The Department of Agriculture Regional Field Office No. 02 (DA-RFO 02), through the Green Climate Fund-Adapting Philippine Agriculture to Climate Change (GCF-APA) Project – Regional Project Management Office 02 (GCF-APA RPMO 02), successfully conducted the Project Orientation and Needs Assessment in the 16 pilot municipalities of Cagayan Province from July 7 to August 6, 2026.
The activities were conducted in Santo Niño, Enrile, Peñablanca, Alcala, Camalaniugan, Aparri, Iguig, Gattaran, Rizal, Santa Ana, Gonzaga, Allacapan, Pamplona, Santa Praxedes, Baggao, and Calayan. The activity aimed to introduce the APA Project to its direct beneficiaries and gather baseline information that will be used for effective project planning and implementation.
A total of 50 endorsed Farmers Cooperatives and Associations (FAs) for 2026 participated in the orientation and assessment. During the orientation, participants were briefed on the project objectives, with emphasis on strengthening farmers’ capacity to adapt to the impacts of climate change through Climate Information Services (CIS), Climate Resilient Agriculture (CRA), and institutional support.
The project also aims to establish Learning Groups (LGs) composed of 30 farmers from each FCA. These Learning Groups will serve as the direct beneficiaries of various interventions, including technical assistance, capacity-building, technology demonstration farms, and enterprise development activities. Following the orientation, the GCF-APA RPMO 02 conducted a Needs Assessment and Community Appraisal, including interviews with FCA officers and selected farmer-members. The assessment aimed to gather information on the organizations, the socio-economic conditions of the farmers, and their agricultural practices.
The major commodities produced by the participating farmers include rice, corn, upland rice, peanuts, vegetables, pineapple, sweet potato, coconut, purple yam (ube), and white corn. The support of the Municipal Agriculture Offices (MAOs), barangay officials, and officers and members of the participating FCAs was also vital in the successful conduct of the activities.
The orientations, focus group discussions, needs assessments, and farmer profiling activities were led by Provincial Technical Assistant Coordinator (PTAC) Razle A. Martin, together with Field Technical Assistants (FTAs) Steven Harris U. Bosito, Arjay A. Nejana, and Catherine A. Antonio. The results of the activities conducted will be the baseline for project planning, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation.
via Razle A. Martin