TRAINING CENTER. The site of the proposed Adaptation and Mitigation Initiative in Agriculture (AMIA) Training Center worth PHP2 million in Barangay Rizal, Sagay City, Negros Occidental. Implemented by the Department of Agriculture 6 (Western Visayas), it will mainly benefit the Menakalaw Farmer Beneficiaries Association, which serves as the AMIA Village Sagay. (Photo courtesy of Sagay City Information and Tourism Office)
BACOLOD CITY – A PHP2 million Adaptation and Mitigation Initiative in Agriculture (AMIA) Training Center will soon rise in Sagay City, Negros Occidental through the assistance of the Department of Agriculture (DA) 6 (Western Visayas).
The principal recipients are 62 members of the Menakalaw Farmer Beneficiaries Association (MEFABA) based in Barangay Rizal, which serves as the AMIA Village Sagay.
City Agriculturist Julie Delima said in an interview on Thursday that the facility would become an income-generating project of MEFABA and open for use by farmers from other associations and interested individuals for a minimal fee.
“The center will showcase the farmers’ innovative and climate-resilient farming technologies,” she added.
The association put up a temporary facility made of bamboo and nipa, and this August, they will have a building for the AMIA Training Center with a storage room and training equipment funded under the Mainstreaming Climate Resilient Agriculture in Regional Programs of the DA.
MEFABA is seeking accreditation as a learning site from the Agricultural Training Institute.
DA-6 turned over a PHP450,000 financial assistance to MEFABA simultaneous with the project's groundbreaking last month.
In a statement, DA-6 Regional Technical Director for Operations and Extensions Jose Albert Barrogo said the AMIA Training Center would help increase the production and income of farmers and ensure food security in the community.
He also committed to installing a solar-powered irrigation system to address the lack of water supply in the area.
MEFABA chairperson Jose Constantino thanked the DA-6 and the Sagay city government for their continued support through the DA-AMIA Program.
The AMIA is the flagship program of the DA dedicated to addressing the dual challenges of climate change – adaptation and mitigation.
According to the DA, an AMIA Village is a testing ground for adaptation and mitigation initiatives and a breeding ground for institutional linkages.
It also serves as a go-to place for other communities to learn from and emulate and where technological and institutional innovations are introduced for access to climate-relevant support services. (PNA)
