BAGUIO CITY – A total of 1,652 agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) from Cordillera Region received their 937 certificates of land ownership award (CLOAs) in a two-day distribution ceremonies led by the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) held at the Gestdan Centrum in Baguio City on November 8 to 9, 2017.
The CLOAs awarded covered a total land area of 937 hectares in the provinces of Abra, Apayao, Benguet, Ifugao, Kalinga and Mt. Province.
DAR has intensified CLOA distribution and the provision of support services to ARBs in the country to support the thrust of the administration of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte to emancipate farmers, especially those in the far-flung villages from poverty.
DAR OIC Secretary Rosalina L. Bistoyong led the first batch of CLOA distribution and the turn-over of support projects to ARBs on Wednesday
The second day of CLOA distribution and turn-over of support services will be led by Undersecretary Karlo S. Bello.
“We want you to be empowered,” Bistoyong emphasized in his message, reiterating that the administration of Pres. Duterte and the DAR will continue to support the ARBs.
Bistoyong also encouraged the ARBs to fully develop their lands as she recognized the vital role of farmers in securing the food needs of the Filipinos.
“Farmers support the food security of communities and our country,” she said.
Data provided by DAR Cordillera Region Regional Director Atty. Marjorie P. Ayson revealed that 387 ARBs from Mt. Province received their CLOAs covering a total of 45.4614 hectares during the two-day distribution ceremonies; 379 ARBs with 191.9154 hectares from Kalinga; 376 ARBs with 225.4345 hectares from Ifugao; 351 ARBs with 299.0722 hectares from Benguet; 120 ARBs with 134.7007 hectares from Apayao; and 39 ARBs with 40.7926 hectares from Abra.Ayson added that two support projects were also turned-over to ARB organizations and cooperatives on Wednesday.
These projects include the Community-Managed Potable Water Sanitation and Hygiene (CPWASH) worth P240,000 and the Village-Level Processing Center Enhancement Project (VLPCEP) worth P900,000.
The CPWASH will cover three ARB communities consisting of 38 households who are members of three ARB organizations and cooperatives in Benguet.
Part of the CPWASH project is six units of water tanks that will provide safe drinking water to the ARBs in the area.
The VLPCEP project, on the other hand, will benefit two ARB communities and two ARB organizations in the areas of Atok, Sablan and Tuba in Benguet
Among the recipients of VLPCEP projects are the Arabica Coffee Growers Marketing and the Agrarian Reform Community Multi-Purpose Cooperatives in the area.
DAR will deliver more projects to the ARBs in Cordillera, particularly the distribution of coffee seedlings and other machinery to develop further their lands.
Cordillera Administrative Region Governor Cresencio Pacalso and Baguio City Mayor Mauricio Domogan also joined the top DAR officials during the distribution of CLOAs.
Pacalso expressed gratitude to DAR’s support to the farmers in the region, saying that the lands distributed and projects turned over are of great help in the countryside development.
For his part, Mayor Domogan who also served as the Regional Development Council Chair of Cordillera thanked the administration of President Duterte for giving priority to address the pressing problems of the farmers in the country, particularly on poverty and landlessness.
Domogan also congratulated the farmer beneficiaries and hoped that they would make their lands more productive.
Photo 1: DAR OIC Secretary Rosalina L. Bistoyong (2nd from left) together with Cordillera Administrative Governor Cresencio Pacalso (3rd from left) and DAR Cordillera Region Director Marjorie P. Ayson (left) led the distribution of certificates of land ownership award (CLOAs) to 1,652 agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) during the distribution ceremony held onNovember 8, 2017 at the Gestdan Centrum in Baguio City.
Photo 2: DAR OIC Secretary Rosalina L. Bistoyong posed with the oldest agrarian reform beneficiary (ARB) Molina Comila, 72 years old from Kapangan, Benguet. Comila is among the 1,652 ARBs who received their certificates of land ownership award (CLOAs) in a distribution ceremony held on November 8, 2017 at the Gestdan Centrum in Baguio City.
Photo 3: DAR OIC Secretary Rosalina L. Bistoyong and Cordillera Administrative Governor Cresencio Pacalso posed with part of the 1,652 agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) who received their certificates of land ownership award (CLOAs) during the distribution ceremony held on November 8, 2017 at the Gestdan Centrum in Baguio City. (DAR)
