40,000 families in Mindanao benefit from MRDP

About 40,000 families in five provinces in Mindanao have benefited from government livelihood projects in the past five years.

The projects were undertaken under the Mindanao Rural Development Program (MRDP) implemented by the Department of Agriculture (DA) primarily for the benefit of rural communities.

The Phase I of MRDP benefited the provinces of Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao, Compostela Valley and Agusan del Sur.

Under the program, about P1 billion worth of rural infrastructure projects — 670 kilometers of farm-to-market roads, 43 irrigation systems servicing 6,000 hectares of farmlands, and 28 rural water supply systems — were completed.

To complement the infrastructure projects, 1,583 livelihood projects such as crop and fish production, livestock dispersal, and installation of post-harvest facilities were carried out.

These projects considerably improved the lives of the beneficiaries, according to a report submitted to Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap.

A recent evaluation of the MRDP showed that the program has significantly improved the lives of the beneficiaries, as reflected in the rise in their annual incomes.

Prior to the program, the beneficiaries had an average yearly income of only P84,200, and thanks to the MRDP, this increased by 35 percent to P113,000.

"The local government units (LGUs), being partners in development, played a significant role in uplifting the lives of the rural folk," the evaluation report stated.

Technology demonstration farms were also put up to ensure that various technology options were readily available to the farmers.