The Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) is now utilizing the KoBo toolbox, an online platform in data gathering and recording for the environmental and social management framework of the Support to Parcelization of Lands for Individual Titling (SPLIT) project in Ilocos Region.
In an interview on Monday, DAR provincial information officer Zarena Ann Amado said the KoBo toolbox conserves the use of paper and prevents physical contact among the field validation team and the agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs).
“The members of the field validation team go to the ARBs and they just need to bring their cell(ular) phone, laptop, or tablet gadgets since the KoBo can be accessed offline with its android app software,” she said.
She added data gathering for the SPLIT project becomes faster with the use of the platform.
Project SPLIT seeks to subdivide collective certificate of land ownership award (CCLOA) into individual land titles so every farmer-beneficiary may exercise full ownership and possession and will have complete control in cultivating the area the way he or she sees fit.
“One of the requirements for SPLIT is gathering the information regarding landholding and other data about the ARBs,” Amado said.
The use of the online platform is also timely as it prevents physical contact amid the ongoing pandemic, she added.
Amado assured the safety of the data gathered through the platform.
“We have conducted field testing last month and it is now being used by the validation team,” she said.
Developed in the United States, KoBo Toolbox is a data-gathering platform widely used by humanitarian organizations and researchers.
Source: Philippines News Agency
