By JUNE S. BLANCO
REP. Erico Aristotle Aumentado (Bohol, 2nd District) will fly to Israel later today for a study tour to familiarize himself with drip and other alternative and modern forms of irrigation.
Prior to his departure, however, he met with top honchos of the Department of Agriculture (DA) for a briefing on current practices and places he should visit.
He also negotiated for more funds to buy modern farm equipment for the use of farmers especially those in his district.
He observed that the farmers have remained poor through these years. The only way to save them, he said, is through modernization. The funds he requested will be for a couple of tractors, solar and mechanical driers, harvesters, transplanters and the like.
These equipment, he said, will reduce wastage of the palay harvest by 25%, thereby increasing the income of the farmers.
Aumentado equates the absence of development to the farmers’ remaining poor. After all, he said, the farmers comprise 30% of the labor force in the province.
He sees hope in improving the lot of farmers through modernization – including the application of alternative irrigation methods.
The solon admits that he has often wondered how the Israelis have converted their deserts into productive agricultural areas.
This visit, he said, will finally give him the opportunity to facilitate the transfer of this Islaeli technology to the Boholano farmers.