COTABATO CITY–Model Banana Farm Plantation in Special Geographic Areas (SGA) of BARMM formally started its realization after the signing of Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) and Ceremonial Groundbreaking on Saturday, Aug. 21, held at Kabacan, North Cotabato.
The initiative was spearheaded by the office of Regional Board of Investments (RBOI-BARMM), in partnership with Member of Parliament (MP) Atty. Suharto Ambolodto, which aims to alleviate the lives of farmers in the locality and to encourage more local investors to invest in SGA.
According to MP Ambolodto, “this activity is mainly to look upon the opportunities of our local investors to invest here in our own homeland since they would invest for the future of our Bangsamoro people.”
Chairman of RBOI Lawyer Ishak Mastura said, “we also need to link the farmers to local investors, not only in the government programs or services, but also to private sectors that would give them direct assistance to start-up investments immediately in our region.”
Local investors who signed the MOA were Engr. Kaiser Usman of Usman Banana Plantation in Matanog, Maguindanao and Datu Jabib Guibar of Kabacan, North Cotabato. Both businessmen encouraged other local investors to do business in the region and help uplift BARMM’s economy.
“We are expecting to plant Cardava banana here in SGA to a farmland area of more or less 5,000 hectares,” Guiabar said.
RBOI Board of Governor Mohammad Pasigan said that the RBOI has been reaching out to farmers and local investors to expose them to investment opportunities in the region.
“The RBOI has even helped them connect to the tie-up “Harvest Program” of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and Landbank of the Philippines (LBP) that could fund both farmers and local investors on livelihood assistance through a very reasonable forms of loan,” Pasigan added.
Meanwhile, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Agrarian Reform (MAFAR) Director Engr. Ismail Guiamel assured the farmers of full support from the Ministry of any initiatives within their mandate that could cater agri-fisheries development in the region.
“MAFAR is always there to assist and support farmers or groups on both technical and farm inputs that they shall be needing,” Guiamel said. (Bangsamoro Information Office)
