THE New Zealand Embassy, with Department of Agriculture (DA) Undersecretary for Special Concerns Atty. Ranibai Dilangalen, Midsayap Mayor Romeo Arana, DA Region XII Office Executive Director Milagros Casis and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Emergency Programme Officer Michael Pizzari, led the ceremonial distribution of agricultural inputs in Midsayap, North Cotabato.
The ceremony was an opportunity for the Embassy to see the benefits of its three-year, $3-million (P150-million) project with the FAO. It provided support for the rehabilitation and restoration of agriculture and fisheries-based livelihoods of farmers affected by armed conflict, internally displaced people and decommissioned combatants.
New Zealand’s Deputy Ambassador Matt de Wit said, “[We are] committed to contribute to the attainment of sustainable peace and development in North Cotabato. The project funds the distribution of certified rice, corn and vegetable seeds, fertilizers, farm equipment and livestock. Our project will help 10,475 farming and fishing households across 15 barangays in the municipalities of Aleosan, Pikit, Midsayap, Kabacan and Pigkawayan.”
As part of their visit to the region, the Embassy also visited climate-smart farmer field schools in Kabacan and Aleosan. In these areas, programme participants experimented with organic fertilizers and seed types to improve yields of fruit and vegetables.
The FAO and municipal agriculture officials also educated beneficiaries through livelihood skills training and planning for disaster risk reduction.
De Wit commented, “New Zealand’s projects are entirely consistent with the Philippine government’s priority to empower communities by increasing their capacity to address conflicts and reduce vulnerabilities, identified in the six-point peace and development agenda.”
The New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade and FAO signed a grant-funding arrangement, “Restoring Agricultural Livelihoods in Conflict-Affected Communities in North Cotabato”, in 2015.
Their projects in North Cotabato follow a successful collaboration in 21 provinces, including Maguindanao, in the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao, between 2011 and 2014.