Road for Peace benefits Samar farmers

MOTIONG, Samar — An upland village in this town is now accessible from the provincial capital through a project funded by the Office of the President’s Payapa at Masaganang Pamayanan (PAMANA).

Paving the winding and bumpy road passing through the foggy mountains of interior villages of Motiong and Paranas towns, the road funded by PAMANA gives easy access to residents, mostly farmers travelling to Catbalogan City.

Before the road was paved, farmers struggled to make ends meet. They had to travel nearly 50 kilometers over bumby roads, to sell their farm produce. Making things worse, middlemen exploited their misfortune.

“This road is our lifeline,” said farmer Josephine Dacanay, 45, of Calapi village.

In the past, Dacanay used to load her harvest into a single motorcycle and peddled them in nearby villages, earning about to a month.

Her life changed in 2013 when bulldozers cleared the way for a paved road linking Lokilokon village in Paranas to Calapi village in Motiong. The paved road has shortened travel time to Catbalogan City to an hour instead of three, giving farmers easy access to bigger markets and increased their profits by nearly 50 percent.

“Our life has changed for the better since this road was built,” she said. “Farmers now produce more crops year-round, and we get a much better price.”

Imelda Calagos Bonifacio, PAMANA Samar Island coordinator said the road is part of the ongoing construction of 50kilometer road network, traversing the hinterland villages of Motiong, Paranas and San Jose de Buan.

The Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) has been pouring funds every year for the project, which will be completed in 2016.

Governor Share Ann Tan of Samar pointed out that food production in the interior villages Motiong and Paranas has doubled since the replacement of muddy paths with 15 kilometers of paved roads.

“Higher farm output has kept rural demand alive and definitely it helped the economy,” Governor Tan said.

“We believe the changes are already showing signs of being self-sustaining. Many houses have television sets and families aspire to buy motorcycles for their fast mobility,” she added.

Another farmer, Rosita Gabin of Hinicaan village in Motiong town is among hundreds of farmers who have been encouraged to reestablish their farmlands. The expected increased earnings coming from their small vegetable gardens give them hope to be able to send their children to school.

“We didn’t expect these changes and my hope is that this new road we have will lead our children to a better life,” Gabin said. (PNA)