BY LEANDER C. DOMINGO
TUGUEGARAO CITY, Cagayan (August 1)—The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) in Region 2 (Cagayan Valley) has distributed bamboo plant starter kits to residents of at least six localities in Cagayan province under the Pangkabuhayan sa pagBangon at Ginhawa (PBG) program.
Bamboo growing is being promoted by various government agencies to also help address environmental issues. The plant produces oxygen and reduces carbon dioxide while providing raw materials for the manufacture of various products, thus reducing the need to cut down trees.
Leah Pulido Ocampo, DTI-Region 2 director, said they would like to encourage farmers to grow more bamboos with propagules they distributed to beneficiaries in the towns of Baggao, Buguey, Sanchez Mira, Claveria, Piat and Tuguegarao City, all in this province.
With Ocampo during the turnover ceremony and awarding of kits were Samuel Garcia, chairman of the Cagayan Valley Bamboo Industry Development Council; and Leonardo Urata, DTI-Cagayan Business Development Division chief.
“The P8,000 kit includes 100 pieces of bamboo propagules, 200 pieces of seedling bags and one set of basic tools for propagation consisting of pruning shear, pruning saw, hand trowel, shovel, digging bar, pick mattock and bolo,” Ocampo said.
She said part of the awarding of the starter kits is a virtual bamboo training for recipients to teach them the technology of growing the plant.
“I would like us to already plant the seeds as early as now so that our children’s children will be able to see that vision coming to fruition,” Ocampo said adding that the department in the region is partnering with local government units to implement a bamboo development project.
She said the DTI initiative is expected to create more livelihood for the people of Cagayan Valley and will help address environmental issues.
“I am very optimistic that bamboo products will soon become one of the driving economic industries in the Cagayan Valley region,” Ocampo added.