May 3, 2010
Philippine group eyes agriculture projects worth US$4.62 million
The Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) has targeted implementing various agricultural development projects valued at PHP206 million (US$4.62 million) this year under the Mindanao Rural Development Program (MRDP), after getting favourable review of its performance in implementing the first batch of projects.
The Department of Agriculture and Fisheries of the ARMM (DAF-ARMM) would be the main proponent of the projects, some of which have been in various stages of implementation, said DAF-ARMM secretary Lomala Balindong.
Balindong said the lined-up projects for this year were intended to give farmers and fisherfolk in the region with support in the improvement of their harvests and living condition.
The total amount set to implement the projects in the ARMM would be the biggest among the other regional projects under the MRDP, a 15-year poverty alleviation programme of the Department of Agriculture (DA) and funded by the World Bank.
The local governments, the project proponents said, were required to put up equity.
This year, the MRDP has approved a total of PHP2 billion (US$44.8 million) worth of projects, which include the construction of farm-to-market roads, post-harvest facilities and other infrastructures that are spread across the different regions in Mindanao.
The ARMM's PHP206 million (US$4.62 million) approved projects was the biggest slice in this year's implemented projects, according to the DAF.
The DAF-ARMM expected to see an increased farm production and improvement in the lives of thousands of farmers in the region composed of the non-contiguous provinces of Maguindanao and Lanao del Sur in central Mindanao and the south-western island provinces of Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi.
According to the DAF-ARMM, the recent assessment overseen by the World Bank has given an excellent rating on the implementation of the Community Fund for Agricultural Development (CFAD).
The assessment shows that 60% of the target projects under this component were completed while the remaining 40% were being undertaken, Balindong said.
