Arroyo inaugurates irrigation dam in Bohol

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo inaugurated in Bohol province Friday a P2.3-billion irrigation dam completed with official development assistance (ODA) funds from the Japanese government. The Japanese Embassy said the inaugurated Bayongan Dam now serves as the main water source for the irrigation of 5,300 hectares of farmlands covering the municipalities of San Miguel, Ubay and San Trinidad. "With an efficient irrigation system that will substantially address the critical need for irrigated water in vast farmlands, the project is expected to boost agriculture and socio-economic activities as well as contribute to the overall improvement of the welfare of many Filipinos farmers in Bohol," the embassy said. A government-run dzRB radio report said Mrs Arroyo, who delivered her speech in the local Boholano dialect, said the province has the potential to become an agricultural center in the Central Visayas region. She also said the dam can potentially benefit some 5,000 farmers in the province by providing their farms with irrigation water. Bayongan Dam is a component of the second stage of the Bohol Irrigation Project. Japan has been assisting Bohol for the past 30 years through various projects such as technical assistance for the Bohol Integrated Agricultural Promotion Project and the Bohol Agriculture Promotion Center Project. It also extended assistance through yen-loan projects such as the recently completed Bohol Circumferential Road Improvement Project, and the three irrigation system facilities of this Bohol Irrigation Project. Japan is the Philippines' largest source of ODA with assistance ranging from grants and loans to technical cooperation. - GMANews.TV