The Department of Agriculture in the Caraga Region (DA-13) has allocated over PHP72 million worth of farm machinery and equipment to rice and corn farmers’ organizations and cooperatives across four provinces in the region.
Of the total allocation, approximately PHP53.5 million had been released to beneficiaries during the signing of a memorandum of agreement (MOA) on Tuesday afternoon.
“The distribution of farm machinery is under the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund and the Corn program of the agency,” DA-13 Director Arlan Mangelen said in an interview on Wednesday.
The remaining farm machinery is scheduled for distribution in the coming weeks, pending the signing of MOAs between the DA-13 and the recipient groups.
On Tuesday, four associations from Agusan del Norte received farm machinery valued at PHP8.2 million; eight associations from Agusan del Sur received PHP21.5 million worth of machinery; six groups from Surigao del Sur received PHP14.2 million in farm equipment; and six from Surigao del Norte received PHP9.5 million in machinery.
The distributed machinery and equipment included 10 four-wheel drive tractors, seven corn combine harvesters, two rice combine harvesters, three multi-commodity threshers, four bubble dryers, three greenhouses with hydroponics, seven power sprayers, and two hauling trucks.
Each group from the corn sector also received a soybean sorter, corn recirculating dryer, corn husker-sheller, corn mill, cassava chipper, seed sorter, multi-crop drying pavement, solar poly tunnel dryer, pneumatic four-row planter, and shredder. (PNA)
