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THE OFFICIAL E-NEWSLETTER OF THE PHILIPPINE INFORMATION AGENCY - SIQUIJOR | WWW.PIA.GOV.PH and the DEPARTMENT OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY - SIQUIJOR | WWW.DOST.GOV.PH VOL. 4| NO. 18 May 25 - June 1, 2016
Aid underway for drought-hit farmers, fisherfolks in Siquijor
by Rizalie Anding Calibo
SIQUIJOR, June 6 (PIA) — In an effort to aid drought-hit farmers, fisherfolks, livestock and poultry growers here, the Office of the Provincial Veterinarian (OPV), the Department of AgricultureProvincial Agricultural Technology Coordinating Office (DA-PATCO) and the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPA), through the Provincial Disaster
Risk Reduction Council (PDRRMC), jointly fasttrack the declaration of Siquijor province under a state of calamity due to El Nino phenomenon. PDRRMC Chairperson Governor Zaldy S. Villa has approved the El Nino Response Plan and recommended to the Sangguniang Panlalawigan the passing of a resolution for the declaration. Provincial Agriculturist Ramon Taroc and Provincial Veterinarian
Among the permanent commodities in Siquijor province, banana is said to be the most damaged crop by the El Ninoinduced drought. To date, the intensity of the daage has already reached to about 60%. (OPA report)
Bernardita Tabada with other line agencies presented their Damage Report and Response Plan during the PDRRMC meeting that indicates an overall production losses of P50,508,609 on the major commodities in the province as the basis for the declaration and the utilization of the Quick Response or Calamity Fund. Siquijor, he said, is one of the provinces in the country that is heavily affected by El Nino with agriculture as the most hit sector. Of the major commodities, banana production is the most affected, estimated to reach P29,277,866 in production losses, said Taroc in his report. Actual assessment showed that there are a total of 9,405 household farmers affected. The same assessment showed that there are 41,885 totally damaged banana mats while about 108,025 are partially damaged reaching the intensity of damage to about 60%. This is directly related to the plants’ overall productivity, and it is projected that the effect will be felt for the next 12 months, under local condition where no further occurrence of unfavourable weather condition will occur and damaged banana plantations are rehabilitated, the assessment said. Losses to corn, the major staple crop in the province, reached P5,673,278 as result of early occurrence of dry spell that started in November last year and the farmers’ inability to establish their second crop. This failed the attainment of the 60% target area for cropping. Out of the 7879.27 hectares
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SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
DOST Siquijor holds training on new herbal tea production by Engr. Reinhold Jek Abing
SIQUIJOR, May 31 (PIA) -Department of Science and Technology (DOST) here recently held a training on Latest Herbal Tea Making Techniques for San Antonio Women’s Association for
Better Environment (SWABE) members. The training and seminar session was held at the production facility of SWABE in San Antonio, Siquijor. DOST- Bohol Assistant Provincial Science and Technology Director (PSTD) Vina Antopina was tapped by DOST
DOST-Bohol Assistant Provincial Science and Techlogy (PSTD) Director Vina Antopina (1st row, 5th from right) , Siquijor PSTD Engr. Mario E. de la Peña (1st row, 4th from left), DOST Siquijor staff Engr. Reinhold Jek Abing (1st row, leftmost) pose for a photo op with San Antonio Women’s Association for Better Environment (SWABE) members after the training/seminar. (rac/PIA7-Siquijor w/ DOST-Siquijor photo)
June 22, 2016, 9:00 AM. Buong bansa, sabaysabay tayong mag Duck Cover and Hold!
Siquijor as the trainer and resource person for the activity. In the training/seminar, SWABE members learned new ways on how to diversify their tea products. SWABE members are given insights on how to create new varieties of herbal teas which contains less than the original eight ingredients. Antopina urged the association to diversify also their income generation technique. She suggested that SWABE market pure dried leaves to other tea makers. SWABE acknowledge the need to create new varieties of herbal tea to cushion the impact of El Niño to the supply of raw materials of their SWABE herbal tea. SWABE estimates that 80 percent to 90 percent of its raw materials are gathered from the wild. Pressure for conservation of some of the raw materials is mounting while demand for their herbal tea remains high. The group acknowledged that while sustainability in the income of the organization is important, conservation on the number and quality of herbal plants grown in the wild is also crucial. SWABE President Arleta Ferolin thanked DOST Siquijor for organizing the training because it expanded their knowledge in tea making, she said. The group has been making and marketing herbal tea as one of their sources of income. Mystical Herbal Tea or SWABE Herbal Tea, as it is called, is made up of eight herbs namely, lagundi, banaba, bayabas, balbas pusa, tsang gubat, agbaw, herbabuena, and sibukaw. Provincial Science and Technology Officer Engr. Mario de la Peña saw the potential impact of the training in the product diversification of SWABE. DOST Siquijor granted SWABE P86,883.00 for the project called “Upgrading the Herbal Tea Making Technology through the Introduction of Efficient Tea Making Equipment and Enhancement of the Packaging and Labeling of SWABE Herbal Tea to Penetrate New Markets”. (rmn/rac/PIA7Siquijor/Engr. Reinhold Jek Abing/DOSTSiquijor)
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GOVERNMENTNEWS PRO-7: Security preps in place for opening of classes on June 13 CEBU, June 1 (PIA) – With the opening of classes less than two weeks away, the different police offices in Central Visayas are implementing security plan dubbed ‘Oplan Balik Eskwela’ to ensure the safety of students. Chief Supt. Patrocinio Commendador, regional director of the Police Regional Office (PRO-7), said his directive is to heighten police visibility near the schools to guarantee the students’ safety from pickpocket and holdup incidents. “During the months of June to July, the trend usually shows a slight increase in crime incidents,” said Commendador during the recent ‘Talakayan sa Isyung Pulis’ (TSIP) Forum that tackled various peace and order concerns. Commendador said that during these months, the influx of students give criminals the opportunity to strike and prey on victims. “The visible presence of police in the streets must be consistent to keep criminals at bay and sustain anti-criminality operations,” said Commendador. In Cebu City, around 199 policemen will be deployed to 118 schools while police assistance centers near schools will be established when classes open, said Cebu City Police Chief Senior Supt. Benjamin Santos Jr. Mandaue City Police Director Senior Supt. Jonathan Cabal said they will strictly implement the curfew of students inside internet cafes during school hours to prevent the delinquency in class attendance. With 45 schools in the city, Cabal said policemen will secure banks, pawnshops, and other establishments after ensuring the safety of students inside the schools while tapping barangay cops to implement its security plan for Oplan Balik Eskwela. For Lapulapu City, around 200 policemen will be deployed in 92 schools on the first day of classes and will closely coordinate with the aviation security units for airport security in anticipation to the influx of students, said Lapulapu City Police Director Senior Supt. Arnel Anor Batoon Libed. Supt. Anthony Bagarinao, deputy director for operations of the Cebu Provincial Police Office, on the other hand said intelligence operations will be strengthened amid the imminent opening of classes. Bagarinao further said the ratio of police to schools is 1:2 as part of their security preparations while police assistance centers and desks will be set up near the schools throughout the province. (rmn/fcr/PIA7)
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Aid underway for drought-hit farmers... planted, 507.35 was totally damaged and 33.95 hectares are partially damaged. The low productivity of corn and the voluminous yield loss will result to food gap and more importantly the lack of planting materials, the assessment also said. Production losses to rice, although not significant, has reached some P1,075,905 or 21% reduction in area planted due to insufficient water supply from the water source and the farmers’ inability to plant their second rice crop. Ve g e t a b l e g a r d e n s i n t h e province are mostly backyard in nature but with the occurrence of El Nino, still production losses reached to an estimated amount of P1,019,477. Inland fisheries (tilapia) and seaweed production is also affected with estimated production losses of P470,080 and P1,600,000, respectively. About 200 fishefolks involved in aquaculture were directly affected, the report said. Livestock, according to Provincial Veterinarian Bernardita Tabada, is the least affected in the agriculture sector with regard to the effects of El Nino. However, in depth analysis of
the situation revealed that the means of income and livelihood especially to those who are mainly dependent on the industry are greatly affected. Feeding is of fundamental importance to the whole livestock and poultry enterprise but because of the EN phenomenon, about 80% of the total area of improved forage grasses and legumes are already depleted and dried. T h i s a l s o h o l d s true in natural pastures and g r e e n l a n d s , Ta b a d a e x p l a i n e d . She said the local livestock raisers are forced to utilize poor quality forages such as hay, rice stalks, dried corn stalks,corn husks, banana trunks and locally grown trees in the mountain and coastal areas. Around 70% or the large and small ruminants, the report said, are emaciated, exhibiting stunted growth, low conception rate, and weak resistance to diseases. In severe cases, this has resulted to animal mortality. Production costs, Tabada added, also increased because of the need for medication for sick animals and purchase concentrates for feed supplementation.
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Additional farm labor also becomes necessary especially in the gathering of forages and water, and yet they are not enough to compensate the health condition of the animal. When sold, prices naturally go down which means economic losses to livestock raisers, she said. Ta b a d a s a i d 4 0 % o f t h e pregnant animals which are fed with poor quality feeds resulted to abortion, prolapsed, retained placenta, downer and eventually death of the animals. New Castle disease causes around 70% mortality rate of native chicken. With this, the entirety of damage caused by El Nino phenomenon to the economic situation of the livestock and poultry raisers is estimated to reach as high as 60%, Tabada reported. With these, OPA has come up with a Response Plan that includes emergency seed distribution, provision of climate resilient rice, corn and vegetable seeds, fertilizer subsidy, and rehabilitation of damaged banana plants through the procurement and massive propagation. Promotion of water conservation practices, water system development, provision of free insurance coverage by the provincial local government unit (PLGU), provision of seaweeds seedlings to affected growers, and provision of Tilapia fry and feed subsidy are also on the list. Response mitigation and rehabilitation plan of the livestock and poultry sector are also in place. (rmn/ rac/PIA7-Siquijor with OPA reports)
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is the Island of Siquijor’s first electronic newsletter produced by the Philippine Information Agency-Siquijor Information Center and the DOST - Provincial Science and Technology Center. It contains snippets of information about Siquijor, Central Visayas and the Philippine Government.
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Lecture on the Proper Handling & Dismantling of Issued Firearms to all personnel of the Siquijor Police Provincial Office by Supply Police Non- Commissioned Officer (PNCO),SPO1 Ardene Steve Woo at the Siquijor Police Provincial Office (SPPO). (rac/PIA7-Siquijor w/ PNP photo)
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