Filipino farmers have posted significant improvement in their harvest last year amid the challenges that were faced by the country like typhoons and the coronavirus disease (COVID019).
Agriculture Secretary William Dar said the significant increase in rice had the farmers posting a P10,000 per hectare increment in gross income. The fund has also contributed to the decrease in the cost production of the farmers.
“We have posted record harvests for the last two years at 19.2 million metric tons (MMT) in 2020 and 19.96 MMT in 2021,” said Dar.
Dar said that a big factor for the improvement is the big budget allotted to the agriculture sector.
“Last year, we were given P62 billion for the development of the industry. It just shows that when we have enough funding, we can implement more programs and be more productive," said Dar.
The department was also able to implement programs that include science-based initiatives, effective farm systems and technologies, as well as distribution of seeds, fertilizer, and machinery support, all for the welfare of Filipino small rice farmers.
Last Monday, Feb. 7 Dar was in Tagbilaran for the distribution of interventions to the province of Bohol, which has been badly affected by typhoon Odette. Among the support awarded was the Rice Farmers Financial Assistance (RFFA) for the 52,819 farmer-beneficiaries totaling P267.7 million.
Under RFFA, every farmer tilling two hectares or less, will be receiving P5,000 in unconditional cash assistance.
“These are part of the excess tariff collected in 2020, totaling to more than P7 billion. Last year, the collection reached P8.8 billion, which means that we will reach out and help more farmers,” said Dar.
Dar also distributed other assistance packages in Bohol through the SURE Aid Loan and Agri-Negosyo Programs – both under the DA-Agricultural Credit Policy Council, Quick Response Fund, Swine Recovery Program, and assorted inputs to aid rehabilitation efforts in the province for different agricultural industries.
He also committed additional support including processing facilities for poultry, livestock, fishery, coconut, and other crops, to be lodged under the Philippine Rural Development Project.