The Zamboanga City Treasurer’s Office have turned over last March 8, 2023 the P10 million cheque to NFA-ZCBO Branch Manager Rixon T. Velasquez. The amount will be used to pay the said premium.

Meanwhile, NFA-9 Regional Manager Rosita M. Machutes hopes that other LGUs in Zamboanga Peninsula region will also avail of this program for their farmer constituents.

“The PALLGU aims to provide opportunities to rice farmers to maximize their income and the local government units to serve their farmer-constituents. Under the program, the legislator or LGU enters into a marketing agreement with NFA where the former shall provide a premium amount to be added to the existing government palay buying price of P19.00/kg,” she said.

NFA said this is the first in Region 9 and the highest premium granted by an LGU nationwide. The local farmers of Zamboanga City expressed their gratitude to NFA and to the City Government of Zamboanga for this ground-breaking program.

Orlando Esperat, official of the Farmers’ Association of Barangay Quiniput was grateful to NFA buying their produce at a better price and to Mayor Dalipe for the subsidy of five pesos per kilo.

“Grande ayuda este con amun. Ta rindi tambien iyo gracias con el NFA kay ya dale ustedes kamino con amun mga farmers para pwede kame bende di amun producto aqui directa con ustedes, hindi ya kame pasa na rice millers kien ta paga con amun bien barato gayot,” Esperat said.

(This is a big help to us. We are also grateful to NFA for providing the way for us, farmers to sell our products to NFA directly, without having to pass through rice millers that pays at a very cheap price.)