Sustainable agribusiness in mining communities
Empowering farmers in DidipioOceanaGold Corporation (CSR initiative) Implementing partners:
Grameen Australia Philippines (GAP) (now Grameen Pilinas Microfinance Inc)
Location:
Didipio, Philippines
Project duration:
July 2017 – January 2019
Sustainable Development Goals:
8, 12, 17
Background
OceanaGold Corporation is a multinational gold and copper mining company with operations in the Philippines, New Zealand, and the Americas. In the Philippines, the company operates the Didipio Mine in Nueva Vizcaya, a region inhabited by indigenous Ifugao farming communities with deep ties to their land and natural resources.
As part of its corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategy, OceanaGold recognised the need to proactively address the social and environmental impact of its mining activities. The Didipio mine, while economically significant, was met with concerns from the local community around land use, sustainability, and long-term livelihoods.
In response, OceanaGold committed to building trust and fostering economic resilience by supporting initiatives that aligned with community values. The Didipio Community Agribusiness Development Project was designed as a flagship CSR initiative to:
- Offset the negative externalities of mining
- Empower local farming families through sustainable, income-generating enterprises
- Promote inclusive development by partnering with the community, not just providing aid
- Align with global best practices for responsible mining and shared value creation
By engaging Dana Asia and Grameen Australia Philippines to co-develop a community-led agribusiness model, OceanaGold shifted its CSR approach from compensation to co-creation, prioritising empowerment, sustainability, and long-term partnership.
The challenge
The Didipio community, predominantly Ifugao farming families, was impacted by the operations of OceanaGold’s mine. While the area is rich in natural resources, the community lacked access to sustainable livelihood opportunities and perceived mining as exploitative. OceanaGold sought to respond proactively through CSR by empowering local farmers to become self-sufficient and establish community enterprises rooted in sustainable agriculture and local culture.
Our approach
In partnership with Grameen Australia Philippines (now Grameen Pilipinas Microfinance Inc.), Dana Asia delivered end-to-end advisory services using a community-based enterprise development framework. This included:
- Participatory community assessments to identify local resources, skills gaps, and enterprise opportunities
- Co-design of sustainable agribusiness models
- Delivery of training-cum-production programs on organic vegetable farming, native pig and free-range chicken raising, and mushroom cultivation
- Formation and incubation of two community cooperatives (DIPCO and DIPCC) to lead enterprise development and marketing
- Ongoing support for financial literacy, cooperative governance, and agribusiness operations
Impact
40
farmers trained in organic and sustainable agribusiness
520%
increase in vegetable yields for farmers
29
agri microbusinesses started
Adoption of sustainable practices preserved soil health and secured long-term productivity
Lessons learnt
When communities are engaged as partners rather than beneficiaries, ownership, participation, and long-term impact dramatically increase. Aligning CSR goals with local aspirations is key to sustainability.
“In transforming to organic farming you can gain income even from small farm area, learn to produce our own organic fertilizer, no more use of poisonous pesticides and do practical care of our environment and health”
– Vivian Dulnuan – Didipio organic farmer
