by Redjie Cawis

BAGUIO CITY, March 26 - More than 3.5 million trees will be planted in the Cordillera Administrative Region under the National Greening Program (NGP), a priority project of the Aquino administration.
President Benigno S. Aquino III recently signed Executive Order 26 to pursue sustainable development for poverty reduction, food security, biodiversity conservation, and climate change mitigation and adaptation operationalized through the greening program.

According to Department of Environment and Natural Resources Cordillera regional director Clarence Baguilat, the NGP is mandated to plant 1.5 billion trees in 1.5 million hectares nationwide and to be planted in six years starting this year until the Presidents’ term end in 2016.

In the Cordillera Region, more than 6,000 hectares will be planted to millions of trees. Baguilat said that among the areas to be planted will be forestlands, protected areas, ancestral domain areas, urban areas, reservation areas, inactive mine sites, and other suitable areas.

The NGP aims to integrate and harmonize all greening initiatives of the government, civil society and private sectors with the end view of addressing poverty, food security, protection and resource conservation and productivity enhancement. It also addresses climate change mitigation and adaptation.

The greening program will be lead by the DENR together with the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Agrarian Reform in cooperation with all the government line agencies, government owned and controlled corporations, state universities and colleges, and even the private sectors.

The lead agencies are tasked to establish a nursery and produce tree seedlings and saplings to be planted in the entire region. They would also be responsible in determining the type or species of seedlings to be produced and planted in respective localities and jurisdictions.

Baguilat said that since the trees to be planted include fruit bearing trees, they would also be providing agronomic crops and post harvest and processing facilities.

Baguilat said that among the social mobilization to be undertaken would be the encouragement of all government agencies to plant at least 10 seedlings yearly. The Department of Education and the Commission on Higher Education will also encourage students to plant trees of 10 seedling yearly.

The Department of Interior and Local Government shall encourage local government units from the barangay to the municipal, city, and provincial level to lead the tree planting in their communities.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development shall also encourage family beneficiaries of the Conditional Cash Transfer to plant trees and help in the maintenance of the trees.

Private sectors and organizations are also encouraged to support the NGP by joining tree planting activities and the maintenance and protection of the trees. *(PIA CAR)