The City Agriculture Office (CAO) of Cagayan de Oro City has put preparations in place to mitigate the possible effects of El Niño.

In April 2026, state weather bureau PAGASA raised an El Niño alert after seeing a high probability of the weather phenomenon developing in the coming months.

PAGASA warned of possible impacts such as prolonged dry spells, drought, and other related effects.

CAO has clarified that the current extreme weather being experienced is due to the summer season and not yet the onset of El Niño.

Based on its monitoring, no farmlands or harvests in the city’s upland areas have been damaged, so far.

“Kani man gud summer, mao ni ginatawag nato nga non-economic siya nga activity unta sa agriculture nga sector but depende kana kung naa gyud water source nga enough,” CAO head, Engr. Bernie Daba Jr., said.

However, the office has begun its preparations to mitigate potential effects.

Among its initiatives are the installation of irrigation systems in hinterland barangays.

In Barangay San Simon, three irrigation pumps and plastic drums were distributed while Barangay Besigan also received irrigation pumps that were tested on-site.

“Aduna kita mga spring development diha sa kabukiran sa hinterland barangays sa District 1 ug District 2. Aduna kita solar-powered irrigatio projects pud nga gi-apply nato diri,” Daba added.

These programs aim to ensure farmers are protected from possible losses due to extreme heat conditions.