Cagayan de Oro scraps year-end revelry to build ‘Super El Niño’ resilience

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY — Mayor Rolando Uy has canceled City Hall’s 2026 year-end party, shifting the local government’s resources from holiday festivities to survival measures ahead of the anticipated “Super El Niño”

In a video advisory Friday, November 6, the City Information Office announced the pivot to strict austerity and disaster preparedness. The move channels funds, focus, and manpower directly into mitigating the severe impacts of the impending dry spell.

READ: Keep Christmas parties simple as peak of Super El Niño looms – Palace

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Instead of party planning, City Hall is rolling out alternative economic lifelines.

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“We are actively introducing non-agricultural economic activities to our farmers,” City Agriculturist Bernie Daba, Jr said in the advisory.

In coordination with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI-10) and the City Social Welfare and Development (CSWD) office, these programs aim to generate substitute income when traditional farming takes a hit from the drought.

Coastal communities are also being retooled to weather the crisis. Daba noted that the city is training fisherfolk in value-added techniques, pivoting their reliance from raw catches to processed goods like bottled Spanish sardines.

To bolster the city’s food security, the agriculture office is pushing the deployment of Norwegian fish cages for milkfish (bangus) production, a strategy Daba highlighted as one of Uy’s key countermeasures.

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On the rural infrastructure front, the city is tapping into renewable energy to assist farmers. Six solar panel units have already been installed, with five more slated for deployment to service agricultural zones spanning half a hectare to three-quarters of a hectare.

Despite the grim climate forecast that prompted the austerity measures, Daba urged the agricultural sector not to panic.

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“Don’t hesitate. If problems arise, just contact us or visit us here in the office because we are willing to help,” Daba said. /jpv