Davao Region

Davao Oriental gives up on irrigation system due to revenue cut

Ferdinand Zuasola

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Davao Oriental gives up on irrigation system due to revenue cut

TOP VIEW. A view from the top of the Cateel irrigation dam in Davao Oriental.

Davao Oriental rovincial Information Office

The irrigation system is designed to water 4,000 hectares of rice fields, but currently serves only 1,600 hectares due to damage to its right canal

DAVAO ORIENTAL, Philippines – A sharp decline in Davao Oriental’s revenue share from the national government has led to the provincial government’s decision to give up the management of a P289-million irrigation system to the National Irrigation Administration (NIA). 

Davao Oriental Governor Corazon Malanyaon said the province was unable to bear the system’s operating and maintenance costs due to the capitol’s reduced 2023 annual budget. 

The provincial government only spends an average of over P1 million annually to manage the Cateel irrigation system, but repairs and rehabilitation costs are too high for the provincial to handle, according to Emilia Barrera, the head of the local finance committee.

Davao Oriental provincial board member Rotchie Ravelo, a former provincial agriculturist, said, “With our small budget, it is so expensive to run it.”

The Cateel irrigation system was built nine years ago to aid rice farmers. Also known as the Aragon Dam, it was designed to water 4,000 hectares of rice fields, but currently serves only 1,600 hectares due to damage to its right canal. 

The provincial government’s technical team stated that the dam’s optimal economic life is only five years, making it necessary for the NIA to take over. 

Edito Sumile, the provincial agriculturist, said, “To really make it functional and cover an area of 4,000 hectares, it will really require a huge amount, beyond the capacity of the province to shoulder for now.”

The province’s budget for 2023 is some P2.3 billion, a decrease from 2022’s more than P2.7 billion, said Vice Governor Nino Sotero Uy.

The capitol’s annual revenue decline was further compounded by the economic impact of COVID-19, officials said.

“Delaying the repair and turnover of the Cateel irrigation project would also delay progress in this area,” said Abel James Monteagudo, the director of the Department of Agriculture (DA) in the Davao Region.

Malanyaon said the transfer of the project, which she referred to as her legacy, was necessary for the best interest of local farmers and the province’s goal of achieving food security. – Rappler.com

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