Some 300 rice farmers, including former members of the lawless Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF), are set to benefit from a government warehouse project in the so-called “SMPS box” in Maguindanao.

The SPMS box is a military term for the adjoining towns of Shariff Aguak, Pagatin (Datu Saudi Ampatuan town), Mamasapano, and Shariff Saydona Mustapha, where the BIFF operates.

“This is to further usher in development and help the farmers store their palay harvests in the area,” Minister Mohammad Yacob of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Agrarian Reform–Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (MAFAR-BARMM) said Monday.

Yacob said the PHP5-million warehouse project, equipped with a vast pavement solar drier, will be set up at Barangay Bialong in Shariff Aguak town.

Yacob and other MAFAR-BARMM officials broke ground on the site of the warehouse project on Aug. 5 upon the request of the Salindao Farmers Marketing Cooperative in the area that has over 100 rice farmer-members.

“Farmers from Barangay Bialong of Shariff Aguak, the municipality and nearby villages from other nearby towns may use the facility for safe storing and efficient drying of their produced agro-products,” he said. “Their area is vast, which is why the ministry chose them as the beneficiary of the project. They are also centered inside the SPMS box where the paddy field is extensive.”

Yacob said the project is expected to be fully completed by February next year due to existing health protocols brought about by the pandemic.

“The farmers really need this project as it stores at least 1,000 bags of their harvested palay products. Despite their vast area, they do not have such a large warehouse,” he added.

Yacob said the MAFAR Engineering Division would be closely monitoring the construction of the facility. (PNA)