Sorsogon farmers to sustain irrigation project for peace and development

Sorsogon City, Feb. 1 – Forty-five farmers and irrigators are set to undergo training on basic leadership and system management to effectively sustain the 1.6-kilometer irrigation project in their communities.

Participants, composed of 40 farmers and irrigators from Barangay Sta. Ana in Gubat and five from Layug Paghaluban Mapapac Irrigators Association in Barcelona town, will go through a two-day training that seeks to foster harmonious relationships and develop capacities for more efficient irrigation service. It also aims to capacitate participants in crafting a management and sustainability plan to ensure success of the project as it nears completion.

To be conducted by the National Irrigation Association in Sorsogon, it will be held on February 2 and 3 at the Frtiz Homestay, Executive Village in Tugos here.

The said irrigation project being implemented by the farmers and irrigators is under the Sorsogon Initiatives Project, which aims to empower local communities through improved participation in local governance and involvement in the preparation and implementation of peace and development projects.

Sorsogon Initiatives is a joint effort of the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) and the Department of Interior and Local Government – Local Government Academy (DILG-LGA).

Aiming to boost the province’s peace and development conditions, it is supported by the Spanish Government through its Agencia Española Cooperacion Internacional para el Desarollo (AECID) or Spanish Agency for International Development under the DILG-LGA’s Strengthening Local Government in the Philippines Phase III Project.

OPAPP oversees the implementation of the Sorsogon Initiatives in collaboration with DILG-LGA and stakeholders on the ground.