Western Visayas – As part of its constant efforts to bring agri-fishery information and technologies closer to the communities, the Agricultural Training Institute – Regional Training Center VI continues to establish Farmers Information and Technology Services (FITS) Centers across the region.
The Information Services Section of the Institute spearheaded the inspection and evaluation of the proposed establishment of the additional FITS Centers located in Calinog, Carles, and Leganes in Iloilo City. The team also visited the municipality of Calatrava and Sipalay City in Negros Occidental for the same purpose.
The team visited the proposed FITS centers site to check whether they conform to the specific requirements as stipulated in the Memorandum of Agreement for the FITS establishment.
Among the requirements assessed during the inspection were the accessibility to clients, space requirement, furniture and fixtures, availability of office space and ICT equipment and the availability of staff who will run the FITS center.
Once approve, these proposed FITS centers will be in addition to the 59 existing and operational FITS Centers in the region that provides information services to farmers, fishers and stakeholders in agriculture and fisheries.
The local agriculture’s office visited during the evaluation shared common thoughts on the importance of establishing a FITS Center in their municipalities.
“The establishment of a FITS Center is greatly needed in our community by our farmers, fisher folks and especially by our 4H young members ” shared Jerica Ameler, Municipal Agriculturist of Calatrava.
Also, Diana Marie Limbang, Municipal Agriculturist of Leganes stated: “FITS center will help us convey up-to-date information to our beloved farmers and fisher folks as well as serve as a center for new technologies.”
The FITS Center is one of the components of the Techno Gabay Program of the Agricultural Training Institute which serves as one of the modalities of the Institute in bringing extension services to the countryside. It is a one-stop service facility established in the community that provides easy access to agri-fishery information and technologies.
The inspection and evaluation of the proposed FITS Centers were conducted last June 13-14, 2022 for municipalities in Iloilo and June 21-23, 2022 in Negros Occidental.
