening next year. Since there are only a few who were able to participate in the conduct of the pilot survey, there would be a follow-up schedule to complete the result needed. The team will also conduct the survey to other regular I-REAP sub-projects and 16 SLP’s in Albay, Catanduanes, Sorsogon and Masbate.

PRDP is a six-year project being implemented by the Department of Agriculture that aims to establish a modern, inclusive, value-chain oriented and climate-resilient agriculture and fisheries sector.(Michelle Angela G. Alfigura, I-SUPPORT InfoACE Unit, DA-RAFIS 5, photos by Mr. Larry Villacorte, Jr.)

Mr. Arvin R. San Juan, facilitated the survey for the Proponent Group Profiling.

Bicol-M&E Officer, Ms. Rhodelia Remot and other PRDP staff assisted the participants during the conduct of the survey.