Aurora gets P115-M Sokor grant for aggie complex

BALER, Aurora — This province, one of the country’s 20 poorest, became the recipient of the largest grant ever extended by the South Korean government to agriculture mechanization in the Philippines with the launching here of a P130-million integrated rice processing complex.

Part of the funding — $2.3 million (P115 million) — came from the Korean International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), with the national government putting up a counterpart fund of $300,000 (P15 million).

"This is the largest single grant on agriculture mechanization ever given by the government of South Korea and by far the largest help extended to agriculture in Aurora," said Gov. Bellaflor Angara-Castillo.

Castillo and South Korean officials led the launch of the project on a 1.1-hectare site in Barangay Reserva here recently.

"Remember that this is a grant and not a loan," she said, adding that the provincial government is not going to pay a single centavo for the project.

South Korean Ambassador Hong Jong Ki, the guest of honor, said rice processing complexes are popular in rural areas in his country where cooperatives run them.

Hong said Aurora is a perfect site for such a complex with its plains and ricefields located at the foot of the Sierra Madre mountain range and facing the Pacific Ocean.

He said the project is a small token of appreciation for Filipinos who helped his country during the Korean War.

He said South Korea is firmly committed to share its development experience and technical expertise to the Philippine government.

Accompanying Hong in his visit here were Korean Embassy’s First Secretary Han Jin-Bae, KOICA resident representative Sungho Choi, and Young Sang Lee, vice president of KOCAT Inc., the project’s private contractor.

They were welcomed here by the Angaras led by Sen. Edgardo Angara, who negotiated the grant.

House Deputy Minority Leader Juan Edgardo Angara said South Korea, being the 11th largest economy in the world, is increasingly getting involved in the country’s economic development, what with 200 Korean companies providing jobs to no less than 100,000 Filipinos.

Young said the complex could store at least 1,100 tons of rice at any given time.