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News
October
13, 2009
Rice NGO pushes for increased social
protection for farmers
TNon-government organization Rice Watch
and Action Network (R1) today urged the
House of Representatives and the Senate
to allocate P830 million from the 2010
agriculture budget for social protection
to help the farmers cope and recover
from the impact of extreme weather
conditions due to global warming.
“The lessons of devastations brought
about by the last two typhoons,
especially Pepeng are clear markings on
the walls both for the government and
the Filipinos’ capacity to respond to
the threats of climate change. The poor
farmers will always be helpless victims
unless the government prioritizes social
protection for the farmers,” said
Jessica Reyes-Cantos, R1 lead convenor.
R1 submitted its agriculture budget
proposal, along with the other proposals
of the Social Watch Philippines’
Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI), to
Rep. Junie Cua, chair of the House
Committee on Appropriations.
Cantos said their proposal focused on
community-based and indigenous rain
water collection through Small
Water-Impounding Project (SWIP). Each
costs P50,000 that may be placed in
every hectare of rice land. R1 proposed
that the government provide SWIP for
10,000 hectares amounting to a total of
P500 million.
“We do not want to see a major
irrigation project becoming useless for
lack of water during the dry season
while water is wasted as runoff during
the wet season. We have seen palay
waiting for harvest lay wasted after
being submerged in flooded farms due to
intense rains during the rainy months.
On the other hand, the threat of El Niño
during the dry season will lead to soil
desertification, leaving the soil
virtually useless for planting,”
explained Cantos.
The Department of Agriculture (DA)
reported yesterday that damage to the
agriculture sector caused by tropical
storm “Ondoy” and typhoon “Pepeng” has
reached P10 billion.
Losses in rice were recorded in all
provinces of the Cordilleras and the
Ilocos region, Cagayan and Nueva Vizcaya
in Cagayan Valley, Nueva Ecija and
Pampanga in Central Luzon, Albay and
Camarines Norte in Bicol.
About 35,207 hectares were reportedly
completely damaged while 150,558
hectares may recover. The Value of
destroyed harvestable palay is close to
P5 billion, while investment of farmers
who lost crops in seedling/vegetative
stage amounts to P81 million.
Initial studies conducted by R1 found
that the effects of climate change can
be neutralized by a simple change in the
farming system. Some experts consulted
by R1 recommended possible adjustment in
the cropping calendar, appropriate
extension work to increase the farmers’
resiliency against the vagaries of the
weather, and direct soil fertilization
to manage the deficiency in soil
nutrients due to massive chemical
fertilization and pesticide inputs.
R1 proposed additional funding for
PHILRICE worth P250 million to create a
Task Force on Climate Change that will
cover training costs, resource persons,
module and training materials addressing
30 rice-producing provinces.
“Farmers experienced crop losses, low
yields and even greater pest
infestations brought about by these
extreme climatological events. This may
potentially lead to higher grain prices
that will also endanger their
livelihood,” Cantos said.
Also included in the agriculture budget
proposal of R1 are adequate funding for
crop insurance with easier access to
small farmers, elimination of the
subsidies for hybrid seeds and to
seriously assess the effectiveness of
devolved agriculture extension services
among the local government units. (END)
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