One PRDP, One Mindanao. This was the mantra for PRDP Mindanao’s IREAP component as they converged in Surigao City for the PSO-RPCO IREAP coordination meeting and strategic planning workshop.

The three-day event, which was spearheaded by the Project Support Office Mindanao’s enterprise development team aims to come up with strategies to fast track the completion of subprojects funded under the Original Loan (OL) by the end of 2022 as well as come up with plans for the proper implementation of subprojects under the Second Additional Financing and EU Co-financing grant (AF2-EU).

With the end of the year fast approaching and with the upcoming implementation of the Mindanao Inclusive Agriculture Development Project (MIADP), the coordination meeting not only called for the participation of I-REAP representatives from the Regional Project Coordination Offices, but also of the support units from the procurement, monitoring and evaluation, geotagging and governance, finance, I-PLAN, I-BUILD and the InfoAce to come up with strategies for 2023 and beyond.

In his opening message, Regional Executive Director for CARAGA Engr. Bong Oñate welcomed this opportunity for all the IREAP and support units to collaborate for their enterprise subprojects . “We have a lot of work to do with the OL and AF2 subprojects as well as our other pipelined subprojects. Let’s really help each other for all of Mindanao.”

PRDP Mindanao Project Director Abel James Monteagudo also highlighted the need for collaboration for the success of the Project.

“The road from subproject identification to the completion of IREAP subprojects is not traversed by the IREAP team alone but rather with the entire PRDP family,” Monteagudo said. “The successful implementation of IREAP subprojects is a group effort thus, issues and concerns should be addressed collectively.”

Monteagudo went on to say that it was the obligation of everyone in the Project to change the lives of farmers for the better. “We have to reprogram and reorganize our approach to our interventions. I hope this gathering will further strengthen our cooperative synergy.”

The PSO-RPCO IREAP Coordination Meeting and Strategic Planning Workshop will run from December 5-9, 2022. (Joseph John Palarca | PSO Mindanao)