Nearly 500 PDLs of Iwahig Prison tapped for RISE Project

Nearly 500 persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) from the Iwahig Prison and Penal Farm (IPPF) in Palawan were tapped for the Reformation Initiative for Sustainable Environment (RISE) for Food Security project, which involves farm work to reform and prepare them for integration into society.

In a statement, Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) Director General Gregorio Pio Catapang Jr. said 300 medium security PDLs and 195 minimum security inmates started seed and land preparation in two hectares of the 501 hectares allocated for the RISE project.

“(This project) will not only contribute to the country’s food sufficiency and security but will also address the agricultural sector’s concerns of aging farmers since the PDLs will be trained as farmers,” the BuCor said.

The RISE Project involves the Departments of Agriculture (DA) and Justice (DOJ) engaging PDLs in idle lands of the BuCor for agricultural development to aid the government’s objective to attain food security.

Under the agreement, the IPPF will serve as the pilot for the project implementation of agro-tourism and agro-aquaculture sites and is targeted to be replicated and developed in other penal colonies across the country.

The agreement states that 501 of the 28,788.54 hectares of the IPPF will be used for the project — 4.5 hectares for assorted vegetables, 30 hectares for cashew, a hectare for fruit and vegetable herbs, 0.5 hectares for tilapia, 40 hectares for rice, 400 hectares for livestock and meat and dairy production, and 25 hectares for yellow corn production. — DVM, GMA Integrated News