The Philippine Crop Insurance Corp. (PCIC) on Monday, Oct. 14, said it will provide ₱93.8 million to farmers in three regions affected by the devastation of Typhoon Julian.
According to PCIC president Jovy Bernabe, a total of 10,781 insured farmers of rice, corn, and high-value crops from the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR ), Region I, and Region II will be indemnified by the insurance company.
Department of Agriculture (DA) Secretary Francisco “Kiko” Tiu Laurel Jr. said the affected farmers should be immediately indemnified “to restore their financial health so they can quickly recover from this calamity.”
“Fast-tracking the release of their insurance claims will foster confidence in the PCIC among our farmers and encourage more investors in agriculture,” he said in a statement.
PCIC data showed that 6,585 farmers are from Region I, 2,355 farmers from CAR, and 1,841 farmers are from Region II.
“Two-thirds of the damage, estimated at ₱62.3 million, was assessed in Region I, with damage to rice farms accounting for about ₱51.3 million,” the agency said.
The DA noted that Region I includes Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, La Union, and Pangasinan, while Region II comprises Batanes, Cagayan, Isabel, Quirino, and Nueva Vizcaya.
Bernabe reportedly told the DA chief that the PCIC has instructed their staff to help affected farmers and speed up the processing of their damage claims.
Per the DA’s Oct. 7 estimate, the agricultural damage wrought by Typhoon Julian has swelled to ₱607.38 million, affecting 33,110 farmers. The areas affected are the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), Ilocos Region, Cagayan Valley, and Central Luzon.