Second Week Report on the Mabuhay Agritech Mission Project in Iloilo, Philippines

September 3, 2023

To:          Mike Stanley, Missions Committee, Westminster Presbyterian Church

From:    Zonia Velasco, Mabuhay Fellowship, Mabuhay Agritech Mission in Iloilo, Philippines

We have now completed 14 participants for our enrollment.  Another person was added this week.  They have automatically grouped themselves into two groups.  We have a 12 year old, and we questioned that he was the youngest, and we had second thoughts about making him part of the program, but his family insisted stating that his uncle and 3 cousins were part of the program and that he will be grouped with his family.  If he does not join, he will come home from school to an empty house with no food. They promised that they will watch out for him, and not work him too hard, give him more rest breaks and make sure he does not get a heatstroke.  He was also given a pre-test and was able to pass.

Typhoon Goring had landfall in Iloilo, last week, and brought strong winds, rain and flooding.  The students did not attend Monday and Tuesday because of this, but they voluntarily made up the time, and kept coming back to the fields on their own to check as they were afraid the rains eroded their plots.  They are also working Saturday and Sunday because they realized that the seeds they germinated are now  all ready to be transplanted, and they are also watchful as something was eating the tips of their tomato plants. 

They will be attending classes from 8am to 6 pm, with a rest period of 2 hours between 12-2pm for lunch and siesta, and they will have breaks in the morning and afternoon for snacks also.   Lectures are given in the morning.  They had their first lecture on soil, which they needed so they could test their soil acidity and fertility, correct it before they covered it with plastic mulch. The funds allowed us to purchase wide plastic mulches and they readily applied it to the plots that were already ready. 

Plot preparation was the hardest as they had to deal with clayish soil, add their additives, mix and retest for correct acidity/alkalinity.   They use coco-peat (they make these themselves from dried out coconuts), carbonized rice hull, river sand, and some charcoal, with vermicompost.  They also take care of the vermicast bin, and make sure the worms don’t die but keep liking and eating what they are being fed.

Formal training has started.  Because of the typhoon, the lectures have been delayed and adjusted as the students need to work on their plots to take advantage of the weather and rain.  They are trying their best to keep their plots up, and not be washed away by the rain.

We have ordered cacao and coffee plant seedlings for each of them to plant in the farm.  Both cacao and coffee have to be planted in shade, so they are also planting banana trees to provide fast shade.  There are two water reservoir ponds of 4x 4 feet at 3 feet in depth, and one has been planted with lotus.  The lotus roots has purified the water. The other pond has turned green from algae, and while they are trying to empty it and use up its water so they could scrub the walls of the pond, the rain came again and filled it up.  So for now, they have a lot of water they could use daily on each of their plots.

We had also ordered a small “bahay kubo”, a small one room bamboo house with a thatched roof that is 7’ x 11’.  It came yesterday, and the students were so excited, that they immediately cleaned the ground around the small house so they could plant flowers around that area.  They did not stop until they were done.  That area will become our “pollinator” plots.  They will also plant citronella herbs around the nipa hut to deter snakes and rodents.

This is our report for the second week. Pictures to follow.

Very truly yours,

Sgd.  Zonia Velasco

Mabuhay Project and Mission Director