Ochoa leads MOA
signing for P12.9 billion hydropower project in Isabela
Press Release
February 23, 2011
MALACAÑANG –
Executive Secretary Paquito N. Ochoa Jr. on Wednesday led the signing
of a memorandum of agreement (MOA) for the establishment of a P12.9
billion hydropower and irrigation project in Isabela which will
generate 100 megawatts and irrigate 41,700 hectares of new areas to
boost food sufficiency.
The MOA was signed at
the launching of Isabela’s Local Convergence Agro-Enterprise Cluster,
a project of the Convergence Initiative undertaken by the Departments
of Agriculture, Agrarian Reform, and Environment and National
Resources (DA-DAR-DENR), in partnership with the provincial
government, Mindano Grains, PhilMaize, S/N Aboitiz, and the
Filipino-Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Once completed, the
project will generate power for the towns of Ilaguen, San Agustin and
Tumauini, and provide irrigation to new areas in the municipalities of
Ilagan, Gamu, Jones, Tumauini, Cauayan, San Mariano, San Agustin and
Benito Soliven.
“This project is not
only a prime example of the rewards of the Convergence Initiative, but
of Public-Private Partnerships the President and our administration
are so optimistic about,” Ochoa said. “Such a project is necessary if
we are to address one of the biggest issues facing us today: rice
self-sufficiency.”
According to the
Executive Secretary, the project is line with the Aquino
Administration’s agenda of empowering farms and rural enterprises to
become vital components in the government’s drive to achieve food
security and more economic growth in the countryside.
“Our presence here
today is evidence enough that we are taking this as an unwavering
commitment to our people. We will uplift the welfare of our farm and
rural workers, and, in the process, we will establish the systems and
infrastructure so that food self-sufficiency is realized during and
beyond our term,” Ochoa said.
To achieve this goal,
he said, the government has started taking steps to move away from
heavy dependence on rice imports and clear the bottlenecks in the
bureaucracy that impede efforts of agencies to achieve the shared
objectives.
One such step is the
DA-DAR-DENR National Convergence Initiative, a multisectoral and
integrated approach wherein three rural development agencies will
undertake joint planning, programming and budgeting. They will also
have a common or well-coordinated effort at all levels from the
grassroots up to the level of the department heads.
“The projects we are
kicking off today are examples of what can be achieved if the goals of
the Convergence Initiative are realized,” Ochoa said.
Ochoa was joined by
Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala, Agrarian Reform Secretary
Virgilio De Los Reyes and Environment Secretary Ramon Paje and Isabela
Gov. Faustino Dy III, NIA Administrator Antonio Nangel,
Filipino-Chinese Chamber of Commerce Chairman Alfonso Uy, PhilMaize
Chairman Roger Navarro, Mindanao Grains CEO Roderico Bioco, and S/N
Aboitiz CEO Emmanuel Rubio at the signing ceremony that coincided with
the week-long celebrations of the 25th anniversary of the EDSA People
Power Revolution.
Also present were
Isabela Representatives Napoleon Dy, Ana Cristina Go, Giordi Aggabao
and Rodolfo Albano Jr., and Mayor Benjamin Dy. “As we celebrate the
EDSA Power Revolution, it is best to honor the event by devoting
ourselves to making sure that we greatly reduce those who are poor,
those who suffer the pangs of hunger and those whose poverty denies
them and their children an opportunity to secure a bright and stable
future,” Ochoa said.