30 beneficiaries graduate from DAR’s farm business school in Surigao Norte
By Susil D. Ragas
SURIGAO CITY, Surigao del Norte (PIA) — Thirty beneficiaries from the Cantapoy Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Cooperative (CANARBECO) have graduated as farmer-entrepreneurs from the Department of Agrarian Reform’s (DAR) farm business school (FBS) in Malimono, Surigao del Norte.
DAR’s FBS equipped the agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) and local farmers with entrepreneurial skills that will help increase their productivity and income. The graduation was held on Sept. 25.
The FBS program is one of DAR’s partnership development initiatives designed to help farmers learn how to turn farming into a profitable business through increased harvest, raised income, and a more secure future for their families.
This initiative also focuses on enterprise operations and market responsiveness, allowing farmers to work in small groups at their own pace and become true ‘negosyanteng magsasaka’ or entrepreneurial farmers.
The FBS program is a 17-session course that goes beyond traditional farming by teaching participants to manage their farms as enterprises. Using a hands-on, learning-by-doing approach, ARBs will acquire practical knowledge in farm planning, financial and cost analysis, marketing strategies, and record-keeping.
Provincial Agrarian Reform Program Officer II, Ellen J. Torralba, expressed gratitude for the partnerships with various agencies that helped teach and guide the farmers.
She also highlighted the farmers’ perseverance in completing 17 sessions. “We are grateful to our partner agencies for their dedication in educating our farmers. And we are also thankful for the perseverance of our agrarian farmers who successfully completed their schooling in the Farm Business School.”
For her part, Lourdes, a member of CANARBECO, thanked DAR and all partners for the skills she gained to help boost her harvest that will also raise their income by managing costs and securing a better market that will help them build a more secure and sustainable future for their families and communities.
Meanwhile, Malimono Mayor Arnel S. Amalia reaffirmed his full support for the program. “The municipality of Malimono stands firm in supporting initiatives that empower our farmers, developing their farming strategies and marketing skills to stay ahead with advanced technologies.” (SDR, PIA Surigao del Norte with a report from DAR Surigao del Norte)
