Davao City earned another feather on its cap after the Department of Agriculture (DA) cited the city government’s programs supporting the farmers and fisherfolk.
DA conferred Davao City this year’s National Gawad Saka Award for its contribution to the development of agriculture and the fishery sector. The city also received P50,000 as cash incentive.
City Agriculturist Officer (CAO) Leo Brian Leuterio said the city government has extended efforts to help the farmers improve their yield and practices through various training and financial assistance.
He said the city also created strategies to further help the local farmers lead better lives.
“This Gawad Saka Award is the biggest agricultural award. This is such a big thing for us since it shows that our farmers are really innovating,” he said.
Gawad Saka is the highest form of recognition given by DA annually to deserving farmers and fisherfolk in the country who have excelled in the various sectors of agriculture.
Around 4000 farmers have so far benefited from the programs that the city offers for the development of various crops such as cacao, corn, and tilapia and bangus fingerlings for the fisherfolk sector.
It has been almost a decade since the city last won the most prestigious award that the DA gives out to farmers and local government units.
Leuterio said helping the city government in improving the lot of farmers is the Urbanized City Agricultural and Fisheries Council (UCAFC).
“The organization helps us bridge the programs to the farmers, especially in the most important things that the farmers need. They are made up of all the industries. The closer we are with them, the more we can extend our interventions to the farmers,” he said.
The city’s agriculturist office is servicing 182 barangays in eight political districts.
It offers Farm Development Services, Urban Agriculture, Agri-Engineering Services, National Organic Agriculture, Local Organic Agriculture, Seedbank and Research Services, Fishery Resources Management Services, Institutional Development Services, and other support services such as Trainings, Techno Demo, Soil Analysis, Crop Production Monitoring, and Seeds and Seedling Distribution (HVCDP). CIO
