Davocc’s comprehensive ‘Agro-forestry’ launched

By Eldie S. Aguirre
Correspondent

Two thousand hectares of denuded mountain ranges will soon become a show window in Davao Occidental for its Comprehensive Agro-forestry program which was launched this week.

Governor Claude Bautista said at least 434 farmers will be tapped to develop the area by planting Falcata seedlings beginning this month.

He said the provincial government is aiming to reforest 8,400 hectares of barren land in the upland villages until the end of the year.

The Agro-forestry program is within the administration’s thrust of giving utmost priority to villages identified as places where members of the tribal communities lived.

“They obviously lost the forest that they inherited from their ancestors due to various forms of destruction such as the ‘slash and burn’ farming method.. Today, all they have is barren and less productive land. So, we have to do something to help them earn a living without the necessity to commit acts which is contrary to laws,” Bautista said.

Bautista said this served as an initial step to uplift the economic conditions of the farmers in the hinterlands which in turn provides adequate supply of high-value agri-industrial products to the urban area in the near future.

“Lumads, or the tribal communities living in the mountainous area of this province will have no reason to leave their ancestral lands. They will prefer to stay and earn a living with their respective families,” the governor said.

According to reports Davao Occidental has more or less 100,000 hectares of land area set for reforestation which in the long run could help the country in its campaign in mitigating climate change that is now a global problem.

An amount of P300 million is being earmarked to finance the agro-forestry program of Davao Occidental.