AgSur town takes vegetable production in center island
By Vanessa P Sanchez
Taking inspiration from the Department of Agriculture’s (DA’s) Plant
Plant Plant Program, the municipality of Prosperidad in Agusan del Sur has
taken on a municipal-wide vegetable gardening as part of its Food Security Plan
in response to the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) health crisis.
According to Municipal Agriculturist Marlita P. Cortez, all the
municipal offices are involved and were grouped into nine clusters with each
cluster taking charge of 77 meters of the center island.
“Rather than planting flowers for beautification, we chose to plant vegetables
instead. This way, we do not only get to harvest vegetables but we can also
show the public that vegetable gardening can be done easily so that they will
also be encouraged to have their own food production initiative at home,”
Cortez said.
Further, she said that this initiative is approved by their Municipal
Mayor Frederick Mark P. Mellana and that they plan to sustain this project.
Vegetable seeds and organic fertilizers were procured and distributed to
the nine clusters and by June they started planting. The vegetables planted
were eggplant, kangkong and pechay. The clusters have already been harvesting
vegetables which the members divided among themselves for their own
consumption. Some of the vegetables were also shared with the needy especially
those who do not really have an available area to plant on.
Following this was the implementation of Food Always in the Home (FAITH)
program through which vegetable seeds were distributed to households for them
to plant in their backyards while 17 barangays of the town were also chosen for
the establishment of their own communal gardens.
In addition, the Municipal Agriculture Office also distributed five
heads of chicken to 45 beneficiaries per barangay. Two kilos of feeds were also
given to the recipients together with the chickens.
Another project of Prosperidad under its Food Security Plan is the
distribution of tilapia fingerlings. This is in coordination with the Bureau of
Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) to those who have fishponds. The number
of fingerlings given depends on the size of the area of the recipient.
On the other hand, as a way of assisting the farmers in selling their
produce, the local government unit (LGU) of Prosperidad allocated a budget of
P5 million to buy the products of the farmers. To date, 571 bags of milled rice
have been bought from rice farmers. These were then sold by the Employees’
Union to interested buyers, mostly the employees of the LGU.
Cortez said that Prosperidad’s Food Security Plan has a budget
allocation of P10 million to be utilized for its various initiatives that aim
to cushion the impact of the pandemic on the people. (DA13-RAFIS/PIA-Agusan del
Sur)
Bislig massage
therapists provide free wellness service to SCs, PWDs
BISLIG CITY, Surigao del Sur, Sept. 8 (PIA) -- The Bislig Massage Therapists Association (BISMASTA) has provided free massage service to senior citizens (SCs) and persons with disabilities (PWDs) to the nearby barangays within this city.
The group has been doing the activity for nine years now, benefitting
two vulnerable sectors of the society.
Due to the declaration of the pandemic brought by the coronavirus
disease 2019 (COVID-19), the provision of services was suspended for a month.
But after its resumption recently, the group implemented the skeleton workforce
following the guidelines issued by the local government unit and the local
Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF).
The association has also initiated free distribution of surgical masks
benefiting around 150 senior citizens and PWDs.
At present, the group is raising some 500 washable face masks which will
be distributed to the same indigent clienteles for free.
Meantime, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) was able to
assist the BISMASTA in 2013 through its DOLE Integrated Livelihood Program
(DILP). They availed the amount of P161,000.00 as their 'Kabuhayan Formation.'
In 2015, the DOLE revealed that BISMASTA availed the Kabuhayan
Enhancement amounting to P267,750.00 from the said agency.
The BISMASTA was formed in 2011 with 28 members only, and in 2019, they
reached to 82 members.
They have already provided employment opportunities to the
therapist-members of the group with 60%-40% sharing of income. The 60% goes to
the therapist while 40% goes to the clinic, it was learned.
Meanwhile, the city government of Bislig has proposed to delineate an area of 255 square meters with an estimated value of P1,275,000.00 for the construction of the association's building clinic located at the market site. (DOLE-Surigao del Sur/PIA-Surigao del Sur)
