An antipoverty program launched by the government is assisting local coffee farmers in Cebu expand their output and market their produce, according to the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda).
The Neda said the program, dubbed as Accelerated and Sustainable Anti-Poverty Program (ASAPP), is helping coffee growers in Tuburan, Cebu.
“What is good about the ASAPP is that it is inclusive—the community, the LGUs [local government units], the line agencies and the private sector all work in a coordinated fashion toward a common goal and common interest of raising incomes. ASAPP is mutually beneficial to all stakeholders in the area,” Neda Deputy Director General for Policy and Planning Rosemarie G. Edillon said.
The Neda convened the ASAPP Action Team in Cebu. This is comprised of members of the Human Development and Poverty Reduction Cluster, and select members of the Economic Development Cluster.
The ASAPP Cebu team conducted coffee-site visits and an assessment of the 2,000 hectares currently planted to coffee in Tuburan.
Based on these, the team developed various technical assistance projects to enable the town’s local coffee growers sector to increase production and sell to wider markets.
These include technical assistance on coffee production, coffee-handling practices and postharvest facilities as first steps.
The team also found the need to provide coffee seedlings and funds for fertilizers, as well as for postharvest facilities and facilities for coffee-bean grinding/processing.
The ASAPP Cebu team also recommended coffee farmers to consider being part of commercial value chains.
“One of the poverty-reduction strategies of the ASAPP is to assist marginalized groups in self-employment. This includes apprising them of industry demand and assisting them in responding to this demand through capacity-building, production and value-adding support, and linking them to markets and institutional buyers,” Edillon said.
The ASAPP also ushered in the collaboration between the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), together with LGUs, to provide retail trade-management training and seed capital to 105 individuals in the towns of Dalaguete, Tuburan and Santa Fe, Cebu.
Also under the ASAPP, the DTI conducted entrepreneur-driven intensive trainings for the Hapao basket weavers in Tuburan.
Raw materials used during the training were supplied by a private partner that also purchased the finished products of the participants.
The ASAPP was implemented in 10 pilot provinces, which are considered the poorest provinces in the country. These are Iloilo, Pangasinan, Quezon, Camarines Sur, Negros Occidental, Cebu, Leyte, Zamboanga del Sur, Davao del Sur and Sulu.
The ASAPP-Cebu Action Team is composed of members of the Tuburan LGU and its coffee people’s organizations. From the private sector, Bo’s Coffee and the Philippine Retailers Association were involved in the Tuburan coffee ASAPP project.
From the government, representatives were from the Neda, DTI, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Department of Agriculture, DSWD, Local Governments, the Cebu provincial government and other government agencies.