To the Cordillera Peoples Alliance and our partner, Center for Development Programs in the Cordillera, Inc.
We, in Solidagro, join you today in celebrating the 38th Peoples’ Cordillera Day with the theme, “Advance New Politics, Unite for land and life!”.
With the coming national elections, a critical moment for the Philippine democracy, the theme is indeed very opportune as it highlights the Cordillera peoples’ strong resolve to advance a new politics that is based on your assertion of self-determination and ancestral land; a new politics that promotes the interest of the majority rather than those of a few elites and defends the rights of the people.
The struggle of the Cordillera people for self-determination continues to inspire us to carry on with our mission to work with our partner organizations in improving people’s right to food through agroecology.
In the past three decades, Solidagro, in partnership with CDPC and the Belgian Province of East Flanders, has supported the food security and food sovereignty efforts of the Cordillera people through such programs as organizing and capacity development, enhancement of the indigenous agricultural system through agroecology, and provision of support infrastructure like irrigations, training centers, processing equipment, potable water system, and biofertilizer production. Despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and the worsening human rights situation, the Cordillera people stand firm in your resolve to pursue sustainable and self-determined development.
In the next 5 years (2022 to 2026), our partnership with CDPC will involve the strengthening of the organized movement for the right to food through agroecology. We will work for more farmers and communities to practice and advocate for agroecology, and more duty-bearers and other stakeholders to give support to agroecology. We will continue to support the community-based health programs as well as the organizing and capacity development of workers in the formal and informal sectors for secured work and livelihood.
We look forward to strengthening further our solidarity with the Cordillera people. We salute you for all the sacrifices, victories, and aspirations for the defense of your ancestral land as this occasion will always remind us to continue to act for a better future for the next generation.
In solidarity,