The Regional Project Advisory Board 1 (RPAB1) has approved for funding under the Philippine Rural Development Project Scale-Up the subproject proposals from the municipalities of Bayambang, Pangasinan and Tagudin, Ilocos Sur. The recommendation for approval was granted during the RPAB1’s 31st meeting on December 18 in San Carlos City, Pangasinan.

Of the three approved proposals, two were proposed by LGU Bayambang and one by LGU Tagudin. The approved subprojects are valued at Php647.6M.

The first proposal from Bayambang includes a 6.16-kilometer farm-to-market road (FMR). The road project, which will connect major onion production areas to markets, cost Php319.18M. It is an extension of the 1.87-kilometer FMR with 61.5-meter bridge established in Barangay San Gabriel II under the PRDP Additional Financing 2 funding scheme.

This new road will link Barangays San Gabriel II and Pantol, benefitting nearby Pangasinan municipalities – Bautista and Alcala, including Moncada, Tarlac.

The second Bayambang proposal involves the establishment of an onion cold storage facility in Barangay Amancosiling. With a capacity to store 145,000 bags of onions, the facility aims to serve some 858 onion farmers.

The municipality of Bayambang is the lead producer of onion in Region 1.

The third proposal, presented by LGU Tagudin, is the establishment of a Php82.4M slaughterhouse in Barangay Ranget. The facility is expected to benefit small-scale livestock raisers in the area and provide the residents with safe and quality meat adhering to the National Meat Inspection Services standards.

As of date, PRDP Ilocos Region has 13 RPAB-approved subprojects for Scale-Up totaling Php1.9B in funding.