THE Department of Agriculture (DA) is bringing in the goat raising technology in Northern Samar this week after noting that animal population in pilot areas of the region has doubled in the past three years.
Wilson Cerbito, Department of Agriculture regional technical director for research and regulations, said that with these gains, the project will be introduced in San Roque, Northern Samar.
“The local government there is interested to adopt the Rural Enterprise Development (RED) approach in goat production. We will conduct orientation. We have been advocating this project to local officials for them to adopt this protocol,” said Cerbito, the national and regional focal person of the RED project for goats.
The official said that based on their latest inventory this year, the number of goats in eight pilot towns and cities in the region went up to 1,722 from 811 in 2008.
“The population must be higher than reported, considering that we only counted animals that were not sold during the day of inventory,” Cerbito said in an interview.
Eastern Visayas, the only pilot area of RED project outside Luzon, has posted the highest increase among the four regions that pushed the initiative.
Cerbito claimed that government interventions in goat production are upgrading of native stocks, improving housing, proper feeding, provisions of herbal medicine, and provision of hybrid breeder.
The DA also extended financial support and marketing assistance to 180 farmer-partners in 25 villages of Tabango, Villaba, Ormoc City, Matag-ob, Jaro, Sta. Fe, and Tacloban City in Leyte, and Calbayog City.
“The project is done in these areas but it is now continued by farmer’s association. We continue to monitor their activities and assist them on their special needs,” Cerbito added.
He pointed that this is not the usual dispersal program of the National Government. “We just provide quality male breeder and introduce the production technology to them.”
RED Program applied the participatory approach in a bid to secure local government support, make goat as priority commodity, identify community problems, and draft solutions.
“The farmer-partners were capacitated with technology and entrepreneurial trainings. They were exposed to various goat production methods in different areas through educational tour; participation in goat congresses, trade fairs, and festivals,” Cerbito added.
The official claimed that the strategy has opened the consciousness to the variety of ways they can earn a living from goat raising.
“After building awareness of farmers, they were then given the leeway in choosing technologies that could solve their individual farm problems,” Cerbito said.
The RED project has been implemented in Ilocos Region, Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, and Eastern Visayas. Different interventions have raised goat population in pilot areas from 3,290 in 2008 to 6,108 this year.
The main goal of the RED project is poverty alleviation and to transform the old system or traditional way of goat raising into an enterprise. (Leyte Samar Daily Express)
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