These farmers spent more than three hours transporting their produce before the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s (DSWD) Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan – Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services (KALAHI-CIDSS) was introduced in their community.
After constructing farm-to-market road under the KALAHI-CIDSS, farmers can now transport their freshly harvested vegetables within just an hour.
Nestled in the highlands of Buguias, Benguet, the breathtaking beauty of Baculongan Norte is both a blessing and a challenge to the farmers and the whole community.
For decades, one of the most significant challenges faced by farmers in Baculongan Norte was the treacherous manner in transporting their harvests. Navigating the narrow, bumpy, and steep roads made it almost impossible to bring their crops to the market efficiently.
This was the reality until the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s (DSWD) Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan – Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services (KALAHI-CIDSS) program was introduced in Baculongan Norte.
“Noong wala pa yung farm-to-market road ng KALAHI-CIDSS dito sa amin, talagang nahihirapan po kami rito sa bundok kasi, halimbawa, pag magtatanim kami ay mahirap buhatin yung mga fertilizer na ginagamit namin,” Peter Misaen, one of the farmers in Baculongan Norte narrated in the DSWD’s 14th episode of the DSWD’s Kwento ng Pag-asa at Pagbabago (#KPAP) aired over the agency’s Facebook page.
“Malayo yung kalsada, maputik, at saka lubak-lubak kaya hindi kaya ng sasakyan na pumunta rito sa garden kaya from farm to kalsada ay kami ang bumubuhat, manual po. Nasisira yung gulay sa pagbuhat dahil malayo po yung dadaanan,” Peter told KPAP.
The farmers said the poor road conditions affects not only their harvests but also the day-to-day life of the residents.
“Pag may manganganak, kailangan may magbubuhat sa kanila na mga mamamayan from here going down sa bayan. Kaya ang hirap po. Minsan may naaabutan na manganganak sa daan. Pag sa sakit, marami na po ang namatay sa amin noong wala pa yung KALAHI-CIDSS project,” Elvie Maguli recalled.
The farm-to-market road built under the KALAHI-CIDSS program significantly improved access to markets. Farmers who once spent more than three hours on the roads can now transport their freshly harvested vegetables within just an hour. This development has not only reduced transportation time and costs but has also preserved the quality of their produce.
“Noong nagawa na po yung daan, yung gulay namin ay hindi na masisira at pag may manganganak, hindi na manganganak sa daan dahil nadadala na sa ospital,” Peter said as he thanked the DSWD for granting them the construction of the farm-to-market road.
“Noon ay babyahe ka ng tatlong oras pero noong dumating yung project ng DSWD ay naging isang oras na lamang papunta sa market.
Napaikli po at yung kalidad ng gulay ay talagang quality talaga,” Peter happily said.
The DSWD’s KALAHI-CIDSS uses the community-driven development (CDD) strategy which allows communities to gain control over decisions and resources. Through the program, community members actively participate to identify and prioritize their community’s concerns and allow them to design, implement, and manage solutions to their priority problems.
“Noong dumating ang KALAHI-CIDSS dito sa aming barangay, sinabi sa amin na kung ano ang gusto naming project, yun ang gagawin natin. Kaya nag-isip kami na ang unang project namin ay yung farm-to-market road kasi talagang nahihirapan kami,” Peter said.
For 2024, under additional financing (AF) funded through a loan agreement with the World Bank to address the effects of the
COVID-19 pandemic and recent disasters, the KALAHI-CIDSS was able to help more than 1.6 million households in 7,514 barangays at 288 municipalities across 14 regions in the country.
The #KPAP bagged the Public Service Campaign – National Level Award in the first-ever ‘Parangal: Gawad ng Kahusayan sa Komunikasyong Pampubliko’ sponsored by the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) held last December.
The #KPAP is a joint production of the Traditional Media Service (TMS) and the Digital Media Service (DMS) under the Strategic Communications Group. It is hosted by TMS Director Aldrine Fermin.
