DA project make farmers use four-wheels from Karosa

KORONADAL
CITY - For so long, farmers in a community in Barangay Poblacion, Norala, South
Cotabato delivered their sacks of rice into the market through their karosa.

Karosa is a local term of a farm
cart used by Filipino farmers, usually pulled by a carabao, in transporting
rice produce and other commodities from their farms to the market.

It was our only mean in bringing our produce
from this area up to the pick-up point, Cesar Suoberon, tilling a 2-hectare
rice field in the area for more than 30 years, explained.

He
added, Only our carabao and the Karosa
can pass the area because of the road’s ugly condition.

Suoberon
furthered that haulers would tend to backtrack from picking their produce in
the area because the road was almost impassable, muddy and even always denied
them of fresh products reaching the heart of Norala.

But
now, we are happy that come our harvest time, we will no longer use Karosa, instead, truckers will directly
come to our areas and pick our produce because of this road project, the exultant
farmer stated.

Suoberon
confirmed that multiple-wheeled vehicles are now freely passing their
production areas.

Big
trucks are now always bypassing this road making it easier for us to deliver
our produce, he added.

The
Department of Agriculture’s Philippine Rural Development Project (DA-PRDP) in
partnership with the Local Government Unit of Norala just recently completed
the 1.7-kilometer road concreting project in Barangay Poblacion named
Rehabilitation of Purok Taurus-Central Balabago Farm-to-Market Road (FMR).

The
P18.9-M worth of infra project, which benefits 500 farmers including Mr.
Suoberon, covers a service area of 900 hectares.

This project is under
the infrastructure development component of DA-PRDP which aims to build strategic network of rural logistics
infrastructure within priority value
chains in targeted program areas.

Last
year, Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol praised the project for its culture
of no corruption.

With
PRDP’s culture of no corruption, we are contributing to changing the culture of
the Philippine political leaders, the agri chief said.

The
PRDP is a six-year program implemented by the DA with the World Bank for the
creation of an inclusive, value-oriented and climate-resilient agriculture and
fisheries sector.

No hauling fee

Aside
from the aforesaid benefits, Mr. Alex Parreño of Barangay Poblacion noted that
the road project will now ensure them of free hauling fee since truckers will
certainly penetrate their area because of better road condition.

He
stated that rice truckers before often complained of the murky way that
sometimes led the farmers’ transported products to tumble and these haulers
would chose to just wait in a designated pick-up point rather than going
straight to the area.

This
subsequently steered for Mr. Parreño and his fellow farmers to pay additional
hauling fee.

We
paid the hauling for fifteen pesos per sack before, but now it will be
different because we will surely pay nothing, the 67-year old farmer said.

This
son of a pioneer settler in Norala is more than hopeful that on his first
harvest after the completion of the DA-PRDP infra project, he will no longer
pay hauling fee.

Parreño
cultivates an eight-hectare farmland of rice, vegetables and a fish pen. He is
sure that aside from the benefits for the rice farmers, the rehabilitated and
concreted FMR also advances him and other diversified farmer in the area.

Easy access to social
services

Both
Parreño and Suoberon are agreeable that with the advent of a concrete road,
constituents in the area are now reaping wider array of benefits.

We
are now less worried of medical emergencies, Suoberon said.

The
farmer further noted that the DA-PRDP road project enabled them to bring
speedily their ill family members to the hospital or clinic.

Parreño
also added that authorities could now easily respond to untoward incidents in
their area.

Before,
police personnel were sometimes hesitant to respond… the road condition
prevented them to instantly report to the crime scene, he said.