Close to a hundred clusters of agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) in Nueva Ecija are going digital in handling their respective trading businesses thanks to gadgets given to them by the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR).
Forty-four laptop computers with accessories and 53 android mobile phones were given away to the farmer-beneficiaries, according to provincial agrarian reform program officer Romeo S. Cordero.
Each cluster was also given a modem so they may gain Internet access and facilitate their transactions with their trading partners digitally.
“The information and communications technology will help modernize the business operations and outlooks of our agrarian reform beneficiaries’ organizations (ARBOs). Through it, they can buy farm inputs and sell farm products online with ease,” Cordero said.
He added that the laptops, mobile phones, and modems will help them become more proactive, capable of initiating, creating, or controlling their trading activities rather than just wait for opportunities to come along.
It is also a timely initiative since it will prevent the possible transmission of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) during face-to-face transactions, Cordero further said.
The farmer-beneficiaries will also be provided with sufficient training on computer and internet literacy, as well as online trading transactions through webinars.
The provision of laptops and android phones was carried out under the Convergence on Livelihood Assistance for ARBs Project (CLAAP).
It is a technical capacity development program of the department aimed at raising the standards of living of the farmer-beneficiaries and developing them into potent partners for nation-building. It was launched in partnership with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) in January 2018.