THE recognition given by the Department of Agriculture (DA) to Bago City as one of the recipients of the 2017 Rice Achievers Award in the country shows that Negros Occidental's rice production program is on the right track.
Provincial Agriculturist Japhet Masculino lauded the city for making it as a winner of the said national agriculture award.
"We hope that other local government units in the province also attain what Bago City has achieved so that, together, we can attain our goal of being a rice self-sufficient province," Masculino said on Saturday, June 2..
Bago City was among the seven provinces and 15 localities which were recognized during the awarding ceremony held at the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City on May 31.
Mayor Nicholas Yulo and City Agriculturist Carlito Indencia received the trophy and check amounting to P1 million as the cash prize from Senate Committee Chairman for Agriculture Senator Cynthia Villar and Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol together with officials from the National Irrigation Administration, Bureau of Soils and Water Management, and other attached agencies of the DA.
The Rice Achievers Awards is an annual event that recognizes the efforts of outstanding rice producers in the Philippines.
Now in its fifth year, the program is one of the agency's ways of motivating and showing appreciation for institutions, groups, and individuals for their contributions in its food sufficiency thrust.
Last year, the Municipal Government of Valladolid also bagged the 2016 Rice Achievers Award, also as one of the 15 outstanding rice municipalities and cities in the country.
Amid this recognition, Masculino said the rice farmers in the province remained challenged on how to increase their production per unit area.
"Even an average of 4.5 metric tons per hectare will result to self-sufficiency," Masculino said.
The Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPA) is assuring for closer engagement with the Municipal and City Agriculture Office, and continuous conduct of farmer field school, provision of certified seeds, and promotion of high breed seeds, he added.
