Sta. Maria, ISABELA- Forty beneficiaries of Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program in this municipality are being trained under the Farmer-Scientist Training Program (FSTP) in Corn Based Production System for Sustainable Agricultural Development.
The training aims on increasing the knowledge of the participants in corn production through the introduction of technology packages, discussions which include lectures on Land Preparation and Soil Sampling, and hands-on exercises. The training which is a six month period started last April and will be finished on September.
“We chose the beneficiaries of Pantawid Pamilya for this training as a fulfillment to the Convergence strategy. Since majority of the beneficiaries are also corn farmers, we believe that this activity is vital in strengthening not just their knowledge, but especially their skills in corn production which can result to better harvest and higher profit,” said Ms. Josephine Bautista, the OIC-Municipal Agriculturist.
The training is being done every Wednesday for three hours. The FSTP is a program of the Agricultural Training Institute-Regional Training Center 02 in partnership with the Department of Agriculture Regional Office II, University of the Philippines Los Baños, Local Government Unit of Sta. Maria and Isabela State University-Cabagan.
Consequently, the Department of Social Welfare and Development Field Office II appreciates the undertaking as it contributes to the attainment of one of the Strategic Goals of the agency, which is to raise the level of well-being of Pantawid Pamilya beneficiaries.
Ms. Maricel Grace L. Gomez, the Regional Program Coordinator of Pantawid says that the FSTP is a big help in improving the socio-economic status of the beneficiaries who were chosen for the training.
“We really hope that these beneficiaries will apply their learning from this six-month training so that they can have a more profitable corn production. And if they will have a better income, they will be capable of supporting their families thus, they will achieve an improve level of well-being, from survival to subsistence, and eventually, to self-sufficiency,” said Ms. Gomez.
The municipality of Sta. Maria has a total of 1, 266 beneficiaries for Pantawid Pamilya.
Pantawid Pamilya is a human development program of the national government being implemented by DSWD. It invests in the health and education of poor Filipino children aged 0-18 years old. In exchange of cash grants, beneficiaries should comply with the health and education conditions set forth by the program. For region 02, there are a total of 96,112 household beneficiaries. ###By MARICEL B. ASEJO, Information Officer II-Pantawid Pamilya