The Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) continue to strengthen their partnership as they identified several points of convergence for the agriculture sector’s benefit during the joint strategic conference held on January 28, 2021.
“We elevated our partnership towards the delivery of effective and efficient services to our farmers and fisherfolk,” Agriculture Secretary William Dar said.
According to him, DA and DAR have the same objective of enticing the younger generation to engage in agriculture and agribusiness.
He added that the joint planning, validation, and decision-making with DAR, concerned government agencies, and local government units will help accelerate the modernization and industrialization of Philippine agriculture.
“If we have a good working relationship with DA and other concerned agencies and we will be one in our position that we are to protect prime lands intended for agriculture, then we will be able to ensure food security for our country,” Agrarian Reform Secretary John Castriciones said.
Joint effort for the identification, validation, and protection of prime agricultural lands, Network of Protected Areas for Agriculture and Agro-Industrial Development (NPAAAD), and the Strategic Agriculture and Fisheries Development Zones (SAFDZ) were discussed during the convergence meeting.
The officials also discussed the inclusion of agrarian reform beneficiaries in the DA’s Registry System for Basic Sectors in Agriculture (RSBSA), digitalization of agriculture, and updating of databases and maps.
Secretary Dar, who serves as chairperson of the IATF Task Group on Food Security, also proposed for the creation of a Sub-Task Group on Agrarian Reform that will discuss and focus on agrarian issues, concerns, and collaborations. (Text by Gumamela Celes Bejarin & photos by Adones Buhayan, DA-AFID)
