The First Cordillera Farmers Summit Cum Machinery Roadshow highlighted the rise of “makabago at modernong teknolohiya sa pagsasaka” in the Cordillera.
Former Department of Agriculture RED (Regional Executive Director) Dr. Lorenzo Caranguian emphasized the need to bring modern technological ways of farming to farmers and fisherfolk in this mountainous region. Thus, stakeholders, farmer leaders, provincial agriculturists, provincial veterinarians and local government units from all the provinces of Cordillera were invited for the three day event held on November 15 to 17, 2017. Kalinga was the chosen venue as it was cited as the province in the Cordillera region having been granted the most projects in agricultrue, “the city of boom”, added Dr. Caranguian.
In line with the theme for the summit, more than 10 farm machinery providers and business exhibitors were invited to display their products and tools and further educate the farmers on new farming methods they could incorporate into their farming methods..
The new RED of Cordillera, Narcisso Abella Edillo, former RED for DA-RFU Region 2 openly acknowledged and encouraged the continued participation and enthusiasm of the Cordillerans towards DA programs, interventions and researches. He added, he will prioritize looking into agro-climatic conditions and how they affect the highland value crops of the region and develop appropriate technologies.
Guest speaker Engr. Ariodear C. Rico, Chairman of the Board of Agriculture and Biosystems Engineering, PRC pointed out that the Cordillera region has the advantage of a semi-temperate climate that is conducive to the production of temperate vegetables. However, the lack of irrigation is the major constraint in crop production. This is where farm mechanization shall be applied such as the design and implementation of farm reservoir, pressurized irrigation systems and green houses. “Tungo sa makabago at modernong pagsasaka, kailangan i-mechanize ang ating mga farms. This is to make the region competitive under the era of ASEAN integration,” he said.
On this note, the summit continued with presentations from the DA’s line agencies and attached bureaus about their programs and projects including credit assistances that the farmers could avail of. The exhibitors also presented the latest technologies, products and machines for farming applicable to crops in the region.
At the close of the summit, Ms. Lourdes Espino, a farmer leader from Kalinga extended her gratitude saying (karangalan mi inmay ket ad adu gayam ti programa mabalin mi pag salian ken mabalin me aramiden ta lumag-an trabaho mi) It is an honor to have attended this event and find out about (DA) programs we could attend and the knowhow to make our jobs as farmers lighter.**yna capuyan
