File photo of a farmer planting rice seedlings in Maguindanao (Photo courtesy of Bangsamoro Information Office)
COTABATO CITY – Mamasapano town, a former war zone in Maguindanao del Sur is being transformed into a rice zone, with farmers in the area earning double for selling palay or unhusked rice, a regional lawmaker said Tuesday.
“In Bagong Pilipinas of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., a small farmers’ cooperative Al-Rahman Farmers MPC FARM, embarked on a very humble effort to support the President’s food security program,” Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) member Suharto Ambolodto said in a statement.
BTA is the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) provisional lawmaking body.
The farmers’ group effort, he said, is being supported by the Army’s 601st Infantry Brigade and the 6th Civil-Military Battalion, both under the 6th Infantry Division in Central Mindanao.
“Farmers in Mamasapano are now earning double for selling palay or unhusked rice, raising the hope to turn the municipality from a war zone to a rice zone under Bagong Pilipinas,” Ambolodto said, referring to the erstwhile conflict-affected areas collectively known as the SPMS box (Shariff Aguak, Pagatin (Datu Saudi), Mamasapano and Datu Salibo).
The village of Tukanalipao in Mamasapano town was the site of the bloody encounter between the police’s elite Special Action Force and Moro extremists on Jan. 25, 2015.
Top rice producer
Barely nine years after the tragic incident, however, the town has blossomed into one of the top rice-producing towns in the province, with rice farmers now selling more than PHP22 per kilogram for palay, double the usual price of PHP13 per kilo.
"Farmers in Mamasapano used to earn only PHP65,000 per hectare at PHP13 per kilogram and 5 metric tons (MT). Now at PHP22 per kilogram and 11.3 MT, one hectare can earn PHP248,000 or a PHP183,000 improvement," Ambolodto said.
He further noted that Mamasapano farmers surpassed in September last year the 2025 Department of Agriculture's palay harvest target of 5 MT per hectare by harvesting 86 percent more at 9.3 MT per hectare.
The productive harvests meant local farmer cooperatives could now sell rice at a lower price to their members, Ambolodto said, citing the case of the Al-Rahman Cooperative which sells its rice for PHP39 per kilo.
Meanwhile, Kagui Mustapha, 60, a farmer in Tukanalipao, said the assistance from the Ministry of Agriculture, Fishery and Agrarian Reform (MAFAR) has also helped them improve their rice productivity.
“MAFAR and BARMM have provided us with post-harvest facilities like solar dryers, improved roads leading to the market center, and increased our output,” he said in the vernacular, adding that the prevailing general peace and order situation has greatly improved.
Under the current administration, the Philippines reaped its biggest harvest of 20 million metric tons of palay in 2023, putting the Chief Executive’s agenda to achieve a robust Filipino agriculture sector front and center.
The President’s direction toward stronger Filipino rice production also allowed the government to reduce rice imports by 300,000 metric tons.
Unity, transformation
Earlier, the BARMM government had supported President Marcos and his Bagong Pilipinas campaign for unity and transformation.
In a separate statement, the Chief Minister of BARMM, Ahod Ebrahim, has expressed his firm commitment to adhering to the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) provisions that recognize the legitimacy and fairness of the Bangsamoro cause and aspirations towards their right to self-determination.
“We, therefore, urge everyone to help protect the gains of the peace process, let us continue to support the current administration and allow peace and civility to reign over the affairs of our land,” Ebrahim, also the figurehead of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, said.
Under Bagong Pilipinas, BARMM leaders also affirmed that most of the region is becoming more peaceful, drastically reducing the threat of violent extremism. (PNA)
