Villar urges farmers, fisherfolk to get scholarships

MANILA, Philippines - Farmers and fisherfolk were urged yesterday to take advantage of P500 million worth of scholarships for agriculture training to make them at par with their counterparts in Asia.

Sen. Cynthia Villar pursued the scholarships during the budget hearings for the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA).

Through the courses to be offered, farmers will get basic knowledge like operation and maintenance of modern machineries needed in the government’s efforts toward farm mechanization, Villar said.

“On top of that, they can be taught financial literacy, accounting and entrepreneurship,” she said.

TESDA has allotted P500 million for agricultural training of 45,000 students.

Farmers must be productive and profitable as well as   competitive, Villar said. 

Along with fisherfolk, they need to cope with intensified competition, especially with the regional economic cooperation under the ASEAN Economic Community to begin implementation in December, she added.

Farmers and fisherfolk need to learn and acquire winning skills and strategies to help them earn more profit, Villar said.  

“Since I practice what I preach, the Villar SIPAG, in partnership with various groups and organizations, sponsors regular training programs and workshops,” she said.

“That’s all throughout the year because we are decided to help you. In my interactions with farmers, I found out that what separates an award-winning and profitable farmer from an ordinary one is simply employing the correct strategy in farming,” she said.

“Why does a Gawad Saka awardee farmer earn P50,000 per hectare? However, a farmer who owns one hectare earns only P4,000. One is using a more effective and profitable farming technique than the other,” Villar added.