A Church in a Valley By the Wild Wood

31 July 2010. Today, leaders of Nueva Ecija Church of Christ trooped to the woods of Pantabangan for a meeting at the chapel of Cambitala Church of Christ. Agendum: the 81st Provincial Convention of Nueva Ecija which will be hosted by Cambitala Church on 30th Dec. 2010. Church elder Bro. Fred Bagara presided the meeting (see middle photo).

Cambitala Church is an old congregation, which location reminds me of that old hymn, "There's a Church in the Valley". It is the last CoC in Nueva Ecija going to Baler, Aurora, yet it is highly accessible by motor vehicles. Under the municipality of Pantabangan (one of the country's largest dam serving the farms of Central Luzon rice granary), Cambitala Church belongs to Cluster 2 churches along with Ricarte, Ganduz and Luna. Cluster 2 is being coordinated by Bro. Joseph Peneyra, an active leader of the Church. (JSF Blogs)

PhilRice Countdown to Silver Anniversary

As this blogger completes today his first month (July) of consultancy job at the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), the ambience in this prime rice R & D agency is getting more festive than ever. Why? It’s 99 days to its Silver (25th) anniversary celebration on November 3-5, 2010.

Yesterday, July 29, PhilRice staff made a motorcade around Munoz Science City to publicize the much-awaited event in the life of this government corporation.

True to its mission, PhilRice remains steadfast in improving the life of the Filipinos via rice science and technology as development strategy. It is in keeping with its Silver anniversary theme, Rice Science for Sustainable Human Development. (JFS Blogs)

Working With PhilRice Is Fun as Blogger Participates Workshop

This is my first attendance to a PhilRice workshop as its consultant. The forum is about the development of educational courseware specifically intended for use in Rice Specialists' Training Course (RSTC) and the PalayCheck Field School (PFS), both Institute's banner Development programs, geared towards attaining rice sufficiency.

The workshop was held from July 19 to 21 at La Maja Rica Hotel, Tarlac City. It was participated by PRRI subject matter specialists, training facilitators and communications staff. Deputy Director for Development Ruben Miranda was also in attendance. The workshop levelled-off the expectations between the subject matter specialists and the courseware developers, in coming-up with a user-friendly educational courseware.

Final output of this workshop (PhilRice Courseware) shall be used this cropping season, with the current participants (over 40)of the on-going RSTC as the test group to utilize the ware. Field validation shall start soon as this batch is deployed sometime in November 2010, with initial evaluation after one cropping season in use. (JSF Blogs)

Praising God for Recent Happenings @ ICCM

I and wife Rose spent the week at the International Christian College of Manila (ICCM) campus in Antipolo City, where 3 things happened, for us all to be thankful for. Good or bad, praise the Lord.

Typhoon Basyang Wreak Havoc on Campus

On the midnight of Tuesday, July 13, typhoon Basyang unexpectedly passed through Antipolo, which wreak havoc in this campus. Trees were blown down with (mango and santol) fruits scattered around Anahaw hall, timely harvest? The entire campus was in total mess as plants were blown away, tarpaulin posters detached, some window glasses were broken, and there was no electricity for almost one-and-half day. Thus, came Wednesday, everybody in the campus hurriedly clean-up everything as CHED (Commission on Higher Education) representatives were set to come and inspect the campus by Thursday, July 15 for the routine monitoring and evaluation.

CHED Evaluates ICCM

And presto, by Thursday, everything in the ICCM campus was in order again. Concerned officers of the College waited for the CHED evaluators who arrived late in the afternoon already, as they have just finished evaluating 2 other colleges in the vicinity. Nevertheless, the wait seemed worthy as CHED evaluators gave positive feedbacks about their inspection, and found ICCM library more than enough for its curricular offering and the number of students it serves. The inspection ended up in a simple dinner-dialogue between ICCM officials and the CHED evaluators.

Election/Selection of Student Leaders @ ICCM

Meanwhile on the same day, student government was recognized by ICCM administration. They elect representatives from each of the First, Second, Third and Fourth year level, select the marshall group and the women’s group (student Dorcas) officers. Recognition of student leaders culminated through group and individual prayers.

We went back to Nueva Ecija that same night, and arrived home at exactly 1:00 AM. Despite that devastating Basyang, all praises be to God, as all things work together for good indeed. (30)

Revisiting Farm Modernization Issue in PFS@Caanawan

What’s on a Friday that one can talk about Development ? It’s PhilRice PalayCheck Field School (PFS), an opportunity to make exchanges with the country’s so-called backbone of the nation - the farmers.

Today, this blogger in his capacity as PRRI consultant, got another chance to discuss with some 20 rice farmers in Brgy. Caanawan, San Jose City (NEcija), the idea of modernizing Philippine agriculture, which remains an elusive dream so far for this agricultural nation. As he observed and looked at the PFS participants and facilitators doing hands-on exercises on transplanting and peripheral activities, like seedling-pulling, transport and distribution/scattering, this blogger can’t help but sing in his mind that folksong, “magtanim ay di biro. . .”, for the activity (transplanting) is really not fun afterall.

While PhilRice is doing its best to attain agri-modernization, there are still many social preparations that the rural sector should make. For instance, in mechanizing farm operations to alleviate drudgery in farming, we are not ready yet to leave manual labor (because of labor displacement issue), nor we are willing to convert our fragmented farms into one contiguous area required of efficient use of agri-machineries. Thus, we can’t help but just wait for that time when our farming system favors farm mechanization? This blogger can’t help but just narrate with hopes that modernization comes of our age, the mechanization experience of China, where he had the chance to work with via the Philippine-Sino Center for Agricultural Technology (PhilSCAT), a bilateral program between the 2 countries.

On government intervention in farm mechanization, I ask myself which farm operations should we prioritize? Mother unit (Dept of Agriculture) in recent years was so aggressive in distributing mechanical dryers via PHilMech (former BPRE). Is it really the proper priority? How about mechanical transplanter or harvester? In one survey, farmers considered Engine as their top priority in the farms. It was because it has many uses, which can be applied/hitched with tractor, irrigation pump, trailer, thresher and what have we. May be this is the time to ask them anew.

Meanwhile, PFS participants appreciated PhilRice’s program of increasing rice productivity through PalayCheck extension-education and promotion. While they admitted its not easy to bid goodbye to traditional farming and indigenous knowledge inherited from forefathers, the progressive farmers of Caanawan pledge to be as innovative as possible if only to alleviate rural poverty while attaining rice sufficiency. (JSF Blogs)

"Learning by Doing" @ PFS in Brgy. Sto. Tomas

Thanks God, it's Friday! This is the day for PhilRice's PalayCheck Field School (PFS), which run for 15 weeks as part of the season-long Rice Specialists' Training Course (RSTC).

This time, this blogger joined PFS conducted at Zafra Aqua Farm, Brgy. Sto. Tomas, San Jose City, Nueva Ecija. There were 20 farmers and 10 training staff/facilitators (including this blogger) in attendance. As in other 8 PFS simultaneously conducted by fellow RSTC-participating RSO (Rice Sufficiency Officers) in the neighboring villages of PhilRice Central Experiment Station in Maligaya, Science City of Munoz, this PFS is facilitated by a team of RSO with Ms. Aurora Corrales of PhilRice Technology Management and Services Division (TMSD) backstopping.

There were 2 topics discussed today and demonstrated (actually done)by the participating farmers themselves. These were "Modified Dapog System of Seedling Preparation" and "Land Preparation and Transplanting". In the demo of "modified dapog", the class was divided into 5 groups and each group prepared the seedbed themselves. For land preparation (which was partly done), pulling of seedlings and transplanting, the farmer-participants themselves did the activities. It was indeed "learning-by-doing" in action.

After the 2 main activities were finished, open-discussion (malayang talakayan) followed, where farmers and facilitators made exchanges about the experience, identifying among others, the strengths and weaknesses of these hands-on exercises.

There was also "PFS processing session" after the training, where this blogger's observations and insights about this activity were discussed with the facilitators. Finally in the afternoon, the training team continued the unfinished barangay survey and mapping as part of the PFS curriculum.

Documentary photos for this PFS follows shortly.(30)

From PHilMech To PhilRice

As President Noynoy Aquino starts his first day today, July 1, 2010 in Malacanang, so is this blogger, at his new employer at the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice). He just signed a work contract as full-time consultant for at least 6 months from today until the last working day of Dec. 2010. His job will be focused on the evaluation and development of PhilRice courseware specifically intended for the Rice Specialists' Training Course (RSTC), a some kind of work he was honed throughout his three decades of government service.

As one may remember, this blogger was one of the 19 rationalized officers and staff of the Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization (PHilMech, formerly BPRE) and thus, retired from the service under Exec. Order 366. But shortly before his leaving PHilMech, Dr. Falla was detailed to the Philippine-Sino Center for Agricultural Technology (PhilSCAT) as chief technology promotion officer dealing with hybrid rice and mechanization. He was with PhilSCAT throughout its Phase I operation. (30)