Looking through the Grassroots View: ATI-RTC-CAR Focuses AFE-RBME Lens on 2019 Extension Interventions

Thu, 11/17/2022 - 10:16

LA TRINIDAD, BENGUET. Extension is "consistently listening to the people" thus, the Agricultural Training Institute-Regional Training Center-Cordillera Administrative Region (ATI-RTC-CAR) continues to mainstream the Agriculture and Fishery Extension - Results-Based Monitoring and Evaluation (AFE - RBME) along its services. Now on its fourth year of implementation, the 2022 AFE-RBME in CAR aims to gather feedback from 337 farmers and 33 Agricultural Extension Workers (AEW) who underwent ATI-implemented trainings and other extension interventions in 2019.

RBME Picture

The AFE-RBME is a system that gathers and analyzes the results of ATI’s extension interventions such as policies, programs, and projects. The system zeroes in to the answers of the “so what” questions on ATI implemented extension interventions. Through the AFE-RBME, services are studied and analyzed in terms of success of implementation and if these have produced the actual and intended results based on the objectives of the interventions. Hence, the AFE-RBME will study the services which the Institute delivered at least three years ago.

The system covers three major parts namely the immediate, intermediate, and long-term results. Under the immediate results, the AFE-RBME digs into the access to and improvements in the provision of services, and the attitude, skills and knowledge of clients acquired from the intervention. The intermediate results cover improvements on the clients’ productivity, resiliency, and overall empowerment, while the long-term result is concerned on their increased competitiveness.

Taking the AFE-RBME’s opening salvo for this year in CAR are the training graduates of the Updates on Corn Production and Financial Literacy in Alfonso Lista, Ifugao. The ATI-CAR AFE-RBME team visited the respondents from barangays San Quintin and Calimag in Alfonso Lista on March 7, 2022. The next day, the ATI-RTC-CAR team met with ten graduates of the Climate Smart Farm Business School (CSFBS) in Malin-awa, Tabuk City, Kalinga for the same interview. The CSFBS is an ATI-RTC-CAR funded intervention in 2019 and was co-implemented with the Tabuk City Agriculture Office at Malin-awa, Tabuk City, Kalinga. Still from Tabuk City, graduates of various trainings from Barangay Bulanao also went through the AFE-RBME interview on March 8, 2022.

Training graduates from the municipalities of Dolores, La Paz, and Lagangilang in Abra came in next for the AFE-RBME series of interview. Participants from Lagangilang met with the ATI-CAR team on March 9, 2022, La Paz on March 10, 2022 while graduates from Dolores were interviewed on March 11, 2022. Aside from farmer graduates, concerned AEW trainees from the local government units (LGU) were also interviewed for the AFE-RBME.

The team headed back to Abra on March 21-23, 2022 this time for the interview of training graduates from the municipalities of San Isidro and Villaviciosa. Ms. Hermina C. Bolaoit, Municipal Agriculturist of Villaviciosa, gathered 18 participants from barangays Ap-apaya, Laplapog and Lumaba on March 21, 2022 at Laplapog, Villaviciosa, Abra. Graduates from barangays Bolilising and Tamac, followed the next day through the vehicle assistance of the Municipal LGU of Villaviciosa as access to these barangays prove to be one of the most difficult in the area. Thus, the ATI-CAR team were able to gather feedback from 35 respondents in Villaviciosa with four coming from Ap-apaya, five each from Laplapog and Lumaba, nine from Bolilising and eight from Tamac. The respondents are graduates of the two batches of the Training on Business Plan Preparation for Farmers of Villaviciosa, Abra which is an ATI-funded proposal of the Villaviciosa Municipal Agriculture Office in 2019.

Graduates of another ATI-funded training proposal, particularly the Training on Ube Production Technology for Farmers of San Isidro, Abra also provided their feedback on March 21, 2022. The Municipal Agriculture Office of San Isidro, which proposed the said training, coordinated the invitation of respondents from barangays Dalimag, Pantoc, Poblacion and Tangbao. The ATI-RTC-CAR will continuously run this activity in coordination with the concerned LGU until the target number of respondents are met.

The AFE-RBME results will form part of the inputs for the ATI's planning and implementation of upcoming extension services. The ATI-RTC-CAR intends to interview 33 AEW and 337 farmers or 370 respondents for this year’s AFE-RBME implementation. Aside from the AFE-RBME, the ATI-RTC-CAR also continuously update and validate its database on the AEW profile with the agriculture and veterinary offices of local government units it visits during the AFE-RBME and other activities.

The results and analyses of the feedback gathered through the AFE-RBME will guide the ATI personnel, and other extension program implementers as it will provide them with an enhanced view of how interventions work in the field. It will also serve as a ready tool for the ATI management in crafting better-informed and evidence-based decisions for the continual improvement delivery of its of services. Moreover, the AFE-RBME is also one of the Institute’s response to the mandate of increased transparency and accountability in government.
(With Khareen B. Tigui-ing, reports from Gideon T. Ammang and Ian Jade V. Watawat)

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