SUPPORT TO IPs. DA-13 Regional Executive Director Abel James I. Monteagudo speaks at Nov. 27-28 orientation on Kabuhayan at Kaunlaran para sa Kababayang Katutubo, as he emphasizes the importance of the program and its benefits to the ancestral domains of the six tribal groups in Caraga Region. (Photo courtesy of DA-13 Information Office)
BUTUAN CITY – The Department of Agriculture in the Caraga Region (DA-13) said it has given a boost to its support programs and services to the indigenous peoples (IPs) in the region.
DA-Caraga hosted the Mindanao-wide Kabuhayan at Kaunlaran para sa Kababayang Katutubo (4Ks) program orientation on Wednesday and Thursday here, which was participated in by regional coordinators from Regions 9, 10, 11, 12 and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
Representatives from the National Commission on Indigenous People (NCIP) were also present during the two-day orientation, said Regional Technical Director Nicandro Navia, the focal person for the 4Ks program.
Navia said the gathering aims to prepare technical personnel tasked to implement the program in their respective areas, and that DA-13 targets the six major tribes in Caraga to benefit from the program.
He said DA will focus on livelihood programs that will be implemented in IP communities, particularly inside their ancestral lands.
“This orientation will also equip our personnel on the technical procedures in implementing the 4Ks program in IP communities,” he said, adding the IPs are tasked to identify the livelihood services and programs they need in their communities.
Feasibility studies will also be conducted by validating teams composed of technical persons from the DA and NCIP to determine the feasibility of identified projects and services, he added.
He said the full implementation of the 4Ks program will start next year.
In a text message on Friday, DA-13 Information Office said Regional Executive Director Abel James I. Monteagudo has identified the program as the agency’s direct intervention to address the needs of the IP communities through livelihood and food production programs.
Monteagudo said the 4Ks program is the agency’s response to the mandate of President Rodrigo R. Duterte to help the IP communities
Aside from DA and NCIP, other government agencies involved in 4Ks program include the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR), Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). (PNA)
