THE Project SARAi team from the Department of Science and Technology – CALABARZON, along with the Provincial Science and Technology Office – Laguna, made a courtesy visit to the office of Hon. Patrick Ellis Z. Go, Mayor of LGU Sinloan, Laguna. Ms. Agnes G. Morales, Provincial Director of PSTO Laguna and Ms. Janice Irene F. Berris, Supervising Science SRS presented a symbolic plaque to Hon. Go sigifying LGU Siniloan as one of the beneficiaries of the SARAi program.
Engr. John Carlo B. Micaya, the focal person of the SARAi program of DOST CALABARZON, discussed the rationale, the objectives of the SARAi project and how it will be able to help the LGU in advancing agriculture through innovative systems.
He also highlighted several SARAi technologies developed by UPLB and DOST- PCAARRD, including the Automated Weather Station (AWS), Water balance- Assisted Irrigation Decision Support System (WAISS), Community level SARAi- Enhanced Agricultural Monitoring System (CL-SEAMS), SPIDTECH, Soil Profiling and Characterization, BANANATECH, and SARAi Eskwela. Engr. Micaya further demonstrated the functionality of CL-SEAMS by showcasing agricultural trends in Brgy. Wawa in Siniloan through satellite imagery.
Following the presentation on SARAi technologies, PD Agnes G. Morales introduced the programs and services offered by DOST Laguna. Ms. Morales highlighted the ongoing DOST-funded technologies in the municipality, such as the silkworm project, Starbooks at the LSPU Siniloan Campus, and GIA-assisted associations and cooperatives in Siniloan. Ms. Morales also discussed the DOST-SEI Scholarship program and expressed hope to increase the number of qualifiers from the municipality in the coming years.
Mayor Go conveyed apprecation and commitment to advance SARAi. He expressed the desire to fully utilize SARAi’s full potential for the advancement of agriculture as well as in other areas such as in zoning, disaster risk reduction, and prompt delivery of social services. He also suggested to integrate water level.monitoring in the systems of SARAi since Siniloan has numerous flood-prone areas due to its geographical characteristics.
Mayor Go expressed his gratitude for the presence of DOST CALABARZON Regional Director, Ms. Emelita P. Bagsit who committed to pursue more collaborations with the LGU.
