Co-op News

MASS-SPECC is one of the few pioneering organizations in the Philippines to receive a Digisoft Smart Projector from Access Agriculture — a global leader in producing high-quality agricultural training videos in local languages and supporting sustainable farming initiatives across developing countries. This milestone reinforces MASS-SPECC’s commitment to sustainable development through its flagship advocacy programs: the Sustainable Co-operatives Program (SCOOPS) and the Agri-Based Enterprise System Program (AGRI-BEST).

The Digisoft Smart Projector, a portable and solar-powered device preloaded with over 250 training videos in local and international languages, provides essential agricultural knowledge to communities lacking access to electricity or the internet. This innovation fosters farmer-to-farmer communication, enabling collaboration and the exchange of best practices to improve productivity and sustainability.

To ensure the effective use of this technology, MASS-SPECC participated in the two-day Access Agriculture Projector Training Course held on December 2-3, 2024, in Cagayan de Oro City. Led by Access Agriculture’s Co-Founder Phil Mallone and Executive Director Josephine Judgers, the training equipped participants with the skills to deliver impactful educational sessions and extend critical knowledge to grassroots communities.

On December 3, MASS-SPECC led the active video screening at Fergber Integrated Organic Farming, Inc.’s training site in Sitio Mahayahay, Barangay Bayabas, Cagayan de Oro City. The session brought together local farmer-residents to learn about innovative and sustainable farming practices, demonstrating the projector’s potential to drive knowledge-sharing and capacity-building in underserved areas.

The federation plans to deploy the Smart Projector through SCOOPS’ ECO-OPducation initiative and AGRI-BEST’s Strengthened Co-operatives and Viable Agro-enterprises for Smallholder Farmers’ Profitable Production and Engagement in the Value Chains (Coop-PROPEL Project). This initiative aims to create a more inclusive agricultural value chain, empowering co-operatives and smallholder farmers to thrive while contributing to sustainable community development.