RPCO IX Abaca project beneficiaries undergo GAP training

Date Published: September 25, 2020

Members of the Abaca Service Providers Association, Inc. (SAPSAI) attended a two-day training on “Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) for Abaca” last September 17-18, 2020 in Siocon, Zamboanga del Norte.

The said training was organized by the Department of Agriculture-Philippine Rural Development Project (DA-PRDP) in partnership with Philippine Fiber Industry Development Authority (PhilFIDA).

The purpose of the activity is to train abaca farmers on the different standards of good agricultural practices which they could follow when they decided to apply for GAP certification.  They were trained to apply the good farming practices that could maximize the potential of their abaca farm.

Participants had actual field visit where they had to identify the insects and pests on the abaca plantation which they presented later to the group. As a result, they observed no particular disease on the existing abaca plant they visited.

The resource speakers for the training were PhilFIDA’s Technical Assistance Unit Head Felix Nepomuceno and OIC Planning Head Jurey Cris Ponio. Meanwhile, I-REAP’s Business Development Officer for Marketing Bayani Valencia and Project Development Associate Racel Jill Gayongan along with Social and Environmental Safeguards staff Allan Montemayor from the Regional Project Coordination Office IX also helped in facilitating and  conducting the said activity.

Ponio said that an Agro-Ecosystem Analysis (AESA) is an integral part of GAP training.  “To be able to assess the growth of abaca, we asked the participants to measure its height, size of leaves and the number of leaves. The bigger the size of the leaves indicates the better health of abaca.  The soil condition and the number of insect pests present are also collected.  These things are to be given attention by the farmers to ensure high yield and sustain the quality of abaca fiber they will be producing.”

The Siocon Abaca Service Providers, Inc. conducts field practice on measuring the abaca leaves as aprt of the training on Good Agricultural Practices for abaca in Siocon town. (Photo: Racel Jill Gayongan)

The GAP training is one of the interventions provided by DA-PRDP’s I-REAP component to SASPAI which proposed for a P7.8 million Business Enterprise on Abaca Production, Processing and Marketing subproject. The said subproject was recently granted the No-Objection-Letter 1 or NOL-1 last September 14, 2020.

Of the P7.83 Million project cost, P4.3 million will be allocated for the actual enterprise subproject while P1.97 is intended for its infrastructure component, with the remaining P1.6 to serve as the  SASPAI’s project equity.

SASPAI aims to produce and market quality, processed, decorticated, or dried abaca fiber at prevailing price within Zamboanga Peninsula that meet the PhilFIDA standards.

The municipality of Siocon ranks 4th in terms of production area with a total of 35.75 hectares; wherein 29 hectares of productive area is managed by SASPAI, according to PhilFIDA records in 2018.

To date, at least 11 enterprise development subprojects are implemented in Region IX totalling to  P72 Million including PLGU and proponent equity.

SASPAI’s abaca production, processing and marketing would be the 6th I-REAP subproject in Zamboanga del Norte for a total of  P52 Million or 72 percent of the total I-REAP  portfolio in the region. (Remai Alejado| RPCO9/ Joy M. Montecalvo | PSO Mindanao)

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