Training Workshop on Rug Making under GAD

Gender and Development (GAD) makes a difference in welcoming the New Year. Making the year fruitful not by displaying the twelve round fruits on the table but teaching the women in the countryside how to earn through recycling excess or old cloths into rugs which they can sell afterwards.

This photo shows Lucy S. Vitug and Leila Halcon of DAR Sorsogon coaching the ladies in San Francisco and Somagongsong, Bulan, Sorsogon how to make colorful rugs and potholders. Sixty Three (63) participated in this training workshop. They are members of Bigkis can mga Paraoma sa Bulan from San Francisco Special ARC. The activity will be replicated in other Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries’ Organizations in the province after they have requested.

PHP program blends with Organic Agriculture in Castilla

Just recently, DAR Sorsogon headed by Felix E. Fruto, OIC PARPO II conducted three (3) series of Organic Vegetable Production Training cum hands-on application of organic technology through setting-up of farms in eight (8) barangays of Castilla, Sorsogon. These are San Isidro; San Rafael; Pili, Poblacion; Miluya; Mayon; San Vicente; Maracabac; and Monte Carmelo which were attended by sixty (60) Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries. One of the objectives of this training is to establish a 200-square meters farm for the fifty one (51) participants and a 1000 square meters farm for the nine (9) participants.

The ARBO involved in PHP is the Mayon Farmers Association (MAFA) in Mayon, Castilla. On the other hands, other farmers who embraced Organic Vegetable Production were urged to join the organization. “They were taught how to apply different organic concoctions on land preparation; seed sowing; transplanting, coop management; and other technologies to prepare them as a future food supplier of Day Care Centers,” said Anna Mae Ebuenga, member of the PHP Team in Sorsogon.

These trainings were accompanied with the provision of good seeds such as squash, papaya, water melon, pechay, tomato, eggplant, upo, okra, ampalaya, and beans. “So far, there are already ten (10) ARB-Cooperators who have received these seedlings while we are still distributing the others to the rest depending on the preparedness of their planting area. We are also providing Vermicast, an organic fertilizer produced by composting earthworm known as African night crawler or ANC,” said Thomas Diesta, Organic Agriculture Provincial Point Person of DAR Sorsogon. He has also accessed organic seeds from the Bureau of Plant Industry in Los Baños, Laguna which he distributed to the farmers in Castilla.

According to Liza B. Repotente, CARPO-PBD of DAR Sorsogon more trainings and support materials are coming in Castilla since this is one of the pilot area of PHP program in the Bicol region. Later, these ARB-Cooperators will not just engage in vegetable production alone but in livestock as well. With the organic agriculture coming from local farmers, there is an assurance that the children-recipients of PHP program will get the proper nutrition they need. For the meantime that these ARB-Cooperators for organic agriculture is on their first stage of vegetable production, one of them, in the person of Allan Marchan had already established an organic vegetable production area prior to PHP program is already supplying organic vegetables to the Day Care Center in their area.

Sorsogon PARAD 2014 Assessment and Party

Jose Tarug, Clerk of the Board presenting their 2014 Accomplishment and 2015 Targets to Atty. Generoso P. Villareal, the Provincial Adjudicator in Sorsogon; Gay L. Labad, OIC Provincial Agrarian Reform Program Officer I; Atty. Gilmar S. Nasayao, Chief Legal Division of DAR Sorsogon; Ignacio B. Espinosa, CAO-STOD; and to the staff of PARAD and Legal Division – Sorsogon.

SAFADECO successfully completed the four (4) mandated trainings of CDA

Salvacion Farmers’ Development Cooperative (SAFADECO) has successfully finished four (4) training courses which are Cooperative Management and Governance; Financial Management; Leadership and Values Re-orientation; and Parliamentary Procedures. All of these trainings are mandated by Cooperative Development Authority (CDA).

The once “baby” of DAR, now going matured. SAFADECO is turning fourteen with growing businesses. At first they have the copra trading and consumer’s store, later they have Savings and Credit Services in partnership with the National Confederation of Cooperatives (NATCCO) which gives birth to programs such as Regular loan, Micro-loan, and Commodity loan for Credit Services; Savings, and Time Deposit for Savings Services but they are also starting Kiddie Savings for the children of regular members.

Three (3) series of APCP – CAP-DEVT related trainings, successfully completed in Gubat, Sorsogon

Gubat, Sorsogon – before the year ends, DAR Sorsogon headed by Felix E. Fruto, OIC PARPO II, has successfully completed the three (3) series of trainings related to Agrarian Production Credit Program – Capacity Development (CAP-DEVT).

These trainings were conducted in partnership with South-Luzon Federation of Cooperatives (SIDECO) and benefited seven (7) Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries’ Organizations (ARBOs) which are: Bigkis can mga Paraoma sa Bulan (BPB), Bigkis Cooperative in Irosin, Bagacay-Contod Irrigators’ Association (BACIA) in Gubat, Ariman-Tabi-Buenavista Irrigators’ Association (ATABIA) in Gubat, Mayon Farmers’ Association (MAFA) in Castilla, Bangate Multipurpose Cooperative (BAMUCO) in Barcelona, Capuy-Basud Multipurpose Cooperative (CABAMUCO) in Sorsogon City, and other ARBOs which are being considered for ARCP coverage. The trainings include Credit Management where the participants learned the process of controlling and collecting payments from customers while maintaining a long-term mutually-beneficial relationship between the creditor and the debtor for the sake of good business; the second course is the Basic Accounting for Non-Accountants, the most requested training of ARBOs, in this course the participants learned the accounting equation, the books of accounts, the organizational structure of the cooperatives, the principles of accounting, and the accounting cycle perspective; and the third course is the Financial Management where the participants learned how to handle their money, the elements of financial statements, and the tools and techniques of financial analysis. All these knowledge are necessary so that when ARBO avail the financial assistance through APCP they are prepared how to use the finances wisely.

“We are so thankful that DAR provided us these trainings which are very helpful to us. We have not just gained knowledge but we also had saved fund supposed to be intended for our officers’ trainings,” says Leoncio M. Gocoyo, Jr., Chairman of Bigkis can mga Paraoma sa Bulan.

APCP is a tie-up program of DAR with the Land Bank of the Philippines which aims to provide accessible credit service and capability development to ARBOs. So far, Bigkis san Paraoma sa Bulan and ATABIA have already availed of APCP credit service.

13 ARBOs in Sorsogon successfully completed the four mandatory trainings of CDA

Finally, with the intervention of DAR, 13 Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries’ Organization (ARBOs) in the province of Sorsogon completed the four mandatory trainings of the Cooperative Development Authority (CDA). These ARBOs are Capuy-Basud Multipurpose Cooperative (CABAMUCO); Salvacion Farmer’s Development Cooperative (SAFADECO) both from West District of Sorsogon City; Maharlika Development Cooperative (MADECO) from Bacon District; Castilla Development Cooperative (CADECO) from Castilla; Gabao Samahang Nayon Multipurpose Development Cooperative (GASANAMUDECO); Carriedo Farmers’ Development Cooperative (CARFADECO); Sorsogon Coco Coir Producers’ Cooperative (SCCPC) from Irosin; Sta. Cruz Development Cooperative (SCDECO) from Casiguran; Antipolo, Namu, Nasuje, Inararan, and Calomagon ARB Multipurpose Cooperative (ANNIC); Bulan Farmers and Fishermen Development Cooperative (BUFAFIDECO) both from Bulan; Bangate Multipurpose Cooperative (BAMUCO) from Barcelona; Bagacay Contod Irrigators’ Association (BACIA); and Ariman, Tabi, Buenavista Irrigators’ Association (ATABIA) both from Gubat.

Last September, they were able to finish the Training on Financial Management, and the Training on Cooperative Management and Governance. This October, they finished another two trainings which are Training on Leadership and Values Re-Orientation; and Training on Parliamentary Procedures. The participants are so thankful for giving them the privilege to avail these trainings without taking any registration fee from their cooperative’s funds.

The participants of the Leadership & Values re-Orientation Training

On October 2-3, 2014. Inset: Resource Speaker, Jenell P. Paghubasan,

Chairman of SIDECO (South-Luzon Federation of Cooperatives)

The participants of the Parliamentary Procedures Training

On October 15-16, 2014 with the resource speaker: Ms. Evelyn B. Peña