New farm-to-market road to boost agri-production in LU

May 28, 2017 Headlines

NAGUILIAN, LA UNION – Farmers in La Union are optimistic that the ongoing construction and rehabilitation of the Balecbec-Basca farm-to-market (FMR) road will provide accessibility and support to their agri-production.
The P97 million-worth FMR sub-project implemented under the World Bank-assisted Philippine Rural Development Plan (PRDP) of the Department of Agriculture (DA) will increase accessibility and uplift living condition of farmer-beneficiaries particularly from far-flung villages Balecbec in Naguilian and Basca in Aringay.
After its completion, said infrastructure project is expected to reduce transportation costs by 10 to 20 percent, increase mobility by 65 percent, decrease hauling costs by 50 percent, increase cultivation of new agricultural land by .089 percent, and enhance the delivery of goods and commodities.
The road improvement will mainly support the vast production of mango, rice, corn, legumes, rootcrops and vegetables and improve the living conditions of 186 and 97 households from Balecbec and Basca, respectively.
During the project site visit and consultation here on Tuesday, May 24, validators from the World Bank met with the implementers and the villagers that are covered by the project.
“When this road was still undeveloped, pasagad (animal-drawn wagon) is our main mode of transportation in bringing our goods to the market,” Manuela Sabado, a resident of Brgy. Basca said.
She added, “Now, even if the road is not yet fully done, transportation is better because even tricycles can reach our place and we can already feel the benefits of nearly having a paved road.”

Meanwhile, La Union Provincial Board Member Ruperto R. Rillera, Jr. who spoke on behalf of Governor Emmanuel Francisco Ortega III, said the ongoing project is a “critical project but is a highly significant component of our good governance initiatives and transformative programs of government.”
“We are inspired to be a destination and location of choice for eco-tourism and agri-development and investment and we are driven by our desire to truly realize equitable and sustainable progress and prosperity for our people,” Rillera added.
Eighty percent of the total project fund is provided by the World Bank and the remaining 20 percent is from the DA and the provincial government of La Union.
The 7.92-kilometer stretch started on June 2016 and is targeted to be finished by October of this year. Anne Hazel Fajardo-Flores/PIA-1 / ABN