The National Irrigation Administration (NIA) has finished the implementation of 50 solar pump irrigation projects in Western Visayas, serving 918 hectares of service areas benefiting 661 farmer beneficiaries, an official reported on Tuesday.

During the Kapihan sa Bagong Pilipinas briefing, acting NIA Regional Manager engineer Jonel Borres said 28 other solar pump irrigation projects are ongoing, which when completed by the second quarter of 2025, will bring the total service area to 1,423 hectares benefitting 1,061 farmers in the region.

“With NIA’s goal of modernizing irrigation in the country, the agency pushes for energy efficient and sustainable resource management. The goal of solar pump irrigation projects is to provide sustainable and energy-efficient solutions for water management in agricultural areas,” Borres said in a presentation.

“The solar pump irrigation promotes year-round farming, improves weather access for farmers, and enhances agricultural productivity, particularly in remote areas that cannot be reached by conventional gravity irrigation.”

The solar pump irrigation system is implemented in areas where the water is sourced from the river or underground.

He said these will complement the 12 irrigation systems in the region that source their water directly from the river, known as the run of the river dam, which are inadequate especially during summer months.

“All in all, we have more than PHP700 million allocation. This is in the priority allocation of our top management,” Borres said. (PNA)