By: Celso M. Cajucom

CABANATUAN CITY, Nueva Ecija — The new Korea Agricultural Machinery Industry Complex (KAMIC) is projected to boost investor confidence and generate thousands of local jobs once it is fully operational.

The USD100-million (approximately PHP 5.9 billion) project had its groundbreaking ceremony on Wednesday, December 10, led by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. as the complex is located on a 20-hectare lot in Barangay Kalikid Sur, provided by Cabanatuan City government led by Mayor Myca Vergara.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. spoke to media, including the Currentph.com correspondent, on the sidelines of the event, explaining that the project specifically aims to stimulate economic recovery by modernizing the agricultural sector.

“It’s an indication of investors’ confidence in our country despite the negative issues arising from what you may be hearing,” Laurel said.

During the ceremony, President Marcos highlighted the critical role of agriculture in national prosperity.

“Our nation’s future will be prosperous, the farmers’ future will be more prosperous, and our kababayans’ [countrymen’s] future will also be more prosperous; that is how important the work of our farmers is to the rest of the country,” the President stated.

The complex is the first of its kind in the country and is designed to manufacture, assemble, and distribute farming equipment such as tractors, harvesters, and seeders.

“It will initially create jobs for about 3,000 up to 5,000 workers, and 10,000 once fully operational,” Laurel added. He noted that this initiative aims to modernize farming processes by lowering costs and increasing efficiency, especially in anticipation of an aging population of local farmers.

Based on a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA), Korean investors are providing $80 million, while the Philippine government is contributing the remaining $20 million through the Department of Agriculture and the local government.

Mayor Vergara, in her speech, shared the positive impact the project will have on the city’s economic development.

“Thank you, Mr. President, you have brought a program for the everyday needs of the people,” said Vergara, who welcomed guests and visitors alongside her father, Rep. Julius Jay Vergara, and former 3rd congressional district Rep. Rosanna Ria Vergara.

Rep. Vergara, in an interview, expressed gratitude for choosing the city as the location, noting that this infrastructure will signal more progress and development in the area. “Market land value will be increasing due to the project,” he said.

Meanwhile, Hankee Jang, the Chief Technology Officer of TYM, clarified that the Korea Agricultural Machinery Industrial Cooperative (KAMICO) companies are not competitors but partners committed to complementing the local market, said Jang, who was accompanied by Asia-Pacific head Seung-il Hong and overseas sales department head Kurt Jeong, noted that KAMICO represents several South Korean agricultural machinery companies in this venture.

As part of the event, a total of 44 farmer’s cooperatives and associations in Central Luzon received newly designed tractors, harvesters, and mechanical planters. These inputs were purchased by the Department of Agriculture under the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF) program.

DA Sec. Laurel and House Speaker Faustino “Bojie” Dy III led the distribution of the certificates of awards for the farmer cooperatives, assisted by Rep. Vergara, Director Dionisio Alvindia of the Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization (PHilMech) and DA Region 3 Director Eduardo Lapuz Jr.

Construction is scheduled to begin in 2026 and the facility is expected to be fully operational approximately one and a half years after completion, around the middle of 2027.

“Korean counterpart dealers of the agricultural machinery manufacturing company. The management team of TYM Corporation (a member of the Korea Agricultural Machinery Industry Cooperative, or KAMICO) is the one guiding Filipino workers for the Korea Agricultural Machinery Industrial Complex (KAMIC) project in Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecija, scheduled to start next year.”   

TYM Corporation headed by Hankee Jang, Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Head of the R&D Center, Seung-il Hong, Head of the Asia-Pacific Sales team and Kurt Jeon, Head Overseas Sales Department, members of the KAMICO Cooperatives in South Korea. (Photos Celso Cajucom)