
BACOLOD CITY — Some eight rice farmer associations in Negros Occidental received equipment worth PHP890,000 from the Department of Agriculture (DA)-Western Visayas.
The turn-over rites, held Friday at Barangay Tabunan, Bago City, was led by Acting Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson with Fourth District Board Member Victor Javellana and Provincial Agriculturist Japhet Masculino.
Lacson thanked the DA for the provision of farm machines under the agency’s Rice Program.
“Make use of the blessings you have received from the government,” he told the farmers.
The recipients were from the cities of Bago, Himamaylan and Silay.
Those who received hand tractors worth PHP130,000 each were the Mambagaton Cluster Farmers Association, Mailum Organic Farmers Association, and General Malvar Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Irrigators Association.
Given threshers worth PHP100,000 each were the Newton Camingawan Para Farmers Association, Mambagaton Farmers Association, Palay Farmers Association, Hacienda Lolita Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Association, and Mercedes Farmers Irrigators Association.
Last month, 10 farmers’ associations in Silay City also received PHP2.027 million worth of projects funded by the DA’s bottom-up budgeting program.
The beneficiaries included seven associations, which received a total of PHP1.07 million in post-harvest facilities.
One hand tractor was given each to the Cabal-ong Farmers Association, Lupa Pamanaag Farmers Irrigators Association, Nacayao Small Farmers Association, Violeta Palay Check Farmers Association, Nacayao Barangay Captain Ramon Integrated Farmers Association, Camantero Farmers Association, and San German Tionko Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries.
Three associations received PHP957,600 worth of infrastructure support to agri-fishery production — the Dorothea Farmers Integrated Association, San Vicente I Farmers Association, and Camantero Farmers Association, which received one power tiller each. (Nanette Guadalquiver/PNA)