1,582 Zambo farmers, nag-aantabay ng land ownership awards

TINATAYANG may 1,582 Zamboanga Peninsula farmers ang nakatakdang maging landowners.

Nakatakda kasing pagkalooban ng  Department of Agrarian Reform ng ‘certificates of land ownership awards (CLOAs) ang mga nasabing magsasaka.

Sa isang kalatas, pangungunahan ni  DAR Secretary Conrado Estrella III  ang pamamahagai ng CLOAs, sakop nito ang kabuuang  2,653 ektarya ng agricultural lands sa nasabing lalawigan.

“For distribution are 819 CLOAs in the provinces of Zamboanga Sibugay covering 1,373 hectares of land to 764 ARBs; Zamboanga del Sur, with 441 CLOAs covering 628 hectares to 441 ARBs; and Zamboanga del Norte with 403 CLOAs, covering an area of 652 hectares benefitting 377 ARBs,” ayon kay Estrella.

Maliban sa CLOAs, itu-turn over ni Estrella ang mahigit sa  P8.6 milyong halaga ng support services sa  mga  agrarian reform beneficiaries, kasama na rito ang ‘farm equipment, machinery, at facilities.’

“This includes two units of processing centers, two units of water tank collectors, a vermiculture production center, three units of three-wheel multipurpose motorcycles with canopies, a hauling truck, and a unit of corn sheller, with a total cost of PHP3.34 million for Zamboanga del Sur agrarian reform beneficiary organizations (ARBOs),” ayon sa DBM.

May kabuuang P2.75 milyong halaga ng  support services ang ipamamahagi sa  Zamboanga Sibugay, kung saan kabilang rito ang  dalawang multi-purpose buildings, limang power tillers na may  kompletong  ‘implements at tillers’ , isang rice thresher,  isang  mud boat na may kasamang kompletong tools, at water tank collector.

“The ARBOs from Zamboanga del Norte would be provided with a hauling truck, warehouse, forage shredder, vermi shade, five heads of cattle, four egg machines, and a rainwater collector, with a total cost of P2.60 million,” ayon sa ulat.

Winika pa ni Estrella na ang mga nasabing  support services ay ipinatutupad sa ilallim ng  Climate Resilience Farm Productivity Support Program, Village Level Farm-Focused Enterprise Development Project, and the Convergence on Value Chain Enhancement for Rural Growth and Empowerment (Project Converge) ng DAR na makatutulong sa mga magsasaka na maging mas produktibo.

“This move is In line with the directive of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. to improve the agricultural sector in the countryside, and boost the lives of the farmers in this region,” aniya pa rin.  (Daris Jose)