DA: P379.06M worth of assistance provided to El Niño-hit farmers

The Department of Agriculture (DA) said Tuesday it has provided a total of P379.06 million worth of assistance to farmers affected by the El Niño phenomenon.

In a statement, the DA said among the assistance provided were high-value crops with less water requirement to affected farmers in Iloilo and Negros Occidental amounting to P990,000.  

The Agriculture Department, moreover, said it distributed hybrid rice seeds worth P7.87 million and fertilizers worth P7.63 million to non-vulnerable areas in Western Visayas for maximization of production to compensate for the losses. 

“Also, financial assistance from the Rice Farmers Financial Assistance (RFFA) Program has been given to 71,795 farmers in Mimaropa Region, with a total amount of P362.56 million,” it said.

The DA said a total of 35 rice and 16 corn farmers in Ilocos, Central Luzon, and Mimaropa regions have been indemnified by the Philippine Crop Insurance Corporation (PCIC) with a total amount of P1.24 million. 

The Agriculture Department said it is continuously coordinating with the concerned agencies for the provision and fast-tracking of financial assistance to affected farmers.

Apart from financial, seeds, and fertilizers assistance, the DA said its Bureau of Soils and Water Management (BSWM), in collaboration with relevant agencies like the Department of Science and Technology-Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical Astronomical Services Administration (DOST-PAGASA) and Department of National Defense-Philippine Air Force (DND-PAF), is conducting cloud seeding operations to ease water shortage, targeting agricultural areas in Southern Cagayan and Northern Isabela. 

“As a result, light to moderate rainfall is experienced over these areas,” it said.

The DA said the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) has installed 570 water augmentation pumps in Ilocos, Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, Mimaropa, and Western Visayas regions ensuring that there is water source in these areas prior to installation. 

“Concreting of irrigation canals is also on-going, which improved 847.82 kilometers of irrigation canals, benefitting 40,621 farmers nationwide. Further, desiltation of irrigation canals is being undertaken, improving water flow of 3,167.95 kilometers of irrigation canals nationwide,” it said.

The Agriculture Department said farmers are continuously adopting the alternate wetting-and-drying method that reduced water consumption in 162,623 hectares of agricultural areas. 

“Furthermore, the quick turnaround strategy was also implemented, benefiting 3,878.15 hectares of agricultural areas and 1,657 farmers in Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, Mimaropa, and Soccsksargen,” it said.

The DA said its regional field offices in Ilocos, Cagayan Valley, and Mimaropa regions have started endorsing the list of affected farmers to the Department of Social Welfare and Development and Department of Labor and Employment for other forms of assistance such as provision of food packs and cash for work programs. 

Latest El Niño bulletin estimates damage and losses to farms in eight regions—Ilocos Region, Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, Calabarzon, MIMAROPA, Western Visayas, Zamboanga Peninsula, and Soccsksargen— stand at P1.75 billion with 29,437 farmers affected. 

“The affected rice area of 18,651 hectares is 1.94% of the total target area planted of 960,864.48 hectares, while the production loss of 48,332 MT is equivalent to around 0.52% of the target production of 9,218,358.28 MT, both for the dry cropping season this 2024,” the DA said.

“As for corn, area affected by the dry spell is at 11,382 hectares or 1.03% of the total target area planted of 1,101,695.90 hectares, while the production loss of 18,966 MT is 0.42% of target production of 4,493,026.90 MT, both for the dry cropping season this 2024,” it said.—AOL, GMA Integrated News