DA gives 20 cows worth P.5-M to Bontoc farmers

By Alpine L. Killa

BONTOC, Mountain Province – Twenty cows costing P557, 900 were recently received by Channeg Farmer’s Association here in Barangay Dalican from Special Area for Agricultural Development (SAAD) program of the Dept. of Agriculture (DA).

According to municipal agriculturist Renato Falag-ey, the cattle production project was proposed by the Channeg Farmer’s Association and coursed through the End Local Communist Armed Conflict (ELCAC) initiatives of the government.

               Considering Channeg Farmer’s Association has 70 members, Falag-ey said it shall adopt a dispersal scheme wherein the first 20 members or farmer-beneficiaries receive one cow each.

Recipients shall take care of the animals until they offspring. In turn, the offspring would be given to other members of the association.

Bontoc Mayor Franklin Odsey thanked the national government through the DA- Cordillera Administrative Region under the leadership of Regional Executive Director Dr. Cameron P. Odsey for its program to eradicate extreme poverty by providing income-generating opportunities to disadvantaged families.

The mayor encouraged SAAD farmer-beneficiaries to value the grant given to them. He called on the farmers to take good care of the cattle so that they will reproduce for the next-in-line beneficiaries.

Odsey added the livelihood project received by the farmer-beneficiaries was anchored on his administration’s vision “Bontoc on the rise” which has five major programs to include prosperity through economic empowerment at the grassroots.

               Recognizing that the primary source of living in Bontoc is agriculture, Odsey during the start of his 3rd term in 2019 laid out the plans of the municipal government for the next three years. In his speech, he committed that the local government will work harder in coordination with national line agencies to provide better access to livelihood programs for the people, like this Cattle Production Project of Dalican.

To ensure the sustainability of the project, Falag-ey mentioned that the Bontoc topwn government through the Office of the Municipal Agriculturist in coordination with the Provincial Veterinary Office shall conduct monitoring and coaching on care and management of cattle.

The intervention of the Bontoc government through the OMAg in the realization of the project includes technical assistance in the preparation and submission of project proposals to DA, facilitate meetings and orientation of the farmer association, facilitate the identification of first 20 farmer-beneficiaries, and facilitate the dispersal of the cows to intended recipients.

Falag-ey recognized assistance of the provincial government of Mountain Province through the Provincial Veterinary Office for its assistance in this project.

Meanwhile, the counterpart of the Channeg Farmer’s Association includes identification of pasture lands or communal land where the cows are to be placed, fencing of the area and forage for animals.