President Marcos has called on Filipinos to work with the government in combating the effects of the El Niño phenomenon, which is expected to last until the second quarter of 2024, particularly by conserving water.

Marcos said this as he led the inauguration ceremony of the Balbalungao Small Reservoir Irrigation Project (BSRIP) in Nueva Ecija on Wednesday, Dec. 13.

In an interview with reporters, the President said they are preparing an informational campaign to let the public know what the government is doing and what the people can do to combat the looming dry spell.

He particularly highlighted the importance of conserving water.

"These are some of the few things we will embark upon in our informational campaign to make people understand what the situation is; what they can do themselves in each household, in the farms, industry; what they can do to help us save water," he said.

"Mag-ingat tayo sa kung anong tubig meron tayo; and to try, yung mga rainwater, ipunin natin para hindi naman masayang lang. Dapat pag nakikita natin na umuulan, nakikita natin pumapasok lang yung tubig sa dagat, dapat ‘wag nating pababayaang ganoon (Let's be careful with the water we have. Let's save up rainwater so it won't go to waste. Let's not just let it go to sea). We have to always take as much as we can," he added.

Fast-track projects

Marcos reminded government agencies such as the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) to immediately complete the construction of irrigation facilities and other supporting structures based on the needs of the Filipino farmers who will likely be affected by the dry spell.

The President said he gave the government agencies a deadline to accomplish all El Niño-related mitigation projects.

“Kaya’t itong ganitong klaseng proyekto ay naging mas mahalaga pa at naging mas urgent pa. Dahil kakaunti na lang ang ating natitirang panahon … meron tayong apat na buwan para tapusin lahat ‘yan, maging operational na lahat ‘yan (These projects have become more important and more urgent because we don't have much time left. We only have four months left to complete and operationalize them),” Marcos said.  the

The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) said 65 provinces across the country will be affected by a potential drought while around six provinces by the potential dry spell.