Additional projects meant to further secure the country’s food supply are being prepared, according to the Department of Agriculture (DA).
The DA said the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations has granted a $1-million funding for technical cooperation projects in the Philippines agri-fisheries sector .
In a report to Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr., DA spokesman and assistant secretary Arnel de Mesa said that in his recent meeting with FAO Philippines representative Dr. Lionel Dabbadie, the agency has initially proposed about $594,000 for FAO’s consideration.
The identified focus items are on agrifood system transformation, additional responses to El Niño-affected areas and agricultural investment for aquaculture and seaweed production, the DA said.
“We will make it a point to fast track the preparation process to ensure that our agricultural sector can benefit from this investment, especially the assistance intended for areas heavily damaged by El Niño, which is a key priority of our secretary,” de Mesa said in a statement.
The agency did not provide further details on the FAO grant.
Meanwhile, the DA has created three teams to prepare and finalize the feasibility studies
for priority infrastructure projects that will boost food production, particularly rice and corn.
Tiu Laurel designated Jerome Oliveros, DA undersecretary for special concerns and for official development assistance, as the chairperson across all three project-preparation teams that would draft the framework and plans for the proposed post-harvest program for rice and corn, solar-powered cold storages as well as solar-powered irrigation systems.
Tiu Laurel said the teams will have to ensure that the project documents are compliant with the requirements of the DA-wide project clearing house system and the National Economic and Development Authority-Investment Coordination Committee.
As a special instruction for the solar-powered irrigation system project, the DA secretary said the team involved should ensure consistency on the proposed sites with the database of the National Irrigation Administration and with the Bureau of Soil and Water Management irrigation master plan.
Earlier this year, Tiu Laurel estimated that the government will have to shell out around P93 billion in the next couple of years to build post-harvest facilities for rice and corn to minimize losses, while P1 billion is needed to build cold storage facilities to extend the shelf life of vegetables.
