LAGAWE, IFUGAO – – Youthful leader Junior Dallig has established himself as a promising voice in the farming sector of the remote village of Jucbong. Here’s one who is giving his best to serve the people and ensure a more inclusive future for all others.
Dallig’s resolve to invigorate this vital sector will be effected through engagements of the young in crop production as well as immediate and long-term interventions. As the national government brace for food crisis and pronounced level of food insecurity.
Agriculture is a dominant industry of Jucbong just like the other 19 villages of the town. For several years, production is low and farmers are poor.
Burdens on debt, inadequate market linkages and poor irrigation are common. In the just-concluded midterm polls, candidates hardly spoke of programs to address the needs of farmers.
Yet, it was during the 45-day campaign period, a candidate should be speaking out on what he or she intends to do in order to revitalize the agriculture sector. Crops like rice and vegetables are raised in this barangay. “We need assistance from the government, and it’s no joke to go into farming,” Dallig said.
The introduction of interventions from the Department of Agriculture, in general, and even the Provincial Agriculture and Natural Resources Office (PAENRO), in particular, will have positive implications on the socio-economic landscape of soil tillers. Their progression shall heighten significantly. If not grinding poverty persists, subsistence farming will remain unchanged.
Food security and resources for food production in terms of production, consumption and trade in this sector should no longer be downplayed.
For the sake of economic growth young farmers should be supported at all times for them to remain a willing partner of the government as engines of positive change. Farmers are getting too old and young folks are turning away from paddies. That is why only a few are still interested in agriculture course.
There is still sufficient time to convince the youngsters to go into farming. Actively involving key stakeholders like Junior Dallig in addressing the agriculture sector’s gaps and challenges is clearly the order of the day. Dallig is ever-committed to the sector’s cherished goal of feeding the nation. Always committed to success in this regard, we do well to take a closer look into the insights of Dallig. There is no option.
Though unlike the politicians, sun-baked villagers like Dallig are not addressed as “Honorables”. They stand tall as “unsung heroes”. Their voices are needed to and in planning, programming and policy formulation in the all-important agriculture sector. **By Anthony A. Araos
