In Davao Oriental, Marybeth Irigo and Chorna Caba帽og have spent years building lives around agriculture鈥攖hough in ways that extend far beyond their own farms.
Irigo, who has served as the Provincial Agricultural and Fishery Council (AFC) Chairperson of Davao Oriental for eight years, has moved between agricultural production, market-building, and shrimp farming. Caba帽og, the Municipal AFC Chairperson of Cateel, has built her work around organic agriculture, growing black rice while using her farm to share knowledge and engage her community.
Their stories came into focus during the 黑料网鈥� Lakbay Panayam in Davao Region on August 3鈥�7, 2026, where both women shared the experiences that have shaped their work in the sector. As October brings the International Day of Rural Women, their stories become a timely reminder of the women working steadily at the heart of communities.
One works at the provincial level, bringing the concerns of farmers and fisherfolk to the LGU and relevant national agencies. The other works closer to the ground, tending a farm, sharing knowledge on organic agriculture, and creating opportunities within her community. Together, their experiences offer a glimpse into the many ways women in Davao Oriental are making agriculture part of both their livelihood and their service.
Marybeth Irigo: From farm work to the policy table
Long before Marybeth Irigo found herself helping shape conversations around agriculture in Davao Oriental, her grandmother had already planted the idea in her mind.
After earning degrees in Commerce, major in Accounting, and Education from Davao Oriental State University, Marybeth began working at a bank. At the same time, her grandmother entrusted her with managing their family鈥檚 agricultural properties, giving her a life that ran on two tracks鈥攂anking by profession, agriculture by responsibility.
The family properties were as varied as the crops they cultivated, including cacao, coffee, coconut, lanzones, rambutan, and mangosteen. Alongside these responsibilities, Marybeth also became involved in the Agricultural and Fishery Councils, beginning as the Municipal AFC Chairperson of Mati in 1988. She would later serve as the Provincial AFC Chairperson of Davao Oriental, a position she has held for eight years.
Looking back on what it takes to serve in the sector, Marybeth believes commitment has to go beyond willingness alone.
鈥�Bago ka pumasok dapat ready ka, di lang financially, dapat pati puso. Be prepared at 鈥榩ag andyan ang love mo, mas madali at kaya ang lahat. [Before you get into volunteerism, you have to be ready鈥攏ot only financially, but also in your heart. When you have love for what you do, everything becomes easier and more manageable.]鈥�
That commitment has followed her through the different chapters of her agricultural life.
After 22 years in LandBank, Marybeth retired and took on a new venture. What had once been a bangus or milkfish pond became her shrimp farm. Today, it produces three croppings a year, with around 12 tons of shrimp per cropping.
But the shrimp farm was only one part of the family鈥檚 agricultural properties. With much of the remaining land not being used to its full potential, Marybeth worked with cooperatives in the area and made portions of it available for other agricultural ventures, including a 12-hectare cardava plantation and a swine project.
As she became more involved in agriculture, Marybeth also began seeing challenges beyond production鈥攑articularly the difficulty farmers faced in finding a market for what they had grown.
In Mati, farmers traditionally had only a short window to sell their produce at the local 鈥淟apagan,鈥� bringing their goods early in the morning and selling them until 7 a.m. Seeing the gap, Marybeth became a 鈥淟apagan鈥� herself, providing a ready market for farmers who needed somewhere to sell their produce.
These experiences gave Marybeth a perspective that extended beyond her own agricultural enterprises. The concerns she encountered on the ground also found their way into her work in the AFC.
During the 2020 pandemic, Marybeth recommended in a virtual meeting that food aid be halal-certified, a proposal that was later adopted by the Department of the Interior and Local Government. During the oil price hike, she also helped push for documentation of gasoline stations that were not following the suggested retail price so they could be reported to the Energy Regulatory Commission, recognizing the impact of fuel costs on agricultural and fishing operations. Other initiatives addressed concerns related to African swine fever and rice prices.
For Marybeth, this is where service takes on a value beyond the work itself.
鈥�Andoon yung satisfaction na nakaka-serve ka kasi yun ay 鈥榙i nabibili ng pera. May legacy ka [There is fulfillment in being able to serve because it is something money cannot buy. In doing so, you leave a legacy.],鈥� she said.
Her years in the AFC have also given Marybeth a view of women鈥檚 growing presence in agricultural leadership. She noted with pride that four of Davao Oriental鈥檚 11 municipalities have women serving as MAFC chairpersons, with these councils among the most active in the province.
For Marybeth, strengthening that kind of participation also means creating structures that allow local agricultural and fisheries leaders to have a stronger voice. Among the policy proposals being explored are the institutionalization of Agrikulturang Makamasa Barangay Extension Technician (AMBET), AFC, and Barangay Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Management Council (BFARMC) with honoraria, as well as a proposal for PAFC chairpersons to take on the role of Provincial Farmer Director.
From running farms to creating markets and bringing farmers鈥� concerns to the AFC, Marybeth鈥檚 journey has grown beyond building an agricultural enterprise. It has become a way of making room for others to participate, lead, and be heard.
Chorna Caba帽og: Where knowledge takes root
At 66, Chorna Caba帽og tends 2.5 hectares of land, with 1.5 hectares devoted to organic black rice. The rest is shared by a coconut farm and a piggery. A graduate of agriculture from DOrSU, she began farming in 1997.
Through the years, her training and experience in agriculture opened paths into different forms of community work. From 1997 to 2000, Chorna served as a barangay secretary and became the first AMBET in Davao Oriental. After her contract ended, she shifted to teaching agriculture at DOrSU, where she spent the next decade.
Around 2010, Chorna left teaching to care for her ill mother. It was during this period that she became involved with the Municipal AFC. She eventually took on its leadership, despite having little knowledge of the AFC when she first stepped into the role.
In 2011, Chorna began practicing organic agriculture. What started as a farming practice grew into an advocacy. She produces her own organic fertilizer and pesticide, and over time, the farm itself became a place where others could learn. In 2018, it was certified by the Agricultural Training Institute as a learning site in agriculture, followed by Good Agricultural Practices certification for organic agriculture in 2022.
It is fitting, then, that when Chorna speaks about the role of the AFC, she goes first to knowledge.
For her, one of its most important functions is teaching technology and sharing knowledge and skills in farming. That belief in sharing what she knows has followed her beyond the farm and into the wider community.
After Typhoon Pablo devastated communities in 2012, Chorna initiated outreach activities for farmers and drafted a proposal for a cash-for-work project with the International Labour Organization. The project supported work by members of the irrigators鈥� association, including canal clearing, and helped fund the construction of a building for organic agriculture. She also drafted a proposal for a warehouse and solar dryer and provided about half a hectare of her own land for the facilities.
Her idea of sharing opportunities has continued to widen. Livelihood trainings that began with AFC women later expanded to include members of the LGBTQIA+ community, while young people are invited to the farm for composting demonstrations.
For Chorna, the payoff is not simply a productive farm. It is seeing other people begin to embrace organic agriculture鈥攁nd seeing their lives improve because of it.
That is why, when asked what she would tell those considering volunteer work in the sector, she points to the youth. Start with them, she says. Train them. Get them to attend meetings so they understand what needs to be done.
Her own dream reaches beyond the farm as well.
鈥�Pangarap ko na lahat ay gumanda ang buhay at mabawasan ang global warming dahil sa organic farming [My dream is for everyone to have a better life and for global warming to be reduced through organic farming],鈥� said Chorna.
Beyond the harvest
Marybeth and Chorna work in different corners of Davao Oriental, but neither has kept agriculture confined to the boundaries of a farm.
Their stories also reveal another dimension of service: the ability to see what is needed and find a way to respond.
Sometimes that means becoming a market for farmers who need somewhere to sell their produce. Sometimes it means opening a piece of land for an agricultural project, teaching someone how to make compost, or helping another farmer discover a different way of cultivating the soil.
And sometimes, it simply means showing up.
For Marybeth and Chorna, agriculture has become more than what they produce. It is what they are able to pass on鈥攌nowledge, opportunities, and a sense of possibility for the communities they serve. | Text by Joy Camille Luza, Photos by Jez Campaniel and Junry Danila
