BACOLOD CITY – The Department of Agriculture gave away cash cards to 1,098 rice farmers in Sagay City, Negros Occidental to help them defray the high cost of fertilizers.
The City Agriculture Office released the cash cards with P5,000 worth of financial assistance to the recipients during the payout on Thursday, July 6, at the Taliambong Activity Center.
These beneficiaries comprised 80 percent of the total rice farmers in Sagay.
The financial assistance came from the Rice Farmers Financial Assistance (RFFA) funding in 2021 but was only released this year due to the pandemic.
City Agriculturist Julie Delima said that these farmers will probably be the same beneficiaries that will receive cash cards for 2022 and 2023.
She is hoping that in the coming tranches, more rice farmers in Sagay will be qualified to avail of this program.
The RFFA is part of Department of Agriculture's Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund where the agency allocates P10 billion for farm machinery and farmers’ assistance to improve productivity in the country.
Sangguniang Panlungsod Committee on Agriculture Chairperson Perfecto Marañon urged the beneficiaries to use the cash assistance wisely to improve their farms.
“The times now are changing and we need to adapt,” said Marañon in his speech, adding that the city government is looking for ways to help the farmers more in addressing the needs of the times.