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Farmers' productivity the measure of success. 

As one of the longest-serving team members, since 2000, Girlie is very familiar with the importance of knowledge transfer activities on the personal and professional well being of farmers.

“In my opinion, happy and satisfied farmer is always the parameter in measuring if I am an effective extension worker or not,” she says.

“Touching the lives of smallholder farmers and making the difference is fulfilling. I’m always proud and happy to see that our trained farmers were able to capture a greater proportion of the value created in vegetable micro-enterprises. This results in improved farm income, providing higher quality of life for their families.”

Following a brief time with the Department of Agriculture, Girlie initially thought she had missed the chance to join EWS as the deadline on the advert for the position had already expired. Trying her luck, she applied anyway.
“Thankfully I got the job. My first assignment was the first KT extension project in Ilocos Sur, Region 1 in June 2000 and the rest is history,” she reveals.

She believes it is critical to upskill farmers in Philippines in order to compete globally.

“To address these complicated and evolving market situations, it is the major role of East-West Seed Knowledge Transfer to introduce innovative services that can mitigate these challenging market situations,” she concludes.