MORE than 4,000 residents in eastern Davao Oriental are expected to gain faster access to markets and essential services as a ₱277.98-million farm-to-market road connecting Cateel and Boston towns gets underway.
The Department of Agriculture-Philippine Rural Development Project Scale-Up will fund the concreting of an 8.5-kilometer road from Barangay Mainit in Cateel to Barangay Cabasagan in Boston.
The project will connect NHJ-Proper Mainit-Purok Bangas in Cateel to Purok Buko-Buko sa Anay in Boston and includes two bridges with a combined length of 92 meters.
For years, poor road conditions between the two towns slowed travel, isolated farming communities during heavy rains, and made it harder for farmers to bring their produce to markets.
The concrete road is expected to cut travel time between the two barangays from 25 minutes to 10 minutes.
Project estimates show that the improved road could reduce crop transport costs by up to 35 percent and cut crop damage during transit from 0.95 percent to 0.10 percent. The beneficiaries include growers of Cardava bananas, coconut, cacao, and abaca.
Cateel Mayor Emilou “Miloy” Nuñez highlighted the project’s potential to improve daily life for residents.
“More than a road connecting two municipalities, it is expected to serve 4,285 residents... bringing communities closer to markets, essential services, and new opportunities,” Nuñez said.
“For our farmers and fisherfolk, this means a more reliable connection between their communities and the markets where they bring their products. It can help make transportation easier, reduce travel time and costs, and provide better access to essential services.”
PRDP Mindanao project director Macario Gonzaga also underscored the project’s long-term benefits during the groundbreaking, according to a Sept. 25 post by PRDP Davao Region.
“This groundbreaking is about building inclusive opportunities that respect both community heritage and economic longevity,” Gonzaga said.
“Through sustainable infrastructure under the Department of Agriculture-Philippine Rural Development Project-Scale-Up, we are helping rural farming households reduce transport costs, minimize post-harvest losses, and build a resilient foundation for generations to come.”
The project will provide safer, all-weather access to health care, schools, and markets for 4,285 residents in Cateel and Boston, including 903 Indigenous Peoples and agrarian reform beneficiaries.
The construction is also expected to create jobs for 69 skilled workers and 164 unskilled laborers. GRS
