SOME 203 agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) from towns of La Castellana and Moises Padilla have received aid packages from the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) in Negros Occidental-South.
This brought to a total of 434 ARBs, who already received the assistance since the distribution started on May 21.
The figure is 11 percent of 4,034 farmer-beneficiaries in southern Negros Occidental targeted to receive the said assistance under the "Passover: Arbold Move to Heal as One Deliverance of our ARBs from the Covid-19 Pandemic" project of the agency.
Officer-in-Charge Provincial Agrarian Reform Program Officer II Arnulfo Figueroa said the personnel of DAR Municipal Offices in La Castellana and Moises Padilla distributed relief items over the weekend.
The packages contain four kilograms of rice, canned goods, noodles and hygiene kits to identified farmer-beneficiaries who are greatly affected by the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic.
Figueroa said the fund used to purchase the aid packages was sourced from the reprogrammed and realigned budget of the Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Development Sustainability Program (ARBDSP) and unobligated allotment from the different units of the agency's Support Services Offices as approved by DAR Secretary John Castriciones.
"We are thankful for the personnel of DAR-Negros Occidental II who are willing to share their time and efforts in order to expedite the repacking and the distribution of good," he added.
Of the 203 recipients, 170 came from various barangays in La Castellana town, while the remaining 33 are ARBs of Barangay Odiong in Moises Padilla.
On May 21, the agency has already started to distribute relief items to 60 ARBs in Himamaylan City, 59 in Bago City, 46 in La Castellana, 39 in Moises Padilla and 23 in Binalbagan.
DAR-Negros Occidental II aims to finish the distribution of aid packages to targeted ARBs before May 28 for the agency to start focusing with other components of the said project.
For the part of farmer-recipients, Arnold Carballo of Barangay Robles in La Castellana said he was grateful to the initiative of the DAR to help the ARBs whose many of them are indigents and displaced due to Covid-19 pandemic.
