Experience in Goat Raising Is Key to Effective Transfer of Goat Technology
On one hand, there are technicians who are industrious, innovative, and practice what they teach. They are more effective in transferring technologies and effecting changes in their clients or their recommendations are based on experience. They also effectively ink farmers to the support service and even help market farm produce.
One of them is Marlyn Lilagan, an agricultural livestock technician who has spent almost three decades assisting and extending information to farmers Balungao, Pangasinan. A significant part of the success of this fifth class municipality in eastern Pangasinan in, goat raising is attributed to her and to the support of LGU.
In 2004, through the leadership of Mayor Jose D. Peralta, Jr., Balungao took the challenge to pilot test the Farmer Livestock School on Integrated Goat Management (FLS-IGM) that was led by the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCARRD). The FLS-IGM had been beneficial for Balungao’s goat raising industry and Marlyn’s efforts in introducing the technology to goat raisers had been a big part of it.
Before the FLS-IGM and other PCARRD’s projects were implemented in 2004, it had only 424 households raising goats and the number of goats produced was only 5,348. Now, there are 1,164 goat raisers and the number of goats produced increased to 26,600. And today, this municipality is known for producing quality goats for breeding and slaughter.
Until Marlyn became involved in projects initiated by the PCARRD like the FLS-IGM and the Crop-Animal Systems Network or CASREN, her ways of delivering services had been very traditional. Now, she is an advocate of participatory approaches in extension, which all center on the belief that adoption of technology would be effective if farmers are empowered and allowed to participate in planning, implementation, evaluation, and decision-making. She espouses the methodologies employed by the projects.
Her expertise in goat raising has brought her to many regions in the country as a resource person on goat raising. Other regional offices of DA tap her during trainings to share her knowledge and experiences in the FLS-IGM. In fact, she has been a resource speaker during the Second National Small Ruminant Congress in 2001.
Due to her expertise and dedication, she was recognized by the Philippines Society of Animal Science as Outstanding Animal Technologist in 2003 for her efficient efforts in training and disseminating goat technology in the municipality. She also became a member of the National Small Ruminant Advisory Committee, representing the interests of LGUs and small-scale goat raisers.
With her success as a technician, Marlyn realized that for her to be more effective, she has to be a good raiser, too. She believes that for technicians to be credible, they should have a good knowledge and understanding of the commodity. And so, she put up her own goat project in her LS-hectare farm where she lives with her mother and brother.
Through a loan from the Government Service Insurance System or GSIS in 2002, she was able to put up a goat shed and initially raised four head of goats, which she purchased from some of her farmer-cooperators. Her mother and brother help her farm; they collect forages and feed these to the animals and collect their manure.
Her holding gradually increased. In just a short period, she was able to increase it to 56 head of goats. However, her farm was flooded and her stock and animal shed were adversely affected. She made another loan to repair her shed and to make it bigger. Now on stilts about 2 meter high, the animal shed, for sure, can protect the goats from the flood. It costs P57,000 and can house 60 goats.
Now that she is a goat raiser herself, it’s easier for her to relate to the problems of her clients. It’s also easier for her to give remedial measures and make recommendations. And through the income she has been deriving from her goat project, she is able to afford the required inputs for her rice farm and send her three nephews to school. More importantly, even if her farm is far and often inaccessible during rainy days, it serves as a social laboratory for the participants of the Lakbay Aral program for farmers and agricultural technicians from other regions.
There are still many Marlyn Lilagan out there that deserve recognitions. And if LGUs would train technicians on participatory approaches in extension, there is very little chance of government projects failing. It is also imperative that the programs be based on the real needs of the community and be fully supported by local executives. The municipality of Balungao and Marlyn both exemplify these factors of success.
