Livelihood Development for Subanon Communities in Siocon and Baliguian

By Ibarra a Malonzo, president, Kasanyangan Mindanao Foundation, Inc., 445-Z, MCLL Hi-way. Guiwan, Zamboanga City. (land line 0629921740. email bong.malonzo@yahoo.com)


This is a summary of discussions between the undersigned and Joan Cenon regarding livelilihood possibilities appropriate for upland Subanon communities in Siocon and Baliguian Muicipalities, Zamboanga del Norte.

1. Cassava tuber and dried chips production- I recommend cassava tuber and dried chip production for the following reasons:

a. Subanons are familiar with cassava tuber production serving as a supplemental staple food in the form of boiled tubers or as grated tubers and as animal feed for backyard swine production.

b. It is easy to grow and thrives on hilly terrain without need of irrigation and expensive chemical inputs.

c. There is a huge market for dried cassava chips for animal feed. San Miguel Foods, Inc., alone, requires 500 000 tons of dried cassava chips. Only one third of this volume is produced in the country. The rest is imported from Thailand. SMFI has a buying station in Zamboanga City, which is aout 160 kms from Canatuan.

d. Canatuan farmers can earn a gross income of P60, 000.00 per year on one hectare of cassava tuber production ( 15 000 hills x 3 kilos x P1.50 = P60 000.) Converted to chips this will be worth P88 000.( 45 tons fresh tuber x .40 x P5.50 = P88 000.00 This presumes that a buying station for dried cassava chips is set up in Canatuan by an assembler designated by San Miguel Foods, Inc., and that the hauling cost of dried chips from Canatuan to Zamboanga City (160 kms distance) can be done at a maximum cost of P1.00 per kilo.

e. Cassava can be grown as an intercrop with upland rice or corn.

f. With proper financial and technical support, cassava tuber and dried chip production can start this year with 100 farmers cultivating one-fourth of a hectare each, or 2 500 square meters of field planting, equivalent to 25 hectares to 100 hectares of cassava field planting on the third year.

g. Kasanyangan Mindanao Foundation, Inc., can provide technical assistance to farmers for cassava tuber production and post harvest operations.




2. Microfinance agri-credit for cassava production.

Kasanyangan Mindanao Foundation, Inc. can provide technical assistance to develop a micro finance agri credit system for Subanon farmers that will be financially viable and sustainable over the long term. Some of the features are;

a. The provision of loan should be part of a closed loop production, post harvest and marketing system. Agri-credit cannot succeed as a stand alone provision. A marketing arrangement for the product should be established at the start of the project.
b. The loan should be given thru a supervised credit system. This includes release of loans in installment for specific inputs (planting material) and actual work done (land preparation, weeding, fertilizers).
c. From the start, the agri-credit provision should be run as a business. It should earn enough to cover the cost of delivery of credit, ensure collection of loans plus interest, service charge and penalties and make a profit margin to increase the capital.
d. The loan will carry an interest of 2 to 3 percent per month, a service charge of P500 and will run for one year. Loan amortization should be studied carefully on the basis of the cash flow of the household. Farming households have multiple sources of income including on farm and off- farm income sources. It can be structured in a way that the service charge is deducted from the amount of the loan at the start of loan release. Interests can be paid on a monthly basis, and the principal can be paid immediately after harvest. If there is an upland rice or corn planted with cassava, the rice and corn will be harvested on the 4th month. If the income from rice and corn can cover the entire principal, the loan can be shorted to a 4 or 5 months loan. If the the income from rice and corn is not sufficient to pay the entire principal, the payment can be done in two tranches, upon harvest of the rice and corn on the 4th to 5th month, and the cassava on the 10th month.
e. There should be a careful selection of borrowers to determine credit-worthiness. Character of the borrower should be looked into. Women are generally better payors of loans than men. Hence, women are preferred borrowers than men.
f. Borrowers should be organized into a cell of 4 members initially with group liability for the loans. The next organizational level is the center, which is a cluster of 4 groups that meet once a month for training and assessment of the farming activities undertaken. The cell can expand its membership to a maximum of ten members, and the center can grow up to eight groups. This is a practice followed in grameen banking, the most successful credit program for poor people that started in Bangladesh 30 years ago, and now counts in millions of members all over the world.
g. There should be intensive training of staff and borrowers.