AS JOSE Abad Santos (JAS), Davao Occidental continues to recover from the destructive magnitude 7.8 earthquake in June and a series of floods that followed in July, the Department of Agriculture in Davao Region (DA-11) has provided ₱8.27 million worth of agricultural assistance to help affected farmers rebuild their livelihoods.
The assistance was distributed during the national rollout of government interventions in Barangay Nuing on August 21, with DA-11 extending crop, livestock, poultry, and swine production support to farming communities affected by the successive calamities.
The intervention package included agricultural inputs intended to help farmers resume production, as well as livelihood assistance for livestock and poultry raisers whose sources of income were disrupted.
Among the items distributed were 500 bags of milled rice valued at ₱250,000, 100 bags of open-pollinated variety white corn seeds worth ₱150,000, and 50 bags of hybrid yellow corn seeds valued at ₱300,000.
The DA-11 also provided 21 boxes of vegetable seeds worth ₱271,320 to support the rehabilitation of vegetable production in affected communities.
For the livestock and poultry sector, the assistance included a goat production project worth ₱1.21 million and a native chicken production project valued at ₱1.13 million.
The package also covered 300 heads of free-range chickens worth ₱24,000 and 10 upgraded goats valued at ₱70,000.
Farmers and animal raisers also received animal drugs and biologics worth ₱50,000 to help protect and sustain livestock production following the calamities.
The largest component of the intervention was ₱5 million worth of assistance under the Integrated National Swine Production Initiatives for Recovery and Expansion (Inspire), a program aimed at supporting and strengthening hog production and helping beneficiaries rebuild their sources of livelihood.
DA-11 Regional Executive Director Macario D. Gonzaga said the agency is mobilizing its available resources to address the needs of affected agricultural communities.
“We are mobilizing whatever resources available to us. Among our priorities are the assessment of damaged farms and agricultural facilities, provision of appropriate agricultural inputs and other interventions, and support for the rehabilitation of your sources of livelihood,” Gonzaga said.
He said damage assessment and continued coordination with local government units remain important in determining the appropriate assistance for communities and ensuring that government interventions respond to the actual conditions on the ground.
The DA-11 intervention is expected to help farmers restart crop production and rebuild livestock and poultry operations while the municipality continues its broader recovery from the disasters that struck the area.
JAS Mayor Jason John Joyce, meanwhile, expressed gratitude to DA-11 for extending assistance to the municipality, saying the agency's existing programs and interventions could contribute to the recovery of local farming communities.
The agricultural assistance adds to the continuing government response in JAS, one of the areas hardest hit by the magnitude 7.8 earthquake that struck Mindanao on June 8. The disaster prompted the municipal government to declare a state of calamity after powerful ground shaking triggered landslides, damaged homes and roads, and caused casualties.
By July, government data showed that 22,576 families, or 72,552 individuals, in Jose Abad Santos had been affected by the earthquake, while 5,674 houses were reported damaged. Thousands of families were also displaced as recovery operations continued.
The June earthquake also triggered a landslide in Barangay San Isidro that blocked a river and formed an artificial dam, prompting authorities to monitor the area and evacuate communities along potential flood paths amid concerns that accumulated water could inundate downstream areas, including Barangay Nuing.
The municipality faced another challenge in July when a series of floods followed the earthquake.
The JAS municipal council later approved ₱12.41 million from its disaster risk reduction and management fund to address damage caused by the June earthquake and subsequent flooding, with part of the allocation intended for the acquisition of safer relocation sites for affected residents.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development in Davao Region also reported that the southwest monsoon affected 1,539 families in Jose Abad Santos, with more than ₱4 million in assistance distributed to affected residents as of July 24. DEF
