P3-B aggie project set for 37 Cordillera towns

By Dexter A. See

LA TRINIDAD, Benguet – The national government recently identified 37 towns in the six Cordillera provinces as beneficiaries of the over P3-billion Cordillera Highland Agriculture Resource Management (CHARM) project which is now on its second phase.

The aim of the seven-year project is to significantly reduce poverty and improve the quality of life of indigenous cultural communities.

It is a major program of the Regional Development Council in the Cordillera Administrative Region, which is the region’s policy-making body that crafts the appropriate strategies to bring the region to the right direction in terms of development in the future.

The RDC-CAR worked out the sourcing of the funds for the project from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), Asian Development Bank (ADB), Organization of Petroleum and Exporting Countries (OPEC) and Fund for International Development to the tune of more or less $66.4 million which will be released in a staggered basis.

The towns which will benefit from the multi-billion project include Boliney, Bucloc, Baay-Licuan, Luba, Malibcong, Sallapadan and Tuba in Abra; Calanasan, Conner and Kabugao in Apayao; Atok, Bakun, Bokod, Buguias, Kabayan, Kapangan and Sablan in Benguet; Asipulo, Hingyon, Hungduan and Mayoyao in Ifugao; Balbalan, Lubuagan, Pasil, Tanudan and tinglayan in Kalinga and Barlig, Bauko, Besao, Bontoc, Sabangan, Sadanga and Sagada in Mountain province.

In order to facilitate the speedy implementation of the various projects funded during the duration of the foreign-assisted program, congressmen and governors requested President Benigno Simeon C. Aquino III to lower the counterpart for the projects that will be given to the towns in recognition of their failure to come out with the required counterpart considering their low internal revenue allotment (IRA).

Based on a status report submitted to the RDC-CAR, the project’s rural infrastructure component will be in full swing during the third quarter of this year but the project implementers have only received eight proposals considering that local governments are now having second thoughts on the excessive counterpart being required from them.

Proponents recognized the need for projects such as farm to market roads, irrigation systems, domestic water supply among others is a priority which constrain local governments to resort to loans with skyrocketing interests from banks for them to provide the needed counterpart just for the projects to be realized.