Davao City — The Department of Agriculture’s Philippine Rural Development Project (DA-PRDP) boosts Mindanao’s champion commodities by frontloading funds for enterprise development.

PRDP’s Investment for Rural Enterprise and Agricultural Productivity (I-REAP) Mindanao portfolio has allotted P398.63 million for 84 targeted projects. Of the figure, 77 projects have been approved with an allocation of P363.16 million. The remaining seven subprojects are still on process for approval.

Mindanao champion commodities include abaca, banana (Cavendish, Cardava, Lakatan), bangus, cacao, cassava (chips and granules), coconut (virgin coconut oil, fiber and peat, sugar), oil palm, coffee (green coffee beans), dairy (cattle), goat, mango (fresh), rice (organic), rubber (crumb, sheet), seaweeds, and swine.

Region 12 has the highest approved enterprise cost of P123.49 million for 11 projects according to the recent project report. These involved expansion and enhancement on the production, processing and marketing of the regions priority commodities.

“Through this project, we hope that the value of coffee farming and the lives of coffee farmers in the province will be elevated. Hopefully with PRDP, coffee growers in the entire South Cotabato would benefit and gain appreciation on the value of coffee as commodity,” said Marcos Gabat president of Tupi Coffee Growers Association Inc. (TUCOGAI) in Tupi, South Cotabato. TUCOGAI is a recipient of P6.9 million project on enhancement of production and marketing of dried green coffee beans.

“The marketing aspect of our cacao enterprise would boost the income of the farmers as co-op would be buying cacao beans at the price of dried beans. This way the P13.39 million project on cacao production and marketing package 1 with input provision and cacao production would be able to help the farmers augmenting their income,” said Dexter Patron cacao enterprise manager of FACOMA, Sindangan, Zamboanga del Norte.

Region 13 ranked second with P69.57 million for 9 projects; followed by Region 10 worth P62.10 million for 33 projects; Region 11 with P56.30 million for 7 projects; Region 9 with P28.43 million for 7 projects; and the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) with P23.26 million for 10 projects.

The I-REAP component strengthen the communities’ capacity in business development through efficient value chains of key agricultural and fishery products and by providing technical, financial, and infrastructure support to the farmers and fisherfolk. It also aims to strengthen the collaboration between DA and the Local Government Units and the private sectors.

These subprojects are materialized through PRDP’s enterprise development and it is expected that agriculture and fishery sector will achieve raise in rural incomes, create employment and improve their competitiveness through a value chain, market-oriented, and integrated delivery approach. (Joy M. Montecalvo/ PSO Mindanao InfoACE Unit)

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