BUTUAN CITY – More than 97,000 farmers and fishermen from different areas in Caraga Region are now listed under the Registry System for Basic Sectors in Agriculture (RSBSA) of the Department of Agriculture (DA).
In an interview with the Philippine News Agency (PNA) on Tuesday, Emmylou T. Presilda, spokesperson of DA-13, said the agency is intensifying its campaign among the farmers, farm laborers, and fishermen in the region to register in RSBSA.
“We have a mandate from the central office to fast-track the registration of our farmers and fishermen in the RSBSA,” Presilda said.
She added that DA-13 has hired encoders and dispatched them to different provinces in the region to help in the registration of farmers and fishermen.
A total of 51 enumerators and 40 encoders were hired by DA-13 and are now assigned in different provinces for the program, she said.
Registration to RSBSA is part of the modernization program in the agriculture sector as mandated under Republic Act 8435 or the Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization Act of 1997.
“It is important that our farmers in Caraga will be registered in RSBSA. The RSBSA is the database on basic information of our farmers, fishermen, and farm laborers who are also considered as beneficiaries to the different programs, projects, and services of the agency,” Presilda said.
She noted that DA-13 is targeting around 210,000 farmers and fishermen to register in RSBSA by the end of 2021.
She added that provincial and municipal agriculture offices in the region have also intensified their campaigns for farmers and fishermen to register in RSBSA. (PNA)
