The General Manager of the Agricultural Development Bank (BDA), Roberto Barría Stanziola, carried out a fruitful working tour in the province of Los Santos, highlighting the BDA’s commitment to agricultural development in the region.
The tour began with a working meeting with Diogenes Domínguez, Regional Manager in charge of the BDA in Los Santos, where strategies to strengthen support for local producers were discussed. During this tour, Barría Stanziola was accompanied by Emigdio Rodríguez, Technical Assistance Manager of the BDA, who evaluated the projects presented and provided his technical recommendations in each case.
The tour included a visit to the Capri Dovi agrotourism farm, where 2 hectares are being exploited with goat production and the cultivation of fruit trees, an example of productive diversification in the region, all with its own resources, without loans from the BDA.
The tour continued in Buenos Aires de Tonosí, where Barría Stanziola visited the farm of producer Mario Domínguez, who is developing a dairy farming project. This project seeks to be supported by the BDA through a line of credit that will allow the farm’s infrastructure to be improved and its productive capacity to be increased, with the goal of reaching 1,500 liters of milk per day once it is fully operational. In addition, the project is expected to include dairy farming, genetic improvement and cattle fattening activities.
During his tour of Los Santos, the General Manager also visited client Nadia Zuleika González in Tonosí, who cultivates 160 hectares of irrigated rice. Of these, 30 hectares are financed by the BDA, which underlines the bank’s support for rice producers in the region.
Another important point of the tour was the visit to the Río La Villa Meat and Milk Producers Cooperative (Cooprocal, RL), also in Los Santos. This cooperative, which has around 700 members, has plans to build a milk processing plant that will allow them to diversify their activity. Barría Stanziola also highlighted the possibility of accessing financing from the BDA to strengthen this project.
The tour also included the Panameats Plant, a facility that seeks to integrate micro, small and medium producers into its supply chain. With an investment of 12 million dollars and machinery imported from China, the plant is designed to slaughter 200 cattle and 400 pigs daily. Pending the necessary permits, this plant represents a great opportunity for local producers, who will be able to benefit from BDA credit lines to optimize their operations.
Barría Stanziola met with Edwin Villalaz, president of the Salt Production and Marketing Cooperative Salineros Santeños, RL, which is responsible for 75% of the salt production in the country. Villalaz highlighted the importance of the BDA’s support for the construction of a concrete wall to protect the salt vats, a key project for the sustainability of their production.
A final visit was made to Ucape, a cooperative seeking to diversify by building an onion drying plant. This plant would serve producers in Los Santos, Herrera, Coclé and Veraguas, thus expanding opportunities for farmers in these regions.
In conclusion, the General Manager of the BDA reaffirmed his willingness to support the cooperatives of the region, pointing out that the Bank has a budget of 3 million dollars this year that will be used to support the cooperatives of the country. With this successful tour, the BDA strengthens its commitment to the economic and social development of the Azuero region.
