The Agusan del Sur town of Trento welcomed Wednesday the turnover of a PHP21-million irrigation project by the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) to help increase their rice production.

The project, known as the Obian Communal Irrigation System, will directly benefit 65 agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) in Barangay Tudela of Trento with more than 100 hectares of rice fields, including the nearby areas.

“The project is funded through the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program for 2022 which was implemented by the NIA-Agusan del Sur,” the Trento local government unit (LGU) said in a statement Thursday.

Most of the project’s construction works include canalization, diversion work and road surfacing, the LGU added.

In a phone interview Thursday, Trento information officer Allen Joe Lumanta noted that their town is among the rice-producing municipalities in Agusan del Sur.

“Among the priorities of the local government is the welfare of the rice farmers who contribute significantly to the progress and development of the town,” Lumanta said as he expressed gratitude to the NIA for the project.

The ARBs of Barangay Tudela also thanked the government for the project, saying that it will help them increase their future yields and income.

Sufficient water supply, they said, is vital in rice farming from land preparation, planting and propagation stages. (PNA)