Project Proponent:  ALTERDEV Services  Foundation Inc.

Project Title :  Livestock and Social Enterprise Development Project(LSEDP)

Site Location: Brgys.  Remedios,  New Gingoog and Tagabase, Esperanza,  Agusan del  Sur

Type/Sector: Economic Governance and Improving Rural Living Standards

Background:

The Project will cover three (3) of the forty seven (47) barangays of Esperanza, namely: Barangays Remedios, Tagabase, and New Gingoog.  It has a total combined land area of 3,030.34 has. of which  1,373.75 has is utilized for agriculture  and  911 has classified as production forest. The topography is largely rolling and mountainous with a few flat areas suited to corn and upland farming.  It has also a vast forest lands and small plain portions along the slope cultivated for variety of crops and other commercial tree species.

The bio-physical characteristic of the said areas is a combination of upland and lowland landscape but more evident is the upland and forest topography which majority of the people are involved in corn and rice farming complemented with cash crops, high valued commercial crops, fishing, vegetable and livestock production.

The project site has a combined population of 2,346 with 444 total numbers of households. Majority of the population are Higaonon and the Manobos Indigenous Peoples (IPs). Municipal data suggests 301 families live below the poverty line.

The three (3) barangays has vast resources for development owing to the abundance of natural and human resources(i.e. lakes, rivers, springs, marshlands, mountains and forest vegetation and vast tracts of agricultural lands for multiple uses).  However, agriculture especially farming and fishing is still in its formative stage since the abundance of  agricultural  resource is considered underutilized attributed to limited delivery of support services,  lack of knowledge and skills in modern and even sustainable technologies as well as lack of  marketing support for farmers.

Problems to be Addressed:

The data show that 80% of the people in the area is living below the poverty threshold indicated by low income of farming households.  Farming as the main source of income is underutilized to make the agricultural productivity propels a progressing local economy.  This will also present a picture that even commercial tree planting and cutting continues as alternative source of  livelihood is not enough, economic hardship remains haunting the poor especially the indigenous peoples.

The  low productivity and low income pinpointed out can be directly  attributed to the following key factors:

• Lack of Capital and High Cost of  Production
• Underutilized Farmlots
• Limited Livelihoods Opportunities
• Limited support of Local Organizations to Agriculture