THE municipal government of Tuburan, Cebu, has gathered various government agencies to support its quest to become Cebu’s coffee capital.
Line agencies of the local and national government have formed the technical working group (TWG) to assist the 17 people’s organizations engaged in coffee farming.
These include the Department of Agriculture, the Philippine Coconut Authority, the Department of Social Welfare and Development, the Department of Labor and Employment, the Philippine Fiber Industry Authority, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, the Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office, the Provincial Agriculture Office, the Cooperative Development Authority, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), the National Economic and Development Authority, the Department of Agrarian Reform, the National Irrigation Administration, the Department of the Interior and Local Government, the Department of Science and Technology, the Department of Trade and Industry, the Department of Tourism, and the Philippine Statistics Authority.
Tuburan Mayor Democrito Diamante said he came up with the TWG to empower people to sustain the town’s livelihood program even after his term of office ends.
“We politicians come and go. I want this livelihood project to be sustainable,” Diamante said.
Diamante is pushing for an organic coffee farming and the TWG is also recommending to the municipal council to pass an ordinance prohibiting the use of pesticides.
Diamante said he is eyeing international accreditation for organic products in order to sell those at higher prices.