OFFICIALS of the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office (Penro) in Samar have recognized the “exemplary performance” of the Enhanced National Greening Program (ENGP) implementers in the province as part of its lined-up activities for Philippine Environment Month this June.
The awardees were selected based on the location of nursery, mode of propagation, quality and survival rate of seedlings, timeliness on the accomplishment of targets, and resourcefulness from January to June 2021.
“This is to motivate, challenge, and boost the morale of our ENGP implementers,” said Samar provincial environment officer Angelito Villanueva.
The ENGP awards and recognition was opened to the Community Environment and Natural Resources Office (Cenro) in Catbalogan and Sta. Rita.
For Cenro-Catbalogan, the family of Domingo Algordo received P20,000 for winning first place in the Best ENGP Nursery category.
The second place went to the family of Jessie Balantino who won P15,000, while the third place was the family of Marsha Doquidoc who won P10,000.
The winning families produced seedlings of cacao, langka, toog, narra, kulipapa, and bayog.
“I am thankful to the government for directly providing us with livelihood opportunities especially in this time of Covid-19 pandemic,” said Algordo after receiving the cash prize during the recently held recognition ceremony.
The Best ENGP Nursery Awards for beneficiaries of CENRO Sta. Rita was awarded to the family of Jorgie Padit, first place;
Lilia Lamban, second place; and Gilda Abayan, third place.
Cenro-Sta. Rita awardees produced seedlings of coffee, cacao, langka, igot, caimito, pili, rambutan, and guyabano.
They also received the same amount of cash prizes from the provincial government of Samar and Iraya Energy Corporation.
Certificates of recognition were also given to the assisting people’s organizations of the family beneficiaries.
The Outstanding NGP Extension Officers of Cenro-Catbalogan, Cenro-Sta. Rita, and Penro-Samar were also recognized and awarded with a plaque of recognition and a cash prize of P2,500 each.
“Seeing the families engaged, secured and willing to embrace the goals of ENGP makes me feel so accomplished,” said Juileta Diaz, Outstanding Extension Officer of Cenro-Catbalogan.
“We hike for two hours to our NGP sites and sometimes voluntarily provide for the community’s needs like kilos of rice just to win their trust and cooperation,” she added.
Meanwhile, Eastern Visayas regional environment executive Director Tirso Parian, hoped that Penro-Samar’s strategy will be carried on for the succeeding activities under the ENGP.
“This is a laudable initiative from Penro- Samar. Our partners and performing workforce need to be recognized for their efforts, and I’m grateful that the local government unit and our partner industries are helping us in this endeavor,” Parian said.
Penro-Samar has contracted 364 families to undertake ENGP activities from 2021-2023.
This year, these families are set to produce over 2.5 million seedlings and establish a total of 2,495 hectares NGP plantation in Samar province.
The DENR is adopting the "Family Approach" as one of the modes in engaging Filipino families with the NGP. (SunStar Philippines)