Rice tariff collection in excess of P10B to be used for productivity programs —DOF

The government will be using any excess of the P10 billion tariff to be collected from rice imports for programs to enhance the productivity of local rice farmers, the Department of Finance (DOF) said Thursday.

“Ang taripang sosobra sa P10 billion ay ilalaan sa ibang productivity programs para sa rice sector,” Finance Assistance Secretary Tony Lambino said during a virtual webinar.

Under the Rice Tariffication law (RTL), of the total tariff to be collected annually, P10 billion is automatically appropriated for the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF).

The P10-billion RCEF is divided into four components, namely farm machinery and equipment at P5 billion, certified inbred seeds at P3 billion, credit at P1 billion, and training and extension at P1 billion.

The Rice Tariffication Law was signed by President Rodrigo Duterte in February 2019.

It removed all quantitative restrictions on rice importation in the Philippines and imposed a 35-percent tariff for rice imports.

“Mula nang maisabatas ang RTL sobra po para sa P10 billion para sa RCEF ang nalilikom mula sa taripa,” Lambino said.

As of the seven months of the year, rice tariff collections amounted to P11.036 billion, up 4% year-on-year, and exceeding the P10-billion worth of rice import tariffs aimed for RCEF.

“Lahat ng tariff collection na lalagpas sa P10 billion ay ilalaan sa iba pang tulong sa mga magsasaka,” Lambino said.

Without specifying how the government will utilize the excess rice tariff collection, the Finance official noted that of the P12.1 billion collected in 2019, the excess of P2.1 billion was used by the Department of Agriculture for crop diversification program (P1 billion) and expanded crop insurance on rice (P1.1 billion).

Noting that tariff collections have already exceeded P10 billion so far this year, Lambino said, “Sigurading mapopondohan ang RCEF programs.”

Agriculture Secretary William Dar, for his part, cited the milestones done by the Department of Agriculture under the RCEF programs.

Dar said the DA has distributed 1,375,125 bags of certified inbred seeds to 554,512 farmers covering 698,586 hectares during the dry season 2019 to 2020.

The agency has also distributed 2,274,165 bags of certified inbred seeds to 862,854 farmers covering 1,006,537 hectares during the wet season 2020.

For the RCEF mechanization component, Dar said the DA has procured 2,938 machines, of which 1,108 were distributed to 625 farmer cooperatives and associations.

Under the RCEF credit component, the Agriculture department loaned out P1 billion to 5,671 individual farmers and 22 cooperatives in 2019.

For this year, the DA has so far obligated P670.88 million for credit, of which P102.71 million was released to 610 farmers and 15 cooperatives.

For the RCEF’s extension service component, the Agriculture chief cited the following achievements:

• 53 farm schools established; 12 assisted
• 831 batches of training for farmers, with 20,803 participants, of which 20,231 received scholarships
• 163 batches of training of trainers, with 5,255 participants
• 8 batches of training of specialists, with 226 participants
• 31 batches of training of seed growers, inspectors, analysts, and other extension intermediaries, with 809 participants
• technical briefings conducted to 691,761 participants
• 3,363,463 copies of information and educational communication materials distributed

“We have generated more than enough revenues to fully fund RCEF para pataasin ang competitiveness ng local rice industry,” Lambino said.

Emphasizing how the RTL helped in increasing the local industry’s competitiveness, Dar said that palay production increased to 8.9 million metric tons in the first half of 2020 from 8.27 million metric tons for the entire 2019.

Average production cost is also eyed to be reduced by 30% from the current cost ranging from P12 to P14 per kilogram to ensure bigger profit margins for farmers.

“With higher productivity and lower production cost, farmers can offer to our consumers, particularly the poor, affordable rice,” Dar said.

To shield the domestic sector from decline in farmgate prices of palay due to the unhampered entry of imports, the DA allocated P10 billion under the 2020 budget of the National Food Authority for the procurement of palay from local farmers at P19 per kilo.

The NFA also established 558 palay buying stations across the country and procured two million bags of palay for September alone.

The DA also partnered with local government units for the procurement of locally produced palay.

Multinational companies were also encouraged to buy from farmer cooperatives and associations for their employees’ rice allowance. -MDM, GMA News