Philippine Network of Rural Development Institutes, Inc. (PhilNet-RDI)

Social Infrastructure Bldg
Local Governance
Market Relations Reforms
Agri Diversification
Basic Services Delivery
Enterprise Development

Social Infrastructure Building It is the establishment and strengthening of Marginalized Rural Sectors and Peoples (MRSP) organizations and institutions as instruments to empower themselves politically, economically, and culturally. The meaningful participation of the MRSP should be ensured and integrated in all aspects and phases of development work. Sustainable MRSP propelled development work lies on the formation and strengthening of dynamic and truly accountable MRSP organizations. This refers to an organized core that shall lead and hasten the process of...

Local GovernancePeople’s governance pre-supposes the advance of a parallel movement of direct state work on the one hand, and the struggle for alternative self-governance that would push and legitimize, and bring about reforms in the community and society as a whole.Direct state work would mean the winning and influencing posts and people in the government through the electoral process, appointments, and government accreditation to perform certain development functions. Alternative rural governance is concerned with developing alternative people’s development framework and...

Basic Asset and Market Relations Reforms The rural economic system is practically under the control of landlords, traders and usurers, big business and multi-national corporations. They owned the land, have the capital and controlled the trading and marketing of the agricultural products. They continue to amassed wealth through the excessive land rents, exorbitant interest rates, and super profits in the exchange of agricultural and consumer goods. A restructuring in the ownership and control of the basic assets, and reforms in...

Agricultural Diversification and Sustainable Systems DevelopmentFood self-sufficiency is the primary objective for agricultural productivity. However, it gives consideration to agricultural diversification to meet the other demands for domestic and international market for increased income. It seeks to optimize the use of locally available resources by integrating the diverse components of the farming systems (i.e. crops, animals, soil, water, climate, and people) and attain the greatest synergetic effects. It strongly promotes the adoption of sustainable farming practices and technologies, gives consideration...

Agricultural and Basic Services DeliveryApart from land acquisition productivity would also largely depend on the availability of agricultural support services. Consequently, it shall be an objective to ensure the delivery of these services to the MRSP. These shall include, among others: installation, maintenance and repair of irrigation systems; accessible and affordable credit; post-harvest and marketing facilities; farm to market roads, transportation and communication facilities; research, extension services, technology development and dissemination; and market information (domestic and international). To improve the...

Rural Industrialization and Enterprise Development (RIED)Our efforts for RIED is directed towards addressing rural unemployment and underemployment and consequently averting the phenomenon of urban migration. Besides, it shall serve to the objective of reducing and eliminating rural poverty. The growth of existing rural industries and enterprises, and also the emergence of those producing new commodities will be stimulated by the rise in agricultural incomes and the purchasing power of the market. Increased incomes could be attained mainly through; high agricultural...

PhilNet-RDI BOT members for 2009-2011

Congratulations to the newly elected members of the Board of Trustees of the PhilNet-RDI Inc. for the year 2009-2011. Elected by subnational region were Alaine Fornoles (Luzon), Mel Sausa and Inday Pizon (Visayas), Rey Alcomendras and Girlet Luansing Jr (Mindanao). Elected at large were Chito Tionko, Badong Feranil, Leo Rosario, and Milo Tanchuling.

During the new board’s first meeting, they elected among themselves the following officers: Chito Tionko (Chair), Badong Feranil (Vice-Chair), Milo Tanchuling (Treasurer), and Inday Pizon (Auditor).

The new set of BOT members were elected during the 5th General Assembly of PhilNet-RDI held at the Mergrande Ocean Resort, Davao City on 18 March 2009. (Picture from left to right - B. Feranil, C. Tionko, Mel Sausa, L. Rosario, I. Pizon, and R. Alcomendras. Others are not in photo)

Our new chairman

Mr. Andres C. Tionko (Chito to many) is the executive director of the Panay Rural Development Center, Inc (PRDCI). He serves as auditor of the board of trustees before being elected chairman. Chito’s PRDCI is among the founding members of PhilNet-RDI.

PRDCI is the overall coordinator and project holder of the project "Towards an Evidence-Based Advocacy and Implementation of a Coherent Climate Change Strategy in the Philippines and Southeast Asia". It is also implementing another project on "Sustainable Agriculture in the Context of Changing Climate" among others.

Two new PhilNet-RDI members

The Malaya Development Cooperative of Mallig, Isabela and the Visayas Management Consultancy, Inc. were formally accepted as institutional members of PhilNet-RDI during the 5th General Assembly held at the Mergrande Ocean Resort, Davao City.

PhilNet-RDI adopts local economy development (LED) strategy

PhilNet-RDI adopted the LED strategy in five areas during the 2006-2008 program term. Specifically, the 2006-2008 program had the following community-level objectives:

1. Established five model self-determining marginalized rural sectors and people (MRSP) led communities.

2. Scaled-up community based programs; and

3. Strong, dynamic, and militant rural movement among marginalized rural sectors and peoples that can advocate for reforms, claim-take needed programs and policies from government, implement self-reliant or self-sustaining development programs, and exercise participatory, pro-people and democratic responsive governance.

The decision to embark on building five model communities engaged in community-centered enterprises using the local economic development (LED) framework was made when the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees (BOT) held a joint meeting with the officers of the national and three sub-national secretariats in December of 2005. This move was designed to upscale the level of PhilNet-RDI’s intervention in rural democratization and development (RDD) in partnership with MRSPs and their communities.

BOT Chair Nachura bids farewell as board member

After serving PhilNet-RDI as Chairman of the Board for the past 13 years, Board Chair Rene Nachura, 75, thanked the whole network for the opportunity given him to work as board chair. He remains an active individual member of the organization.

PhilNet-RDI undergoes external evaluation

The external evaluation of PhilNet-RDI was conducted (from the 3^rd week of November up to the 2^nd week of December 2008) on the 2006-2008 program implementation of PhilNet-RDI. The evaluation team consists of head evaluator John van de Winkel of the Hasco Vandewinkel Consult of Netherlands, BALIGYA business development coordinator Luz Julieta Rio, and Sam Vigil of PhilNet-RDI as internal member of the team.

The emphasis of the evaluation was on the assessment of the impact and results of the ‘Local Economy Development’ program of PhilNet-RDI. The evaluators visited the five LED areas (Sagay City, Negros Occidental; Bayawan City, Negros Oriental; Ormoc City, Leyte; Isulan, Sultan Kudarat; and Sto. Tomas, Davao del Norte) and conducted meetings with the beneficiaries, farmers with 1-2 hectares of land, employees of the RDI’s and the regional secretariats, representatives of people’s organizations and local governments units. The meetings centered on the changes that took place in their lives, successes and failures they experienced as well as their immediate plans and concerns.