DAVAO CITY—Coffee growers from Sultan Kudarat have received technical training from the World Bank-funded Philippine Rural Development Project (PRDP), which also secured financial support from the European Union.
The World Bank and EU jointly financed a series of trainings for coffee farmers in Sultan Kudarat to improve the production and quality of coffee produced in the province, as well as to improve their entrepreneurial skills and management of coffee in the area.
Three batches of trainings for coffee growers dubbed “Knowledge on Agri-preneurship and Productivity Enhancement” (KAPE) Training, started in December 2022. The next two trainings were conducted in February and March this year, the PRDP said.
The KAPE training was organized by the Department of Agriculture, which implements all the PRDP programs in Mindanao to strengthen key players along the coffee value chain.
PSO Mindanao I-PLAN head Elden Karl Requilme said the KAPE training paved the way for the certification of 20 coffee trainers, who in turn trained 61 coffee farmers to become agricultural entrepreneurs or agri-preneurs.
“The coffee trainer’s role is to mentor coffee farmers in crafting their respective coffee farm and enterprise business plans.”
The inaugural batch of KAPE training was conducted with partners from Sultan Kudarat State University (SKSU) with Nestle Philippines through its Government and Industry Affairs Executive Donnel Jun Tiedra. Tiedra was the resource trainer for the first batch of trainers from SKSU, and DA in Region 12.
The training was attended by local agriculture officers of the municipalities of Lebak, Kalamansig, Esperanza, Bagong Bayan, and Senator Ninoy Aquino as well as professors and technical staff on agriculture from SKSU.
The second batch in Senator Ninoy Aquino town underwent training last February 21-24 while the third batch in Kalamansig were trained last February 28 to March 2.
The KAPE training provided coffee farmers knowledge and skills on coffee farm plan, integrated nutrient, pests and disease management and coffee farm business management.
Farmers were also given farm tools, such as pruning shear, grafting knife, and a saw for coffee rejuvenation and farm maintenance.
The PRDP said its scale-up program would allow more support to come in for the coffee industry in Sultan Kudarat through public-private partnerships with companies, such as Nestle Philippines, and state universities and colleges, such as SKSU.