‘School without walls’ boosts Sorsogon farmers’ knowledge

By Benilda Recebido

SORSOGON CITY, Sorsogon --- Twenty-nine farmers from the Del Rosario Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Association (DARBA) in Pilar, Sorsogon, have graduated from the Farm Business School (FBS) program offered by the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) after completing 17 sessions of practical and entrepreneurial training.

This initiative, known as a “school without walls,” equips farmers with essential skills in agro-enterprise development, sustainable farming, and marketing strategies.

Since it is a school without a physical building or campus, the approach is participatory and hands-on, focusing on interactive and experiential learning.

The training takes place directly in the fields or localities where the farmers work, emphasizing adult learning and decision-making.

The project is backed by a ₱150,000 fund awarded to the DARBA Farm Business School (FBS) for facility development, which commenced in June 2025.

Provincial Agrarian Reform Program Officer Eleanor Torres stated that the FBS enhanced DARBA’s capabilities as a diversified farming enterprise through intercropping, which maximizes land use and increases income by growing various crops.

“Ang intercropping ay isang pamamaraan upang magamit ng husto ang lupang may tanim na. Ito ay maghahatid ng dagdag na kita mula sa kanilang cash crops, habang napapanatiling masagana ang lupa,” Torres remarked.

(Intercropping is a method used to maximize a cultivated land fully. Through this practice, farmers can earn additional income from their cash crops while maintaining the soil’s fertility and productivity.)

As coconut and banana serve as long-term crops, intercropping squash and eggplant has become the farmers’ strategy to generate income while waiting for the harvest of their newly planted trees.

Daisy Belludo, the head of DARBA, said that the program created market opportunities for their products.

DAR officials praised the graduates for acquiring essential skills in production management, governance, and business planning.

Belludo emphasized the importance of the FBS in DARBA for their agro-business ventures, saying, “nagkaigwa kami nin oportunidad na maisaod an produkto mi sa iba pang institutional buyers. Dahil didi, nagkaigwa kami nin siguradong kita”.

(This has allowed us to sell our products to other institutional buyers. Through this, we get a reliable source of income.)

DARBA continues to be an active partner of the Philippine National Police in Sorsogon and the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology-Sorsogon by supplying them with farm produce and processed meat products, such as embutido and siomai.

The program celebrated the farmers’ achievements in gaining competencies in production management, marketing management, governance and supply, commitment setting, and farm business planning.

DAR Sorsogon’s ongoing support ensures the continuation of additional learning sessions in the second year of the DARBA project. (Michelle Lozano of DAR contributed to this report)

DAR Farm Business School (FBS) program completers from the Del Rosario Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Association (DARBA) in Pilar, Sorsogon, are now capacitated with sustainable farming practices and marketing development, enough to provide them a reliable livelihood. (Photos: Niño Emmanuel Quijano, DAR Sorsogon)