Prior to the construction of a solar dryer and grain
warehouse in Sta. Elena village, this town, farmers like Arnel Dacuyan use
vacant lots and basketball courts to dry grains.
“Now, that we already have the facility, rice farmers will
no longer need to dry their palay (unhusked rice) anywhere and they also have
safe warehouse to store their grains,” Dacuyan said.
Sta. Elena village, a rice producing community, is located
about two kilometers from the national road of Tanauan-Dagami Road
Indeed, Sta. Elena is the top rice producing area in the
town with 8.5 tons harvest per hectare, higher than the total rice production
of the town at 3.5 tons per hectare. This can be attributed to established
irrigation system, allowing farmers to harvest rice twice a year.
The United States Agency for International Development
(USAID) funded the construction of post-Yolanda Rebuild Project assistance.
The project costs USD57,356 and will benefit a total of 108
farmers, cultivating a more than 120 hectares of rice fields in the village.
Mayor Pelagio Tecson Jr. said that Sta. Elena residents are
lucky to receive the project from the USAID. “Restoring livelihood is just as
equal as restoring houses damaged by super typhoon Yolanda,” the mayor added.
The USAID also provided technical assistance to Sta. Elena
farmers by teaching them new rice farming techniques.
Leyte Governor Leopoldo Dominico Petilla urged farmers to
think of their future by forgetting what had happened during Yolanda.
Petilla also expressed gratitude to the USAID for helping
farmers in the province in the form of provision of technical assistance, farm
inputs and post harvest facilities aimed at raising output.
“With dryers, farmers will no longer dry their grain along
roads, which is prohibited by the Department of Public Works and Highways,” the
governor added.
USAID Deputy Mission Director Clay Epperson said that their
donation in Sta. Elena is part of the 30 agri-fishery support facilities for
areas affected by the 2013 catastrophe.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=833612
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