The Philippines received 800 million yen or P300 million worth of sugarcane farming equipment from Japan, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said on Saturday, Nov. 18.
The grant was handed over by the Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines, Kazuhiko Koshikawa, to Agriculture Secretary Francisco "Kiko" Tiu Laurel Jr., Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) Administrator Pablo Luis Azcona, and representatives of beneficiaries from Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.
Laurel thanked the Japanese government for the farming equipment they donated to small sugarcane farmers in the country.
“I’m especially pleased to be here today to welcome our good friends from the Government of Japan and thank them for the 80 units of tractors, 48 units of sugarcane planters, 48 units of flail mowers, and 5 units of power harrow—all extended under the Japan Non-Project Aid Program,” he said this during the turnover ceremony at the SRA Compound in Bacolod City, Negros Occidental.
“I'd like to express my gratitude to Mr. Jumpei Tachikawa, the first secretary and agriculture attaché at the Japanese Embassy, who has been instrumental in the success of this program,” he added.
According to Laurel, the country’s partnership with the Japanese government helps address the concern one affordable and accessible food items through modernization and mechanization.
“Our two nations are bound by common interests. Our trading partnership, which brings greater prosperity and opportunity to citizens of both our countries, has grown dramatically in recent years,” he said.
The DA chief said modernizing Philippine agriculture is key to meeting President Marcos’ and the public’s expectations of more affordable and accessible food items.
“Our partnership with the Japanese government helps us address this concern through modernization and mechanization. Our two nations are bound by common interests. Our trading partnership, which brings greater prosperity and opportunity to citizens of both our countries, has grown dramatically in recent years,” he said.
Mechanization reduces hard labor, relieves labor shortages, and improves the productivity and timeliness of agricultural operations, Laurel stated.
Meanwhile, he lauded the SRA for “steering the sugarcane industry” toward increasing its production through small sugarcane farmers.