BUTUAN CITY -- The Department of Agriculture (DA) and its attached agencies and bureaus continue to pour out more financial resources to boost the Caraga region’s rice industry.
DA-Caraga Regional Executive Director Engr. Ricardo M. Oñate Jr. said that to optimize the government interventions, collaboration and coordination with the rice stakeholders are necessary to align the programs and interventions intended for the region’s rice farmers.
All programs and projects for the rice sector are being lined up to ensure a stable supply of safe and nutritious rice. It also aims to increase farm household income in consonance with the directives of the President and Secretary of Agriculture Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.
In Caraga Region, the DA Rice Program allocated ₱260.85 million worth of agriculture interventions to rice farmers for CY 2023. This is a 76% increase in budget allocation compared to last year’s ₱148 million.
This year, the budget is allocated to the following interventions: ₱178.95 million for production support; ₱54.48 million for extension support, education, and training; ₱6.71 million for research and development; ₱6.94 million for agricultural machinery, equipment, and facilities; and ₱13.75 million irrigation network services.
Aside from the regular Rice Program, DA-Caraga is set to release ₱156.7 million in fertilizer discount vouchers (FDV) that would enable rice farmers to meet the recommended urea fertilizer requirement, and, in turn, increase their production. This is part of the additional funding of the government’s fertilizer subsidy program that covers the 2022–2023 dry planting season.
In addition, the DA-Philippine Rice Research Institute—Agusan has a target allocation of 158,630 bags of certified seeds amounting to ₱120.55 million, under the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund for the 2023 dry season.
The implementation of these interventions will be closely coordinated with the Local Government Units through the City/Municipal Agriculture Offices. (Rhea C. Abao, DA Caraga RAFIS/PIA Caraga)
