AURORA PROVINCE -- The School-on-the Air on Smart Rice Agriculture (SOA-SRA) regional technical working group (RTWG) composed of Agricultural Training Institute-Central Luzon (ATI-CL), Department of Agriculture-Regional Field Office III, Philippine Rice Research Institute, Aurora State College of Technology, and Office of the Provincial Agriculturist-Aurora convened on February 4, 2021 through an online meeting for the implementation of the program.
With rice yield of less than four tons per hectare, Aurora was chosen as a site for the implementation of the program with 3,000 farmer-participants in May-September 2021.
SOA-SRA aims to help catalyze agriculture modernization through the massive and sustained education of smallholder farmers and local intermediaries on modern and innovative technologies and approaches on smart rice production.
"This activity aims to engage all partners and stakeholders from planning to implementation and down to the evaluation. This will ensure the success of the activity and in turn create a more positive impact to our farmers," quipped ATI-CL Center Director, Veronica Concepcion V. Esguerra.
Moreover, it shall share cutting edge technologies and innovative approaches to help maximize rice productivity in medium and low yield provinces through radio, amplifying the limited reach of agricultural extension workers.
The baseline survey and training needs assessment for the program will be carried out on February 16-18, 2021. (SCODaquio)