The Low Pressure Area which resulted in the cancellation of the Benham Rise Expedition of the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries has brought blessings to a mountain village in Atok, Benguet.
Following the recommendation of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) for the deferment of the Benham Rise voyage, I decided to spend the Holy Week in Baguio City for a working visit.
After playing a round of golf with Executive Secretary Bingbong Medialdea in the morning of Good Friday, the lean Biyaheng Bukid team proceeded to Sagada, Mountain Province on the way to Banaue, Ifugao Province.
Along the way, I visited Barangay Paoay in Atok and upon the request of the local officials, approved a P100-M farm-to-market road project under the Philippine Rural Development Program (PRDP) funded by the World Bank and the Philippine Government.
It was an unexpected windfall for the vegetable farming village which is now gaining the curiousity and interests of tourists because it is now known as the first area in the country to successfully grow the Cherry Blossoms.
Barangay Chairman Leo Cawaing said the village people have long been asking for a 10-kilometer concrete FMR not only to facilitate the transport of their produce to the market but also because the village is now becoming a tourism destination.
When I was informed of the problem, I told the village people that the PRDP has sufficient funds provided the local government of Atok puts up a 10% equity.
After the Holy Week, the PRDP technical team will visit the village to conduct a validation.
When all the technical requirements are completed, the process of granting the P100-million road project will begin.
The people of Paoay will have to thank God for the Low Pressure Area east of Luzon which resulted in the postponement of the Benham Rise Expedition and led me to their village.
(Photos by Mayette Tudlas)
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