CALAPAN CITY, Oriental Mindoro (PIA) -- The Department of Agriculture (DA) regional office in Mimaropa recently turned over ten hand tractors to the Iwahig Prison and Penal Farm (IPPF).

This is part of the implementation of the reform initiatives of the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Justice Reformation Initiative for Sustainable Environment for Food Security Project (DA X DOJ RISE Project).

The ceremony was presided over by DA Regional Technical Director Celso C. Olido, together with Agricultural Program Coordinating Officer (APCO) Vicente A. Binasahan, Jr. and DA-PRES Center Chief Librada Fuertes.

According to Binasahan, the tractors are in addition to the rice and vegetable seeds that were also donated to the prison facility as part of the DA’s commitment to the project.

“Sana ay maging matagumpay ang partnership na ito upang makamit natin ang layunin natin na food security, nang sa gayun ay hindi na mag-suffer ang mga Palaweño sa mataas na presyo ng bigas,” he said.

[I hope this partnership will be successful so that we can achieve our goal on food security, so that Palaweños will no longer suffer from the high price of rice.]

Moreover, Olido looked back on how the IPPF program was formed until the memorandum of agreement was signed.

According to him, this is related to the directive of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. to achieve the country's food security with the help of the agri machinery.

Supt. Gary A. Garcia expressed his gratitude to DA for its support to IPPF in response to the project's advocacy.

“Sinisiguro namin na hindi masasayang at mapapakinabangan ito ng IPPF upang mapadali ang land preparation hanggang sa pag-ani. Sana patuloy ang tulong ng DA para sa matagumpay na implementasyon ng DA x DOJ RISE Project,” he said.

[We ensure that it will not be wasted and that IPPF will take advantage of it to facilitate land preparation until harvest. I hope the DA's assistance continues for the successful implementation of the DA x DOJ RISE Project.] (GATS/PIA MIMAROPA)