BCDA spearheading ethnobotanical hub in New Clark City
The Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) signed an agreement with the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Pampanga State Agricultural University (PSAU) to establish a 10-hectare ethnobotanical learning facility in New Clark City to boost the capacity of local farmers and fisherfolk.
The BCDA said on Thursday that two memoranda of agreement (MOA) had been signed on Dec. 13 for the Ayta Ethno Botanical Center (AEBC) at the 9,450-hectare metropolis inside the Clark Freeport and Special Economic Zone in Tarlac.
BCDA president and chief executive officer Joshua Bingcang, DA regional field office III regional executive director Eduardo Lapuz and PSAU vice president for planning and resource generation Lyndon Solis signed the MOA.
Helping Aeta community
“I feel the importance of the contributions of our farmers. The government consistently recognizes the value of the agriculture sector,” Bingcang said in a statement, adding that they intended to help the local Aetas and make them productive at the same time.
“There are more lands, instead of being idle, it can be productive. We can learn more so we can earn more and if this becomes successful,” he said further, citing that it would be a 15-year partnership for the three government bodies.
Under the agreements, the DA has committed P4.8 million, while the BCDA will provide the 10-hectare land.
The PSAU, on the other hand, has expressed commitment to provide the knowledge and training, including the management, supervision and monitoring of activities at the learning facility.
AEBC is expected to start operations next year, a BCDA representative told the Inquirer.
The BCDA wants the AEBC to become a model for food forests, a system in which edible, harvestable crops are produced in a multi-story setting.
It said that the presence of such a learning facility inside New Clark City will also provide them an opportunity to develop the adjoining protected and forest reserve areas into an ecotourism spot.
