The municipal local government of San Antonio, Quezon and its residents showed their strong ties during the World Bank’s seventh Implementation Support Mission to the Philippine Rural Development Project (PRDP) South Luzon Cluster site visit and dialogue on May 27.

The Bank’s team together with experts from the PRDP South Luzon Project Support Office and CALABARZON Regional Project Coordination Office inspected the implementation of “Concreting of San Jose–Del Valle Farm-to-Market Road (FMR)” and gathered feedback from the project beneficiaries.

“We are here to know your experience as the road is being implemented and it is good to see the LGU and residents have good relationship,” World Bank Economist Luningning Bondoc said during the said dialogue.

Mayor Erick Wagan warmly welcomed the Mission team and expressed his gratitude for the PRDP subproject. He emphasized that the 9.63km FMR, traversing seven barangays—San Jose, Sintorisan, Buliran, Briones, Magsaysay, Callejon and Del Valle—uplifts the lives of his constituents by providing faster, cost-efficient, and convenient road access.

Likewise, it boosts the industry of coconut, the municipality’s major agricultural crop, as well as other commodities such as rice, citrus, low land vegetables, and livestock through linking farm to market.

“This road project wouldn’t be possible without the citizens’ cooperation. The LGU officials regularly coordinate and consult with them [residents] regarding the project,” Ian Cometa, Secretary to the Sangguniang Bayan and Municipal Project Management and Implementation Unit Head shared.

He also added that resident-beneficiaries feel empowered by having a direct participation since they can review and check the documents. “We share technical details with them, hear their feedback, and address their concerns,” Cometa stated.

Farmer-resident Jocelyn Marquez imparted that the consultation process nurtures trust and openness between the community and the local government unit. Without the consultation, they would be hesitant to donate part of their land for the project. “Dahil sa consultation naliwanagan kami kung ano ang halaga ng proyekto at kung ano ang maari naming maitulong. Sana ay ganoon sa lahat ng proyekto (The consultation helped us understand the importance of the project and our participation in the implementation. I hope all projects have consultation),” she said.

Raoul Azanza, Rural Infrastructure Engineer Consultant of the World Bank commended this process and encouraged the residents to always give feedback, whether positive or negative, and communicate their concerns with the LGU. Bondoc, on the other hand, tasked the LGU to foster this relationship by creating citizen monitoring team for the subproject.

The World Bank team ended the site visit and dialogue by a call to action: protect the FMR and maximize the opportunities sparked by the project. “Di ito matatapos sa kalsada lamang. Tayo ay magtulungan para mapalago ang antas ng pamumuhay sa San Antonio. Let us take advantage of this project by expanding economic activities and attracting investments,” Mayor Wagan seconded. ### (Rio Christine Bustamante, DA-PRDP South Luzon PSO InfoACE Unit