IN A bid to have a better Mindanao, government agencies are strengthening their convergence efforts to protect agricultural resources, raise rural incomes, and support the long-term growth of communities dependent on farming and natural resources.
The Department of Agriculture (DA), Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR), Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), and Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) on August 12 2026, together with local government units and other stakeholders, reviewed the implementation of Joint Administrative Order (JAO) No. 1, Series of 2020 to improve coordination in rural development programs.
The business and economic implications of the initiative are significant, particularly for agriculture-dependent communities where productivity, natural resource protection, and household income are closely linked.
DA Regional Executive Director Macario D. Gonzaga said combining government resources can deliver greater economic benefits to rural communities.
“When we pool our resources, our rural communities win,” Gonzaga said.
He cited the Suawan-Kulafu sub-watershed in Marilog District, Davao City, where agencies implemented various interventions from 2020 to 2025 to improve farm production and increase community incomes.
Gonzaga said the completed programs achieved their intended objectives, demonstrating how coordinated investments can strengthen agricultural productivity and livelihood opportunities.
The experience is also being used to reinforce JAO No. 1 as a framework for aligning the programs of the DA, DAR, DENR, and DILG, particularly in areas where agricultural development and environmental protection overlap.
Officials also highlighted the Sumlog Watershed, which spans portions of Davao de Oro and Davao Oriental, as an area where convergence efforts could help protect the region’s agricultural supply chain.
The watershed supports water-dependent economic activities and contributes to the production of major commodities such as durian, banana, rice, and cacao. Protecting the resource is therefore viewed as important not only for environmental sustainability but also for maintaining farm productivity and commodity supply.
“By protecting Sumlog today, we secure our food, our economy, and our children’s future,” Gonzaga said.
Regional Technical Director for Operations Marie Ann Constantino said the Convergence Area Development Program (CADP), particularly the Sumlog Watershed CADP, requires agencies to combine their financial and technical resources.
“We need to break down the walls between our departments. We combine our budgets, our skills, and our passion to transform entire ecosystems”, Constantino said.
A more coordinated approach could help reduce overlapping programs, maximize public investments, and ensure that agricultural, environmental, and local development initiatives reinforce one another.
For Mindanao’s rural economy, officials said the convergence strategy could provide a stronger foundation for protecting productive agricultural areas while improving the capacity of communities to generate sustainable incomes.
The review forms part of efforts to make government interventions more integrated, with agencies working toward development programs that support both economic productivity and the long-term sustainability of the region’s natural resources. DEF
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