To strengthen Paquibato District’s production of high-quality fibers, the city government’s Peace 911 program and the City Agriculturist Office (CAgrO), distributed abaca plantlets to farmers.

Jonah Presto, Peace 911 focal person, said Friday that the initiative aims to enhance the district’s production of high-quality fibers and eliminate the Daratex variant, also called fake abaca, in the area.

“Many of our indigenous people (IP) in Paquibato rely on abaca farming to sustain their family. Other than this, the production of abaca fibers is part of the traditions of our IP farmers,” Presto said in a statement.

From Nov. 24 to 30, she said 71 farmers affected by the suspension of the abaca trade received 7,000 abaca plantlets under CAgrO’s Productivity Enhancement for Abaca Commodity Enterprise (Peace) program.

A total of 2,000 abaca plantlets were turned over to 15 farmers while 5,000 plantlets were distributed to 56 farmers in Sitio Mangani, both in Barangay Tapak Proper.

Abaca farmers in Paquibato, most of whom are IPs, suffered significant financial losses when buyers suspended sourcing abaca from the district due to poor quality since late 2022.

The poor yield was traced to the substandard Daratex abaca variant’s prevalent in Paquibato and Talaingod in Davao del Norte.

To bolster support for farmers, Peace 911 and CAgrO established two onsite abaca nurseries in Barangay Tapak.

“These nurseries will help the affected abaca farmers obtain true and native abaca plantlets or seedlings which they can use to produce high-quality abaca fibers,” Presto said.

Presto said securing Paquibato’s growing economy while preserving the age-old tradition of abaca farming honor the city’s natives and their heritage. (PNA)