PLDT and Smart Communications, Inc. (Smart), in partnership with the Benguet Agri Pinoy Trading Center (BAPTC), carried on with the scheduled Digital Farmers Program (DFP) in La Trinidad, Benguet the day after the magnitude 7.0 earthquake hit North Luzon.
Launched in 2019, DFP is a digital literacy training program developed by PLDT and Smart with the Department of Agriculture – Agricultural Training Institute to help increase the livelihood opportunities available to farming communities by introducing them to digital tools and mobile technologies.
“PLDT and Smart aim to improve the livelihood of our local farmers through technology-driven programs and solutions such as the DFP. We also want to empower and inspire them to learn new skills using mobile technology in agriculture,” said Kristine Joyce Magadia, Stakeholder Management Lead for Livelihood and Food Security at PLDT and Smart. 
APTC is one of the country’s biggest vegetable and fruit trading facilities, where farmers from the Cordillera Administrative Region regularly drop and sell their produce at affordable prices.
PLDT and Smart conducted the DFP training session a day after last week’s earthquake which struck North Luzon. Despite the calamity just the day before, La Trinidad farmers who were invited by BAPTC to attend the DFP training stayed committed to learn and showed up.
120 farmers, traders, and BAPTC representatives participated, and eagerly learned about the fundamentals of Social Media Marketing, Facebook Marketplace, Internet Safety, and Mobile Banking (Maya).
Aside from the learning modules, PLDT, Smart and BAPTC also conducted fun games where attendees won prizes, turning out to be a good way to uplift the spirits of the participants after experiencing a strong earthquake in the area.
The DFP training in Benguet is also a special time for the PLDT, Smart and their sales team, who joined and sponsored the Smart Day at BAPTC’s 4th Highland Vegetables Festival. Attendees also got a chance to win Smart premium items and gadgets including pocket WiFis and tablets.
To know more about DFP and how to partner with PLDT and Smart, visit FarmSmartPH on Facebook.
DFP underscores PLDT and Smart’s commitment to bring technology closer to farming communities, and supports the country’s achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth.
