MEXICO — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. turned over various heavy equipment to regional offices of the National Irrigation Association (NIA) on Wednesday.
A ceremonial distribution was led by Marcos and Department of Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel in Barangay Panipuan in this municipality.
Marcos and Tiu were accompanied by Governor Dennis Pineda and Vice Governor Lilia Pineda during the event.
The newly-procured 148 heavy equipment includes excavators, trailer trucks, and dumpers worth P782.132-million.
The purchase is part of NIA's three-year Re-fleeting Program that aims to achieve the agency’s goal of fast-tracking irrigation development in the country.
These heavy equipment will be used in the operation and maintenance of irrigation systems, particularly in canal desilting operations in preparation for the wet crop season.
Data from Philippine Information Agency shows that NIA has 257 National Irrigation Systems (NISs) and 8,802 Communal Irrigation Systems (CISs).
Marcos said the procurement of the equipment is in line with his administration's vision of uplifting the lives of farmers and attaining food security in the country.
“This goes beyond just the provisions of new machineries, it also empowers our NIA regional offices, the irrigators’ associations, and our farmers to ensure the sustainability of our irrigation systems to avoid losses and to promote more efficient use of water resources that will in turn, produce better and more crops,” Marcos said.
He vowed to continue exploring solutions to address the challenges being met by local farmers.
“We remain steadfast in our efforts to employ sustainable technologies to meet our irrigation needs,” Marcos said.
Governor Pineda thanked Marcos for another project that will benefit Kapampangans.
The NIA in Pampanga was among the recipients of the heavy equipment.
“Sa ngalan po ng mga ortelanong Kapampangan, nagpapasalamat po kami ni Vice Governor Nanay kay Pangulong BBM sa pagsuporta sa irigasyon,” Governor Pineda said