PAOAY, ILOCOS NORTE - Batac City Mayor Albert D. Chua, representing Ilocos Norte Governor Imee R. Marcos, takes his turn in the ceremonial groundbreaking of the Rehabilitation of the Nalasin-Sungadan-Langiden FMR with Paoay Mayor Jessie E. Galano and DA RFO 1 Regional Executive Director Valentino C. Perdido. Paoay holds Groundbreaking for its first FMR under PRDP
The construction of the Rehabilitation of the Nalasin-Sungadan-Langiden Farm-to-Market Road, which is proposed by the Municipality of Paoay, Ilocos Norte under the Philippine Rural Development Project (PRDP), formally kicked off last February 26, 2017 in a ground breaking ceremony held at the Barangay Hall of Nalasin, Paoay, Ilocos Norte.
The ceremony was led by Paoay Municipal Mayor Jessie E. Galano, DA-RFO 1 Regional Executive Director Valentino C. Perdido, and Batac City Mayor Albert D. Chua who represented Ilocos Norte Governor Imee R. Marcos.
The construction of the 4.934-kilometer FMR is to be completed by Vikings Construction in 2018, with an estimated project cost of P67,394,000. It covers the barangays of Nalasin, Sungadan, Surgui, Pasil, Nanguyudan, Mumulaan, San Roque, Nagbacalan, and Langiden.
The FMR is expected to benefit 301 households with 1,292 males and 1,304 females. Upon the completion of the FMR, travel time from the subproject site to the market will be reduced by 65 percent; farmers’ income is expected to increase by 20 percent; and transportation cost is expected to decrease by 20 percent, while hauling cost by 50 percent.
The FMR’s design will feature a 5-meter wide concreted pavement, 1.5-meter gravel shoulders on both sides, and 1 meter drainage also on both sides.
Mayor Galano expressed his gratitude for the Project during the ceremony and encouraged his constituents to help oversee the proper implementation of the project. The FMR primarily supports the mango commodity which is a priority commodity under PRDP in Ilocos Region. Aside from mango, however, the FMR will also benefit the onion, mungbean, tomato, garlic, rice, and corn commodities.
“Nagasat ti Paoay (Paoay is lucky),” said Dir. Perdido “because it was the second to avail an infrastructure subproject in Ilocos Region under the PRDP and the first municipality to implement a PRDP infrastructure subproject in the Region.”
The PRDP is a World Bank-funded project implemented by the Department of Agriculture. It aims to build modern and climate-smart rural infrastructure subprojects and sustainable market-oriented agri-fishery enterprises to the benefit of farmers. (Vida V. Cacal and Dessa U. Estrada, DA- PRDP RPCO1 InfoACE Unit)
