DA to implement P188.3m- road project in Zambo Norte

DIPOLOG City– Some 10,000 farmers will benefit in the implementation of P88.3 million road concreting and rehabilitation project through the Department of Agriculture’s (DA) Philippine Rural Development Project (PRDP) in this province.

This came as the Provincial Board has authorized Gov. Roberto Uy, through a resolution, to enter into a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with DA for the implementation of the project.

The project covering 13.82 kilometers will traverse five barangays–Poblacion, Farmington, Galingon, Cabong, and Tilubong–in the municipality of Tampilisan, this province.

Tamipilisan, which comprises of 20 barangays, is a fourth class municipality in the third congressional district of this province. It has a population of 23,056 as of 2010 census.

The project, which will be implemented by DA in partnership with the provincial government, will provide direct access to at least 7,557.98 hectares of farm lands in Tampilisan.

Provincial Planning and Development Officer Rosevic Ocampo said Monday the large chunk of the project will be financed by the national government through DA by way of a loan from the World Bank (WB).

Ocampo said the provincial government will only shoulder 10 percent of the project’s cost translating to P18 million as counterpart fund.

Ocampo said the project, once completed, will upgrade the existing road network traversing the five barangays in Tampilisan from basically 13.82 kilometers gravel to concrete road.

The completion of the project will shorten the travel time of the farmers and traders in bringing farm produce to the market. The current travel time is one-hour and 30 minutes.

The shorter travel time will redound to the reduction of hauling cost of farm products, especially rubber, to the market.

Further, it will facilitate and fast track the agro-economic and commercial development of the five barangays that mainly produces rubber. pna