2 So. Leyte farmer groups receive farm equipment from DAR

By FEBE MARIE BERSABAL, DAR Southern Leyte
November 24, 2023

HINUNANGAN, Southern Leyte – Two agrarian reform beneficiaries organizations (ARBOs) from this town are the latest recipients of modern farm machineries and equipment, tools and farm inputs, from the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) to augment their livelihood activities.

Last month, Provincial Agrarian Reform Program Officer II (PARPO II) Roderick Rances led the turnover of three boat-type floating tillers, three turtle-type floating tillers, a water pump with complete accessories, and organic fertilizers to the Mabatas Irrigators Association (Mabatas IA), held in Barangay Tahusan auditorium.

Mabatas IA, with 182 members, where 117 of them are agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs), is into rice farming.

On the same occasion, Rances also turned over two fish drying machines with accessories to the Tabjon Settlers Farmers Association (TSFA) for their “tilanggit” (danggit na tilapia) processing.

Aside from farming, TSFA, based in Sitio Tabjon, Barangay Calagitan, is also into aquaculture, particularly on tilapia production.

TSFA is composed of 50 members, wherein 39 of them are ARBs.

Rances explained that this is part of DAR’s commitment to provide our ARBOs with livelihood and agri-enterprise assistance geared towards increasing agricultural production and income in keeping with Agrarian Reform Secretary Conrado Estrella III’s advocacy on genuine land reform program.

Cecil Malubay, chief of the Program Beneficiaries Development Division (PBDD) at the DAR Southern Leyte Provincial Office, disclosed that these packages of assistance amounted to ₱2.1 million taken from the Major Crop-based Block Farm Productivity Enhancement and Sustainable Livelihood for Disaster Affected Areas of the Climate Resilient Farm Productivity Support (CRFPS) program.

Both chairpersons of the recipient-ARBOs, Rogelio Engcoy and Gina Amac of Mabatas IA and TSFA, respectively, expressed their gratitude and committed to maximize the use of their newly-acquired machines in order to increase their production and income.