The term "Farmers Congress" is a seemingly loose term that often appears in the list of activities during town fiestas, festivals, foundation day celebrations, and other events especially among rural municipalities and provinces in the Philippines. Most of the time, a "farmers congress" in this context involves gathering a sizeable group of farmers or their representatives. Concerned national government agencies, offices under the provincial and municipal local government units, and private organizations are also invited during the activity. The usual activity format is that government and private organizations present their programs, services, or products and then the participating farmers will ask questions at the end of each presentation or of the activity. Aside from “farmers congress” other organizations use terms such as farmers forum, farmers convention, farmers summit, and other labels or brand for these activities. This 2024 various farmers congress and other related activities were implemented in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) some of which involved the Agricultural Training Institute-Regional Training Center-CAR (ATI-RTC-CAR).
President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr, upon assuming the current administration, championed the Bagong Pilipinas branding. This branding, among others, directs agencies under the executive department to bring their frontline services closer to the people. One of the major results of this branding is the Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fair. In the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), particularly in Benguet, the first Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fair took place on April 21-22, 2024 at the Benguet State University (BSU) in La Trinidad, Benguet. In response, the Department of Agriculture (DA), through its Regional Field Office (RFO) in CAR (DA-RFO-CAR), and its bureaus at the regional level joined the fair bringing their frontline services in just one building specifically at the BSU College of Agriculture. Among the highlights of the ATI-RTC-CAR’s participation in the event are the distribution of print information and education materials, the display of information posters on scholarship programs and learning sites for agriculture, and farm business advisory services. Aside from frontline services, the DA also promoted the rest of its programs and services during the event. Recently, proponents of the Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fair are asking Congress to institutionalize the Fair through a law.
Aside from the Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fair, one of the related directives of President Marcos while he was concurrently sitting as the DA Secretary is the conduct of Bagong Pilipinas Town Hall meetings. In this directive, the President mandated the DA to increase its information and awareness drive on the DA’s programs and services at the municipal level. In response, the DA-RFO-CAR scouted for possible strategic venues one of which is the Mountain Province 2024 Langa-ay Festival which is annually celebrated every April. The DA-RFO-CAR then coordinated with the Mountain Province Provincial Agriculture Office for the inclusion of the town hall meeting in the festival activities. Hence, on April 3, 2024 the DA-RFO-CAR led the DA-CAR offices, including the ATI, to the first Bagong Pilipinas Town Hall meeting in Bontoc, Mountain Province. The format of the town hall meeting in Bontoc followed that of the previously discussed “farmers congress” wherein offices under the DA presented their services to farmer leaders and other stakeholders. One notable highlight of the activity is a “farmers forum” which preceded the town hall meeting on the same day. The Provincial Agriculture Office organized the forum to present the results of research studies that the Office implemented in 2023 as follows:
- Assessment of Rural-Based Organizations in Mountain Province (Hazel S. Fagyan);
- Aquaponics Adaptation in Mountain Province (Norbertina L. Balag-ey)
- Emerging Pest on Rice (Ivy B. Alfonso); and
- Heirloom Rice NFS Technology Demonstration (Jovie K. Camso).
Participants in the forum included farmer leaders and representatives of municipal local government units from the ten municipalities of the province, partner agencies and organizations including the DA, and other stakeholders. The forum covered the morning session while the Town Hall Meeting took over the afternoon schedule. Hence, both the forum and the town hall meeting had the same set of participants.
Meanwhile, on May 7, 2024 the Municipal Local Government Unit of La Trinidad in Benguet organized a series of events celebrating the third La Trinidad Farmers and Fisherfolks Month. President Corazon C. Aquino declared May as Farmers and Fisherfolks Month on March 21, 1989 through Proclamation Number 33. La Trinidad is one of the LGUs which has institutionalized the commemoration of the Farmers and Fisherfolks Month at the local level, particularly through Municipal Ordinance Number 3 series of 2023. The 2024 La Trinidad Farmers and Fisherfolks Month kicked off on May 7, 2024 at the La Trinidad Municipal Gymnasium. During the kickoff program, concerned government agencies were invited to present their programs and services before farmers and their representatives. The ATI – Regional Training Center – CAR (ATI-RTC-CAR), DA-RFO-CAR, Philippine Crop Insurance Corporation, and the Benguet Provincial Agriculture Office were among the said government agencies. La Trinidad’s 2024 Farmers and Fisherfolks Month adopted the national theme “Pagpupugay sa mga Masisipag na Magsasaka at Mangingisda na Katuwang Tungo sa Masaganang Bagong Pilipinas.”
Another related activity is the farmers congress of the 10th Sablan Fruit Festival of the municipality of Sablan in Benguet. The congress on September 3, 2024 at Poblacion, Sablan, Benguet involved farmer leaders and representatives from the eight barangays of the municipality. Representatives from the ATI – Regional Training Center – CAR (ATI-RTC-CAR), DA-RFO-CAR, Department of Trade and Industry-CAR, Department of Labor and Employment-CAR, Benguet Provincial Agriculture Office, and the Sablan Municipal Agriculture Office shared their respective programs and services. Said congress is one of the culminating activities of the monthlong celebration which started on August 5, 2024 to September 4, 2024 with the theme “Fruit Basket: Journey through a Decade of Shared Vision, Cooperation, and Sweet Success.”
The continuing pattern of including farmers congress and analogous activities during major community gatherings as observed in the previous narrative is laudable. Moreover, this can be viewed as a strategy, particularly among LGUs, in pursuing their commitment to the devolution of extension services. Nonetheless, organizers of these events may have to innovate from the seemingly standardized pattern of service providers such as government agencies and private companies doing most of the talking while farmers end up as mere passive listeners. Succeeding farmers congress could also be a venue for farmers to share their thoughts and testimonies particularly on their experiences in technology, project or intervention, or farm practice development, discovery, adaptation, localization, or implementation. This is where the value of consistent recording and documentation at the farmers level under the guidance of the agricultural extension worker in the locality comes in handy. Moreover, it is a basic and accepted principle in agricultural extension that farmer to farmer learning is a very effective mechanism. Thus, farmers tend to learn and relate more from the practices and experiences of their fellow farmers. Feedback from the experiences of farmers as end users and beneficiaries of agriculture interventions can also be shared during farm congress which are valuable inputs for program planners and implementers.
The experience of the ATI-RTC-CAR and its partner institutions can be a reference, particularly for LGUs in conceptualizing farmers congress and other similar events. Through the years the ATI-RTC-CAR, with its extension partners, pushed for more farmers to take center stage during related gatherings and events. While the usual inputs from government and non-government service providers remain a regular feature of most of these activities, there is also the increasing role of farmers as presenters, discussants, or resource persons. This was sustained during the First Community Urban Agriculture Model Farm (CUAMF) Summit on April 30, 2024 at Tabuk City, Kalinga implemented in coordination with the Office for Provincial Agricultural Services of Kalinga. The same principle also guided the 2024 Joint Farmers' Forum which showcased the 8th Joint Farmers Forum and 2nd Agri-Clinic on September 3, 2024 in La Trinidad, Benguet. Said forum was also a joint undertaking of the ATI-RTC-CAR, DA-RFO-CAR, and the Cordillera Consortium for Agriculture, Aquatic, and Resources Research and Development (CorCAARRD). Finally, the Third Regional Learning Sites for Agriculture (LSA) Summit enabled ATI partner farmers not only to share their practices and ideas but also to showcase their products and services. The LSA summit on September 4-5, 2024 at the ATI-RTC-CAR in La Trinidad, Benguet went on with the theme “Synergizing for a Greener Future: Collaborative Paths Towards Productivity and Sustainability.”
