The SOA was made possible through the Regional Agriculture and Fisheries Information Section (RAFIS) in partnership with the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist of Leyte and DYVL Aksyon Radyo Tacloban. Said program started on July 25, 2022 and ended on October 20,2022 airing every Monday and Thursday at 10:30 am-11:00 am. The program was designed to help farmers in distant areas learn about the latest production technologies through interactive radio broadcasts of relevant topics.

 

Leyte Governor, Carlos Jericho L. Petilla, delivered an inspirational message. He emphasized his vision to improve the status of agriculture in the province which could possibly supply huge corporations, if given the appropriate economies of scale.

 

A total of 320 farmers graduated from the said SOA. 18 municipalities in Leyte, including Tacloban City actively participated in this broadcast module. The farmers were confirmed by DA-RFO 8 Regional Executive Director Angel C. Enriquez. RED Enriquez also delivered her keynote message to the farmer graduates and challenged them to improve their respective food production activities.

 

Mario Labarete from San Miguel, Leyte a PWD farmer gave an impression as one of the farmer-graduates. He said that he has been actively listening to the broadcast course since it started. The SOA later helped him become a farmer and develop the one hectare farm he owns and manages. He also underscored that being a person with disability is never a hindrace to do farming. He is more than grateful to the Department of Agriculture and the Province of Leyte for the opportunity to learn through the SOA.

 

Regional Technical Director for Operations and Extention Larry U. Sultan, gave the closing remarks where he encouraged the farmers to step up their farming activities as a cooperative and secure more opportunities through consolidation and clustering. He encouraged the farmers to supply bigger markets and prioritize the quality of their products. ###