The Philippine Rural Development Project (PRDP) through its Regional Project Advisory Board (RPAB) recently approved two subprojects for the provinces of Marinduque and Occidental Mindoro.

Marinduque Provincial Project Management and Implementation Unit (PPMIU) Head Marian Cunanan, who was also among the presenters of the province’s farm-to-market (FMR) subproject proposal, said, “It was an early Christmas gift.”

The 4.16-kilometer Improvement of the Pantayin–Jolo–Napo FMR will benefit the farmers and residents of barangays Devilla, Banogbog, Pulong Parang, and Masalukot. These barangays produce five metric tons of crops per week that are delivered to the Sta. Cruz Public Market.

The FMR subproject worth P68 million will benefit more than 500 households, 65 percent of which are into farming and 28.6 percent are living below the poverty threshold.

The road improvement will help increase the number of vehicles plying the road even during rainy season. It will also reduce the hauling cost, travel time, and product loss of farmers when  they bring products to the public market.

Regional Project Advisory Board members sign the subproject proposal for the Panatayin-Jolo-Napo farm-to-market road of Marinduque. Joining them are the presenters from the Provincial Project Management and Implementation Unit (PPMIU) of the province. (Photo by Elmo Morillo, DA-PRDP MIMAROPA RPCO InfoACE Unit)

Cassava microenterprise

The RPAB also approved the Granulated Cassava Production and Marketing microenterprise subproject proposal of Occidental Mindoro. Worth P21.59 million, the subproject aims to lessen the cost of production inputs and increase the income of cassava farmers.

Proposed by the SAMARICA Cassava Farmers and Mangyan Tribes Association as the proponent group, the microenterprise will focus on the production of cassava granules, establishment of soil conditioner/ ameliorator processing facility, and the marketing of cassava products.

The subproject aims to expand upland production areas, increase average yield of food-grade variety and industrial variety, increase volume production to five percent, and increase income of farmers by 10 percent. It also targets to improve the quality of cassava production and its by-products through the Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) and establish the cassava food-grade enterprise and other value adding activities.

Moreover, the establishment of the soil ameliorator processing facility seeks to reduce chemical fertilizer usage, combat negative impact of chemical fertilizer, lessen environmental production, and conserve soil fertility.

The proponent group has 62 members in San Jose, Magsaysay, Rizal, and Calintaan in Occidental Mindoro. Twenty members of the group belong to the Mangyan indigenous group.

The RPAB was chaired by Dr. Louella Rowena Lorenza, OIC-Regional Executive Director of the Department of Agriculture-MIMAROPA. Other RPAB members include representatives of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR), Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), and Regional Agricultural and Fisheries Council (RAFC).

The RPAB-approved subprojects will be endorsed to the PRDP South Luzon Project Support Office for the issuance of No Objection Letter 1 or the notice to proceed. ### (Denice Joelle Benosa, DA-PRDP MIMAROPA RPCO InfoACE Unit)