ILOILO CITY — The Department of Agriculture (DA) distributed Php171 million cash aid to rice farmers in Antique province to cushion the impact of low prices and COVID-19 pandemic.
“Considering the current pandemic, the government prioritized the utilization of excess funds on providing cash subsidy to farmers with two hectares and below rice lands,” said Remelyn Recoter, DA regional director for Western Visayas.
At least 34,333 farmers from all over Antique province stand to benefit from this cash aid under the DA’s Rice Farmers Financial Assistance (RFFA) program.
DA and the state-owned Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) started distribution last Monday. The first recipients are rice farmers from the capital town of San Jose de Buenavista, and the towns of San Remigio, Sibalom and Tobias Fornier.
The P171 million cash aid is from RFFA’s P1.17 billion budget for farmers all across Western Visayas.
Recoter earlier said that Western Visayas is entitled to 13 percent of the nationwide Php10-billion Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF) which is part of the controversial Rice Tariffication Law (RCL) that has been blamed for low prices of rice.
The RCEF supports local rice farmers by providing funds for farm mechanization, inbreeding, credit assistance, and training.