During the 12 months of the administration of President Rodrigo R. Duterte, here are some of the events – interesting, informative, and otherwise – that happened in the country’s agriculture sector. These were culled from various news reports (national, local and government press releases):
May 2017: “We used to be the world’s second-largest banana producer and exporter next to Ecuador,” said Antero Sison, Jr., president of Marsman Estate Plantation, Inc. “But today, the Philippines has been edged out by Costa Rica.”
From US$1.1 billion in 2014, the country’s export earnings from banana dipped to US$440 million in 2015. “Ironically, this could be the best time for us to recover because of the increasing demand from large markets like China, but unpredictable state policies are pulling the industry down,” said Sison, referring to the inconsistency of the strategies of the Department of Agrarian Reform.
April 2017: A survey done by the Philippine Statistics Authority showed that growing Cavendish banana is the most profitable farming activity. “Among industries, growing of Cavendish banana generated the highest valued added amounting to US$14.4 billion, 0r 35.6% of the total,” the report said.
Unfortunately, only 180 establishments are engaged in Cavendish production. Total number of people employed in growing Cavendish topped all other industries with 48,442 workers, or 29.7% of the total.
March 2017: To increase abaca output to 221,238 metric tons by 2022, the Department of Agriculture has to find a budget of P7 billion. The increase can only be made possible if the additional abaca plantations will be added: 17,000 hectares in 2017, 10,000 hectares in 2018, 9,000 hectares in 2019, and some more 9,000 hectares in 2020.
This was bared in the Philippine Abaca Roadmap 2017-2022. About 85% of the world abaca supply comes from the Philippines.
February 2017: About P126-million worth of tilapia was destroyed when a massive fish kill, touted to be the worst, hit the municipality of Lake Sebu. Three barangays (Poblacion, Takonel and Bacdulong – were placed under the state of calamity.
As a result, the 10-% limit of the lake’s area for aquaculture development would be enforced. This was already set in Republic Act 8850 or the Philippine Fishery Code of 1998. When the massive fish kill happened, around 20% of the 354-hectare lake were occupied by fish cages.
January 2017: To ensure the country’s food security, Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol proposed a 10-year road map that would be legislated so that even if President Duterte has already stepped down it will still be implemented.
“I told the President that his administration must lay the foundation of a strong agriculture sector,” Piñol told the audience who came to celebrate the 87th anniversary of the Bureau of Plant Industry in Manila. He also said, “Our problem in the Philippines is that our agriculture sector is hostage to the terms of government officials.”
December 2016: During the inauguration of a modern rice seed processing facility at the Philippine Rice Research Institute, Piñol said that his department “will have to focus programs on the commercialization of rice seed production in the country by 2017.”
“Good genetics and good farm management are two factors the DA needs to focus on to be able to synch our strategies with the vision of the President towards affordable and accessible food for every Filipino,” he said.
November 2016: After receiving reports that many import permits were being recycled and that smugglers are misdeclaring imported goods like meat, Piñol said that his department will inspect all inbound shipments of agricultural goods and food before the Bureau of Customs evaluates the tariffs for these imports.
Piñol said that he would create under his department the Agriculture and Fisheries Trade Facilitation Unit, which would handle the inspection of all inbound shipments of agricultural goods in the country. “We have to do this to protect the interest of government which is being deprived of the appropriate tariffs from smugglers,” he pointed out.
October 2016: To mark the first 100 Days of the Agriculture sector under his leadership, the President handed out over P100-M worth of farming equipment and machineries and fiberglass fishing boats to poor farmers and fishermen of Basilan Province.
“If you have issues against government, do not get angry right away. Call me or course your complaints through my people and we will settle the problem,” Duterte told the audience. “Let us stop the fighting here so I could focus on giving the country more programs to develop our economy. I am just asking for six conflict-free years so that we will be able to move forward.”
September 2016: In its bid to provide affordable credit to Filipino farmers and fishermen, the agriculture department launched a P200-million loan program called Program for Unified Lending to Agriculture (PUNLA). “This is part of the government’s effort to provide trouble-free services to rural communities, as we want to make things easier for them,” Piñol said.
Among those who can avail the loan are farmers and fishermen from the 10 poorest regions in the country: Apayao, Cotabato, Eastern Samar, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Negros Oriental, Northern Samar, Sarangani, Western Samar, and Zamboanga del Norte.
August 2016: Piñol announced that his department was developing two mobile applications which would help increase crop production and income of the farmers. “I believe that the two mobile applications could revolutionize Philippine agriculture,” he was quoted as saying by Business Mirror.
On why he was doing so, he replied: “The farmers’ lack of access to information regarding the buyers and the price of their products has made Philippine agriculture a one-sided affair where traders dictate the price.”
July 2016: By shifting to a federal system of government, the economic growth will be ensured to reach the countryside. That was according to Rep. Raymund Villafuerte of Camarines Sur.
Villafuerte believed that the current form of government is “the single biggest impediment to industrial and agricultural development in the provinces.” He said: “The concentration of national wealth remains in imperial Manila with 35% of the national budget going to the National Capital Region, even if it represents only 14% of the Philippine population.”
June 2016: To maximize the use of information and communications technology (ICT) in agricultural production in the country, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization rolled out the National E-agriculture Strategy in cooperation with the agriculture department.
“Right now, we have a lot of individual ICT interventions for agriculture, but there is no framework that harmonizes all of these,” said Tamara Jean C. Palis, FAO program assistant, was quoted as saying. “The e-agriculture strategy will improve the efficiency of (ICT projects) and benefit agricultural value chains.”
(Photo of Secretary Emmanuel Piñol is courtesy from him)
