The Project Support Office (PSO) of North Luzon cluster under the Philippine Rural Development Project (PRDP) sees the Maria Aurora Development Cooperative (MADECO) as a potential proponent for the upcoming World Bank Implementation Support Mission.

As the oldest cooperative in the province of Aurora, the MADECO qualified and was chosen as the proponent group for the “Establishment of Processing Facilities with Solar Dryer for Coir and Coir By-products,” a P4.1 million enterprise subproject under the PRDP that seeks to develop the coconut industry in Aurora while providing additional livelihood to coconut farmers.

During the consultation with the proponent members, PRDP Luzon A Project Director Engr. Roy Abaya stressed that during the support mission, part of the assessment will focus on the Project’s development objectives (PDO).

“Our goal is to show to the World Bank how big of an impact PRDP is, to our dear farmers. Through you (beneficiaries), we will be assessed if we are truly committed towards the development objectives,” Dir. Abaya said.

In addition to this, Deputy Project Director Elma Mananes urged both the members and the PRDP staff to continuously work on loopholes, to avoid possible setbacks during the mission team’s visit.

The consultation served as a business plan refresher for the MADECO members, who will later on be interviewed by the World Bank consultants themselves. Ruben Gonzales, manager of the cooperative presented the enterprise business plan, after which I-REAP Alternate Focal Person Leny Pecson of the National Project Coordinating Office (NPCO) presided the open forum.

The semestral visit of the World Bank is held nationwide to assess and evaluate the progress of selected PRDP subprojects, which will aide the implementers in sustaining the capability, efficiency and effectiveness of the implementation.

PRDP is a DA special project that aims to establish a modern climate-smart, market oriented agri-fishery sector. The Project is jointly funded by the World Bank, the National Government and the Local Government Units (LGUs). (Kayla Arceo, DA-PRDP PSO InfoACE Unit)