The Sugar Industry Foundation, Inc., University of St. La Salle- Bacolod and the Sugar Regulatory Administration, recently held the graduation of 14 new Sugarcane Farm Technicians belonging to the Fifth Batch of the SIFI Farm Technician Course.
Present at the ceremony were SIFI President and COO Edith Villanueva, USLS President Bro. Manuel Pajarillo, SRA Attorney Johanna Jadoc, SIFI Trustee Joseph Conrad Ledesma and USLS Program Supervisor Edmundo Raul Causing.
The four-month collaborative effort of SIFI, USLS and SRA has equipped mid-level sugarcane farm workers and youth dependents with fundamental skills in modern sugarcane farm management and operation. Their intensive training included competencies on Basic Sugarcane Production (Soil Management, Land Preparation, Harvesting and Post Harvesting); Basic Farming Skills (The Internal Combustion Engine, The Tractor, Fertilizers, Actual Field Operations); Managerial Skills (HRM, HBO, Conflict management, Communications); Accounting Fundamentals (Bookkeeping, Cost accounting); and The OPSI Technical Package (Soil Sampling, Variety Identification, Fertilizer Management).