The Department of Agriculture Regional Field Office 1 participated in the ‘Handog ng Pangulo’ program, a nationwide initiative led by President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. in celebration of his birthday.

Held simultaneously in the four provinces of Region I, a total of Php185.2M worth of interventions were distributed to farmer-beneficiaries.

Distribution in La Union was held at the Convention Center in Barangay Sevilla, City of San Fernando, where DA distributed Php9,845,362.50 in aid to local farmers and schools in the province.

These interventions included agri-machinery, agricultural resources such as forage choppers, hybrid rice seeds, corn and onion seeds for the upcoming dry cropping season, vegetables seeds and various garden tools for the ‘Gulayan sa Paaralan’ program.

In the provinces of Ilocos Norte and Ilocos Sur which were held at Vintar Auditorium and at the Provincial Farmers Livelihood Development Center respectively, a total of P106.8M worth of interventions for Ilocos Norte and P12.9M for Ilocos Sur were distributed.

In Pangasinan, a total of P55.6M were distributed to beneficiaries from the six districts of the province.

The ‘Handog ng Pangulo’ program is a simultaneous activity across the country participated in by national government agencies including the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA).

In addition, the program offered a range of services to the attendees from the different participating agencies. The event also featured the ‘Kadiwa ng Pangulo’ diskwento caravan, providing discounted goods to consumers.

The distribution activities were spearheaded by the Provincial Local Government Units through the Governors, Vice-Governors, Mayors, other Local Officials, Heads and representatives of the various agencies/bureaus and institutions that provided the different interventions.