President Marcos has urged the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) to modernize and rehabilitate the Magat Dam, an infrastructure that he described as the key to agricultural development in Isabela and the Cagayan Valley region.

Marcos said this during the inauguration of the P65.7-million Cabaruan solar-powered irrigation project (SPIP) at Brgy. Cabaruan, Quirino, Isabela on Monday, June 10.

In his speech, the President said he talked to NIA Administrator Eduardo Guillen about rehabilitating the dam which was built in 1975 during the time of the former's namesake father, the late former president Ferdinand Marcos.

"'Ika namin, balikan natin, tingnan natin ullit 'yung Magat Dam at tingnan natin kung pupuwede pa. Mukhang mayroon pang kailangan. Mayroon siguro rehabilitation na kailangan. Pagandahin natin (We thought we should take another look at Magat Dam and see if it needed to be rehabilitated)," he said.

“Lagyan din natin ng ganitong solar kung babagay siya para naman i-modernize natin lahat ng ating mga facilities (Maybe we can put solar panels if possible so we can modernize all the facilities)," he added.

The Magat Dam is a major source of irrigation for 85,000 hectares of farmland in the Cagayan Valley region. It also generates 540 megawatts of hydroelectric power. However, the dam is threatened by continuous siltation, sedimentation, slash-and-burn farming, illegal logging, and fish caging.

Aside from modernizing the Magat Dam, the President directed NIA to study the country’s irrigation assets with power generation potential.

“Upang lubos nating mapakinabangan ang mga ito at mabawasan ang gastos na pasanin ng ating mga magsasaka sa pagpapatakbo nito (So that we can maximize them and lessen the expenses of the farmers running them),” Marcos said.

The Cabaruan SPIP, the biggest solar-powered irrigation system, could irrigate 350 hectares of land. It can provide excess power to nearby communities, as well as water supply for households.

According to the President, 152 solar-powered pump irrigation projects are being constructed, with 118 projects to be put up by the government.

So far, 82 solar-powered pump irrigation projects had been completed last year, he said. He vowed to increase that number in the coming years.