MicroDev for Organic Cassava - Philippines

The Gahung-Gahung Cassava Program is a poverty alleviation program in the Philippines that mobilizes farmers to engage in a sustainable cassava farming technique complemented by a microfinance scheme. The two-pronged program aims to ensure food security and improve living conditions. The program guides upland subsistence farmers on how to make a living out of a one-hectare cassava farm, as they address the challenges of poverty, hunger, lack of peace and climate change.

Fast facts:

The estimated total monthly income of all the gahung-gahung cassava farmers combined is around USD 2,700,000/month;
The program has already engaged over 2,000 subsistence farmers.

The problem

Upland subsistence farmers cannot afford to wait for ten months with no income before the first harvest of cassava crops.

The solution

A cassava farmer is granted a consumption loan of USD 44 each month, and each monthly subsidy is paid after every harvest starting in the eleventh month. Once the loan is fully paid, the farmer graduates from the microfinance scheme, and the payment is passed on to a new farmer. The municipal mayors, village executives and coordinators serve as co-makers of the consumption loan. With cross-sectoral shared accountability, more guidance is given and more pressure is applied to the farmers motivating them to succeed.

Helping the planet

Conservation tillage, as opposed to conventional tillage, does not release as much carbon into the atmosphere. Crop residues also act as a soil cover, reducing evaporation from the soil surface. The organic cassava farming technique has the potential to sequester carbon from the atmosphere, and since it only needs to utilize one hectare per farmer, more land could be saved from agricultural production.

Helping people

Low-income upland subsistence farmers benefit from this program. Farmers are trained on how to practice organic cassava farming. During the training, farmers are given the chance to harvest from a demo farm, in order to see the benefits of organic cassava farming. This program also ensures food security and improves living conditions for farmers and their families.

Scaling Up

Organic cassava farming uses land efficiently. Each hectare is divided into 10 lots, and every lot has the capacity to feed a family for a month. If this program can be applied to the whole country. Cassava may also be changed to other crops in other parts of the country to avoid oversupply.