Lanao del Sur has identified coffee and abaca among the products that it intends to develop through partnerships with other groups.
In a press statement released by the Strengthening Urban Resilience for Growth with Equity (SURGE) project yesterday, the provincial government signed two agreements during the Marawi-Lanao Agribusiness Forum and Market Matching on July 17-18 in Marawi City for the developments of the two crops.
The first agreement was with the Philippine coffee Board which will support the “development of coffee industry through technology trainings and market linkages.”
The other agreement was with the Philippine Fiber Industry Development Authority and NewTech Pulp, a private company, “to initiate action plans to expand abaca production and village-level processing in the province.”
SURGE, a project funded by the United States Agency for International Development, supported the event which was organized by the Bangon Marawi Chamber of Commerce and Industry which was held to help farmers gain “market information on viable agricultural crops and the opportunity to forge partnerships with key private companies.”
The statement said about 500 displaced farmers joined the event which Task Force Bangon Marawi, the governments of Lanao del Sur and Marawi City.
The event also invited key companies to provide the farmers with possible linkages both in plant propagation as well as market prospects, among them the SL Agritech Production, East West Seed Corp., Pilmico Food Corp., UGP Group and Matling Corp.
The presentations of the company, the statement added provided possible “partnership schemes for agricultural products that are highly suitable in Lanao area” with other products include cassava, poultry, rice, banana and native scallion.
In the newly constituted Bangsamoro in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, Lanao del Sur is the top producer of fruits like banana, mango, durian; and root crops like cassava, sweet potato, and taro, the Philippine Statistics Authority reported.
