Ms. Enecita Turno Tigbay
This National Women’s Month, the story of Ms. Enecita Turno Tigbay from Brgy. Upper Sumilong, Payao, Zamboanga Sibugay reminds us how women farmers are helping shape stronger rural communities.
A member of the Indigenous Peoples (IP) community and a farmer of the Upper Sumilong Community Multipurpose Cooperative, Ms. Tigbay has spent her entire life in the barangay. She remembers a time when the only way in and out of their community was through knee-deep mud, with horses and carabaos carrying coconuts, cacao, and other crops to buyers outside the area.
For many years, farmers struggled with high transportation costs and low buying prices, making it difficult to earn a stable income from their hard work.
Today, things are different.
Through the DTI RAPID Growth Project, a 1.7-kilometer farm-to-market road was rehabilitated in Brgy. Upper Sumilong, transforming the once muddy path into a concrete road accessible to vehicles. Completed in October 2024 and officially turned over in December 2024, the road now connects farmers directly to markets and economic opportunities.
For Ms. Tigbay and other farmers in the community, the road has brought meaningful change. Trucks can now enter the area to collect produce directly from farms, reducing transportation costs and labor. Students can travel more safely to school as tricycles can now reach the barangay, saving time and improving daily life for residents.
The improved road has also strengthened connections between farmers and buyers. One example is PhilSeed, an international organization supporting cacao farmers through farm rehabilitation and direct purchasing. Because of the road, PhilSeed now conducts monthly visits to Upper Sumilong to assist farmers and buy their produce.
Ms. Tigbay is among the farmers benefiting from this opportunity. Half a hectare of her cacao farm with 188 trees has been included in PhilSeed’s rehabilitation program. With improved support and better market access, the buying price of wet cacao beans has increased dramatically from ₱20 per kilogram to ₱100 per kilogram (as of 2025).
This National Women’s Month, Ms. Tigbay’s story reflects the strength and resilience of women farmers across Mindanao. Through government programs like the DTI RAPID Growth Project, and through the interventions of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), communities are being equipped with the infrastructure, partnerships, and opportunities that allow women like her to turn hard work into lasting progress for their families and their barangays.