The Korea Partnership for Innovation of Agriculture (KOPIA) in cooperation with its partners the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) Los Banos and the local government unit (LGU) of Siniloan, Laguna held the Completion Ceremony for the Pilot Village Project on September 5, 2023.
To date, approximately 90 farmers who want to participate in the project have registered from two villages in Siniloan. Since 2022, around 120 people have been trained through 5-8 weeks per year of agricultural education to improve their skills. KOPIA recently completed establishing the infrastructure by providing eight greenhouse-type rain shelters for vegetable cultivation, a protected facility for nursery seedling production, and a post-harvest facility with low-temperature storage. Other facilities include dressing room, comfort room, warehouse). In addition, agricultural machinery was provided to improve work efficiency.
The Completion Ceremony signaled the completion of the construction of the nine greenhouses and one postharvest building for the project in Siniloan, Laguna. The Pilot Village Project aims to help raise the income level of the Filipino farmers using protective cultivation technologies and post-harvest management practices. It is expected that farmers' income will increase as they will be able to produce and sell high-quality vegetables.
Present during the ceremony were Senior Undersecretary Domingo F. Panganiban of the Department of Agriculture (DA), representing the Philippine government; Ambassador Sanghwa Lee, Korean Ambassador to the Philippines, representing the Korean government; Dr. Hyowon Seo, Director General of the National Institute of Crop Science (NICS), representing the Rural Development Administration (RDA), the largest research and development organization in the Republic of Korea; Mayor Patrick Z. Go, mayor of Siniloan; Dr. Kyuseong Lee, Director of KOPIA Philippines Center; and Dr. Herminigilda A. Gabertan, BPI Assistant Director.
Moreover, DA Bureau of Agricultural Research Director Junel B. Soriano, DA Regional Executive Director for Region IV-A Milo Delos Reyes, Laguna State Polytechnic University (LSPU) President Mario Briones, and UPLB Chancellor Jose Camacho, Jr. were among those who attended the ceremony, all of whom represent our partners in this project.
Over 500 guests consisting of farmers from Siniloan, Laguna and Lucban, Quezon, municipal officials from Siniloan and the neighboring towns, Korean officials from RDA, members of the Program Management Committee and the Advisory Committee of KOPIA graced this very important event.
This completion ceremony is a true testament that partnerships among different sectors, both national and international organizations, can really work together to benefit our main beneficiaries, our Filipino farmers.
Photos courtesy of KOPIA