LEGAZPI CITY -- The Department of Agriculture (DA) regional office here launched the Gulayan sa Paaralan Program (GPP) in Sorsogon City to promote vegetable production in public elementary and secondary schools and signal the nationwide re-launch of this joint undertaking between the DA and Department of Education (DepEd).
Emily Bordado, DA regional spokesperson, said the participating schools will establish school gardens as ready food baskets or source of vegetables of the feeding program for malnourished or undernourished pupils.
"The DA will spearhead the implementation of the program and provide the production inputs such as seeds, organic fertilizers and garden tools and facilitate the conduct of trainings. The excess vegetables harvested could be sold by the school to generate income for the sustenance of the project," she said in a phone interview on Thursday.
Some 90 school heads and officials from 60 elementary schools and 30 secondary or senior high schools from the different municipalities of Sorsogon attended the recent launching activity cum training on vegetable gardening and nursery establishment at the DepEd compound in Legazpi.
Bordado said Sorsogon Governor Robert Lee Rodriguez personally graced the occasion and affirmed his support to the project, saying that agriculture and education are priority thrusts of his administration.
He added that Gulayan sa Paaralan compliments his program for the province on nutrition, waste management and tourism.
"The provincial government as one of the partners of this program will help in the implementation and monitoring of the program through its extension workers and may also provide assistance and resources," Bordado said.
Dr. Mary Grace Rodriguez, DA’s officer-in charge of the Field Operations Division and Regional Coordinator of the High Value Crops Development Program (HVCDP), explained that Gulayan sa Paaralan which is under the HVCDP, also aims to address malnutrition among school children by promoting the production of nutritious and safe foods.
It will also serve as a laboratory where students can learn and apply their knowledge on vegetable production and showcase small–scale food production models. It will also inculcate among the students the values of gardening, wellness and care for environment.
In addition to the assorted vegetable seeds, DA will provide each participating school fertilizer and needed gardening tools.
Aside from establishing a vegetable garden on a 200-square meter area, the schools shall establish a seedling nursery enclosed with plastic where the vegetable seedlings will be germinated in trays before they are transplanted to the seed plots/beds.
Dr. Rodriguez announced that as an incentive to the participating schools, two best “Gulayan" projects in the province will be awarded at the end of the cropping period.
Assistant Schools Division Superintendent Jenny Postrado urged school officials and teachers to support this program and inculcate among the children the value of farming and the importance of good nutrition.
As a show of support to the program, she asked the participants to show the thumbs up sign while declaring “thumbs up for green thumb” to urge everyone to plant vegetables and other crops.
After the opening program, Nestor Nava, provincial vegetable coordinator, lectured on Vegetable Production and Cultural Management and Seedling Nursery Establishment.
The GPP was started by the DA and DepEd in 2007 and its implementation was strengthened in 2016. The program prescribes the participation of parents and other members of the community in the conduct of educational programs related to nutrition education, basic pest management, food preservation techniques, composting and environmental conservation, among others. (PNA)
