NIA-7: Over 21K hectares of land 

converted into nat’l irrigation projects in CV

CEBU CITY, Cebu (PIA)-- More than 21,000 hectares of land have been utilized for irrigation systems and projects here in Central Visayas.

This was disclosed by the National Irrigation Administration in Region 7 (NIA-7) during the ‘Kapihan sa Bagong Pilipinas’ in Central Visayas on Oct. 22.

According to NIA-7 regional manager, Engr. Rory F. Avance, the total land area allocated for the agency’s existing and future irrigation projects in Central Visayas covers 21,192.80 hectares.

The land area is used for the development of the existing 15 irrigation systems, eight irrigation projects, and several future irrigation projects in Central Visayas.

“In Central Visayas, we have 15 national irrigation systems and eight national irrigation projects in the region as of December 2023, which covers 21,192.8 hectares of service land area. These are the systems that are being supervised by the National Irrigation Administration,” said Avance.

From the total service area developed under the national irrigation system in the region, 14,942.8 hectares are in Bohol, 5,468 hectares in Negros Oriental, and 782 hectares in Cebu.

Among the ongoing projects of NIA-7, most are located in Bohol, namely: Mabini-Cayacay Small Reservoir Irrigation Project (SRIP), the Calunasan SRIP, the Bonotbonot SRIP, the Hibale SRIP, and the Malinao Dam Improvement Project.

There is also one existing irrigation project in Negros Oriental, the Tanjay-Bais Irrigation Project.

Future irrigation projects in Central Visayas include the Languyon River- Tuburan SRIP in Tuburan, Cebu, the Kinalan SRIP in Mabinay, Negros Oriental, and the Bohol Northeast Multipurpose Irrigation Project in San Miguel, Bohol.

“These irrigation systems that NIA constructed have been turned over to the local irrigation administrations for maintenance. Aside from these existing projects, we also have line projects or big-ticket projects. Usually these are river impounding projects, where we are just doing some rectifications,” Avance noted.

The NIA-7 regional manager also provided the status of the Tuburan SRIP, which is one of the upcoming irrigation projects of the agency.

“The detailed engineering study is underway for us to determine what is the appropriate engineering scheme that we will use for the Tuburan Dam project. We also conducted community consultations as part of the project planning and preparations.” he added.

NIA was the featured agency for the 22nd episode of the “Kapihan sa Bagong Pilipinas” program, a platform initiated by the Presidential Communication Office (PCO) through the Philippine Information Agency (PIA).

National Irrigation Administration 7 Regional Manager Engr. Rory F. Avance (left) and Philippine Information Agency 7 Regional Head Fayette C. Riñen (right) during the 22nd episode of the ‘Kapihan sa Bagong Pilipinas’ program in Central Visayas on Oct. 22, 2024, in Cebu City. (JAT/PIA7 Cebu)