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Memoirs of Woman Farmer
By Armida A. Pajaron

I am Armida A. Pajaron. My nickname is "Aming". I was born on July 16, 1972 here in Kahaponan¹. I am now 34 years old. I was a graduate of Agriculture course at Central Mindanao University, Musuan, Bukidnon. In 1998, I married Dante D. Pajaron "Bugoy" and at present we have four children, one girl and three boys.

I am one of the Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries (ARB) of the ARFI Estate here in barangay Kahaponan, Valencia City. Two hectares of land was awarded to me by the Department of Agrarian Reform. In 1996, I joined the Araneta Farmers Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Association Multipurpose Cooperative (AFARBAMCO). Since then I have been one of the officials of the said cooperative. I am also actively involved in our provincial federation called PALAMBU.

Even though I am a graduate of Agriculture I did not focus on becoming a full time employee because I also want to apply what I learned in school in our own farm. Other than that I also want to apply what I learned from the several trainings that I have attended which were given by non-government organizations--partners of our cooperative and our provincial federation, PALAMBU. Also I want to be a model in the discussed sustainable agriculture or "malahutayong pag pang-uma".

Being a mother, a wife, a farmer, and a leader in a farmers' organization are not easy roles for me as a woman. Still I have done my responsibilities, only that there are lapses and I still can not serve 100% due to lack of time and circumstances that cannot be avoided. The most important thing is to explain to my family my roles to them as well as to the society so that they can support me in these varied roles. The second thing that has helped me is by dividing my time or "time management".

Being a woman farmer is not difficult for me, as tilling the land is not done at all times and hard labor can be done slowly. In my family, we try to become a model in what is called "malahutayong pag pang-uma" or sustainable agriculture. We started this by diversifying our farm. We have a 1/2 hectare of land that we have developed as a farm. We planted the borders of our rice field with fruits such as mango, lanzones, papaya, rambutan, coconut; and vegetables such as monggo, eggplant, and stringbeans. We also planted a little corn in some parts of our farm to serve as food for the chickens. We also raise goats and pigs whose wastes are made as organic fertilizer for our rice field. These days, we do not use insecticides anymore. We also have a small fishpond.

At present, the development of our livelihood using "sustainable agriculture" is not that big because our fruit trees have not yet bear fruits. However, I am hopeful, together with my family, that our situation would alleviate as we continue to practice this system of agriculture and in raising livestock.

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1 Kahaponan is one of the barangays in Valencia City, province of Bukidnon