DA-OPAS receives farm mechanized equipments from PAMANA program

From the Philippine Information Agency (Feb 28): DA-OPAS receives farm mechanized equipments from PAMANA program

The Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace Process (OPAPP) through the Department of Agriculture (DA) Farm Mechanization Project under the PAyapa at MAsaganang PamayaNAn (PAMANA) Program for the Province of Eastern Samar and through the Office of the Provincial Agricultural Services (OPAS) – Eastern Samar received 50 mechanized tractors and 15 Floating Tiller.

According to Dr. Deogracias C. Paano, Provincial Agriculturist – (DA-OPAS), the 50 mechanized tractors and 15 Floating Tiller is a grant to seven municipalities namely: Jipapad, Maslog, Arteche, San-Policarpo, Oras, Dolores, and Can-avid.

Dr. Paano disclosed that the seven municipalities were given these facilities because the said areas are affected by conflict and communities covered by existing peace agreement.

Paano added that this is a huge help to the farmers. Based on the conducted 2016 Provincial Rice Areas Validation, the Province of Eastern Samar has a total rice area of 23,277.45 hectares distributed as follows: irrigated – 2,922.35 has. (16.20%); rain fed – 19,316.76 has. (79.63%); and upland – 1,038.00 has. (4.17%). Not all of these rice areas are being tilled in every cropping period due to the lack of farm equipments and the high cost of rentals of needed machineries.

The beneficiaries of these equipments are the farmers who are members of registered farmers association in the seven rice producing PAMANA focused municipalities of the province and they are the primary/direct beneficiaries of this project.

The qualified farmers associations of the seven municipalities entitled are as follows: Jipapad – 7 hand tractors (HTs) and 2 floating tillers (FTs), Maslog – 8 HTs and 2 FTs, Arteche – 10 HTs and 2 Fts, San-Policarpo – 8 HTs and 2 FTs, Oras – 9 HTs and 2 FTs, Dolores – 10 HTs and 3 FTs, and Can-avid – 8 HTs and 2 FTs.

The cost of each hand tractor is P130,000 while each floating tiller's cost is P120,000.

The total amount of these equipments is P10-M.

The unit shall be turned-over for their use and proper maintenance, however, prior to the turn-over, an orientation on the equipments care and maintenance shall be done to all recipient associations.

Each recipient association shall shoulder the maintenance and operational expenses of such equipments, hence they will be required to formulate and adopt a policy mechanism to sustain the operation of the project.

Technical assistance on the project’s operation shall be provided by the province through OPAS in close coordination with the recipient municipalities.

“With these equipments, the rice insufficiency problem in the province will be addressed,” Paano further said.

http://news.pia.gov.ph/article/view/1251488232296/da-opas-receives-farm-mechanized-equipments-from-pamana-program