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[av_heading heading=’Cultivate the ‘financial’ capacity of farmers’ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=’30’ subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’18’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=” av-medium-font-size-title=” av-small-font-size-title=” av-mini-font-size-title=” av-medium-font-size=” av-small-font-size=” av-mini-font-size=” admin_preview_bg=”]
BY JULIO P. YAP JR.
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Wednesday, February 21, 2018
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IT IS EVIDENT that majority of farmers have limited access to resources, either for financing the improvement of their farms, to have a better yield or to support their family’s urgent or emergency needs.
Recognizing the needs of the marginalized farmers, particularly those in the different barangays of San Carlos City and Don Salvador Benedicto town, both in Negros Occidental, the Multi-Sectoral Alliance for Development-Negros (MUAD-Negros) developed and implemented a project dubbed “Promoting Sustainable Farm Commodity and Market Enhancement” to enhance the capacity of the farmer-members.
According to Reynic Alo of MUAD-Negros, the project was implemented through the funding support provided by WE Effect-Swedish Cooperative Center.
We Effect is an international organization which believes that poverty can be alleviated by empowering individuals and organizations, creating improved income levels, better and more sustainable farming, adequate housing, and equal rights for all.
To effectively pursue the initiative, MUAD-Negros adopted a workable framework in an effort to focus on identified problems– capitalization, production, marketing of the produce, and gender equality to help the farmers.
On the aspect of capitalization or financing, Alo says that before exposing the marginalized farmers to have access to substantial amounts of loans from outside sources, they should first be motivated on the proper way of saving for an intended investment and unforeseen needs, and how to pay their loans religiously.
It has been observed that some farmers have the habit of spending excessively whenever they would have a bounty harvest – meaning, some of them have the mentality of the so-called “one-day millionaire.”
This leads to lack of savings, which they can later use when the need arises, or forgetting to pay whatever loans they have had.
The perennial situation prompted the MUAD-Negros to adopt a project which it dubbed the “Group Savings and Loan Association.”
According to Alo, the project can be termed as “village banking” because the control is within a community itself, and the leaders and the participants are directly running the affairs of the group.
Since “village banking” requires a certain amount to function, Alo says the concept materialized through the assistance of WE Support.
After the project was implemented, it enhanced the capacity of the assisted farmers to properly manage their financial resources, allowing them to pay their loan obligations on time.
However, the crucial part of the farming business is the marketing aspect because when a farmer would have attained a bountiful harvest, the problem would be the availability of a ready market.
To offset the marketing deficiency, MUAD-Negros adopted the supply/value chain approach to bring the produce of individual ICARE farmer to the ready market.
This approach eventually promotes inclusive growth within the community.
Equal opportunity is also given to both the men and women members in the selection of projects and participants.
Through the “village banking” system, the targeted farmers are now aware on the importance of setting aside a certain amount for their savings, and how to manage their resources to improve their farms, and eventually improve their production. (jaypeeyap@ymail.com/PN)
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