Community Learning Program

1. Community Learning Program • CSSAC’s banner extension program • An approach for • Discovery through collaborative and mutual learning • Demonstration • Training (learning by doing) • Human Reconstruction (not as relief but release)

2. Program Objectives • Assist community to attain development in all aspects : social, economic, cultural, political and environmental • Enable people and communities to effect meaningful change in their lives through RDE • Generate knowledge on participatory human development • Initiate capacity building in the community

3. Component Projects • Bayanihan Learning Community • Women in Development • Technology Management and Skills Development

4. Program Strategies • Identification of CLCs within the service (Agropolitan) areas of CSSAC • Consideration of impact factors: • Accessibility • Acceptability • Auxiliaries • Needs Assessment

5. Identification and designing of extension approach • Project identification • Launching and MOA signing • Project Implementation • Monitoring and Evaluation

6. Best Practices • People in the community explore group defined issues and opportunities with extensionist as facilitator • Builds on local / indigenous knowledge • Promotes understanding of systems relationship and effects • Promotes community action, reflects on the action before continuing the process.

7. Accomplishments • Signed MOA with 4 LGUs – Pili, Baao, Bula, Ocampo • Conducted FGDs in service LGUs/ communities • Assessed needs of the barangays • Conducted demo and skills training

8. Linked farmers with support institutions for cassava, hog and broiler production (QUEDANCOR, Sunblest, Zepeda Agro-Industrial Corp., etc.) • Service barangays served as venue of Agricultural Extension internship

9. Learning Insights • It is important to stir motivation and proactive involvement and participation of identified clientele • Needs assessment is necessary to develop intervention activities that are relevant and responsive to community needs • Participatory implementation, monitoring and evaluation is necessary to ensure program success.

10. Technology Approach To Poverty Alleviation • Carabao Development Program • Activities include orientation on Artificial Insemination (AI) to carabao owners before the conduct of pregnancy diagnosis, estrus synchronization and AI. • 22 Municipalities, 2 cities and 72 barangays around Mt. Isarog and Bicol Natl. Park are served

11. Good Practices • Strong partnership with Phil. Carabao Center at UPLB, CSSAC, DA, LGUs and Plan Intl. Bicol • Training of 12 AI Technicians coming from cluster barangays around MT. Isarog and Bicol National Park, CSSAC Technicians and DA Technicians at PCC UPLB sponsored by Plan Intl. • Clustering of barangays and assigning of locally based AI Technicians

12. Supplies like semen and liquid nitrogen provided by PCC UPLB, other supplies by CSSAC, DA and the LGU • Technical assistance continually provided by PCC UPLB • Learning of farmers are enhanced by the techno-kit written in Bicol and developed by CSSAC with funding from DA-BAR • Training on Management of Hybrids and milk processing were also conducted to ensure better productivity

13. Accomplishments • Pictorials

14. Learning Insights • Participatory and collaborative approach to program management is essential in ensuring success • Pre-orientation before any activity is made to ensure better understanding of what to expect and why? • Program designed to support the daily activities of the farmers are better supported and accepted.

15. Sloping Land Management Project • A program carried out by CARE Philippines, PCARRD, BCARRD and the LGUs to promote proper management of sloping areas around Mt. Isarog • Part of the Sustainable Management of Mt. Isarog Territories (SuMMIT) Project of CARE Phil. which is funded by EU. • It aims to promote SLM in 9 barangays around Mt. Isarog

16. Good Practices • Anchoring the project on a very strong, well funded SuMMIT project ensured success of the project • Capability building on SLMP among stakeholders in the community and LGUs were carried out by PCARRD and BCARRD/CSSAC • Point person selected per barangay and trained as trainers on SLMP

17. Local trainers conduct training among constituents, using their own farms as demo farm • They were also invited by Local Parishes and some schools in Naga City to talk on SLMP • Training Centers established in cluster barangays

18. LGUs declared through ordinance the selected barangays as Sloping Land Conservation Sites • CSSAC Extension interns are deployed in selected SLMP sites to assist in the promotion and conservation efforts in the sites

19. Highlight of Accomplishments

20. Establishing Demo Farm on Vegetable Production and Tree Planting in the Slopes of Mt. Isarog

21. SLMP Orientation in Ginaban, Ocampo, Camarines Sur

22. Balikatan Project (Nov. 1998-Feb. 1999) • Carried out in partnership with Fatima Center, CSSAC and Samahan Ng Benepisyaryong Magsasaka Ng Pinaglabanan, Inc. (SABIMAPI) in Goa, Camarines Sur • Aims to develop a farming system approach called “Coco-based Simultaneous Polyculture (COCOSIPOL)”

23. Good Practices • Balikatan group of 29 coconut farmers was organized by an NGO – Fatima Center • MOA executed among partners: Fatima Center, CSSAC and SABIMAPI for the provision of technical assistance to the farmers • Technical needs analyzed by the group with the guidance of technical experts from CSSAC

24. Technical intervention designed and expert matching was done • Orientation of technical experts on the project objectives and training methodologies • Season-long training, done every Friday by experts, starting from farm planning (identifying what to plant and when) up to marketing

25. Every Saturday, the trainers and the group of 29 farmers join together in preparing the land of each member and plant the area until all farms of the members have been planted, the essence of BALIKATAN

26. Planting materials were jointly provided by the farmers and Fatima Center • CSSAC produced a Training Manual on COCOSIPOL written in Bicol and authored by selected technical experts.

27. Weekly activities were planned and Friday lectures focused on these activities until the cash crops were ready for the market • Saturday activities include supervision and demonstration of forthcoming activities in the farm

28. Farmers were assisted in finding market for their products • They have continued maintaining the annual crops under coconut (cacao, coffee, calamansi and some cash crops)

29. Learning Insights • Participatory planning among stakeholders under the guidance of technical experts can ensure better farm productivity and could empower farmers to sustain practices they have decided to adopt. • Technical and some material support from outside bodies are necessary to support farming activities of CARP beneficiaries to ensure that they don’t sell their CLT and to make them stay in the farm

30. Conclusion • In essence, the sustainability of all documented projects was ensured by an instrument that is binding – the MOA / MOU • People’s participation in all phases of development is necessary to ensure success. This will develop ownership of the plan among major stakeholders

31. Participatory monitoring and evaluation is necessary to detect problems, identify solutions and sustain the effort. • External support in the form of technical and some material assistance, with counterpart contribution from the community is very essential.

32. Values inculcation for thrift, diligence, hard work, reliability, self reliance, foresight and quick judgment, among others should be pursued to prepare the clients for project phase-out.

33. Thank You For Your Attention!!!