SAN ANDRES, Quezon (PIA) – In support of boosting the agricultural productivity of farmers and attaining the goal of food security, the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) Quezon Irrigation Management Office has tied up with the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) in unveiling a new Php10-million worth of irrigation project (SIP) in San Andres, Quezon. 

The Camflora Small Irrigation Project is poised to bring substantial benefits to agricultural farming in the area by providing vital irrigation resources to over 20 hectares of agricultural land as part of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program - Irrigation Component (CARP-IC).

NIA Quezon district engineer Romulo Angeles emphasized that by providing essential irrigation infrastructure and support services to farmers, the government empowers agrarian reform beneficiaries to utilize their lands for sustainable agriculture, and improves the overall well-being of rural communities.

The irrigation agency said that they will continue to coordinate and work with other government agencies and local governments to further assist and support the agriculture sector.

“NIA and our administrator Engr. Eduardo Eddie G. Guillen supports the food security initiative of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. by supporting and enriching our agricultural lands. That's why we ask our farmers to also take care of this irrigation system and to not fight for the vital water resource,” he said.

The irrigation system will benefit 15 farmers and agrarian reform beneficiaries who are members of the Samahan ng mga Magsasaka sa Sitio Umagos (SMSU) Inc. 

SMSU President Leberato Bancat Sr. expressed his gratitude to NIA and DAR for their timely intervention, as for him this is the first time that they felt support and assistance from the national government.

"We are grateful to the leadership of the NIA and DAR, because it has been a long time since we felt this kind of help from our government," Bancat said.

According to the latest data from NIA Calabarzon, 415 operational irrigation systems are irrigating 34,215 hectares of farmlands across the region. 

NIA said that they continue to maintain the irrigation canals by conducting regular desilting measures and clean-up operations to ensure the undisturbed flow of water to agricultural lands. (AM/PIA-4A; with reports from NIA Calabarzon)