Senator Cynthia Villar said the amendment she is proposing in the 2020 budget of the National Food Authority (NFA) will mean a bigger budget for the program providing assistance to small farmers.
Villar, chair of the Committee on Agriculture and Food and sponsor of the proposed budget of the Department of Agriculture, said a bigger budget is needed to help farmers affected by the initial phase of the implementation of Republic Act 11203 or the Rice Tariffication Law, that is why she proposed the transfer of P3 billion from NFA to the Land Bank of the Philippines.
“We are looking for ways how to extend more assistance to farmers.”
“It is a given that there are difficulties encountered by farmers when the law took effect that is why we are looking for ways how to extend more assistance to them through bigger budget,” the veteran legislator said.
The seasoned lawmaker also allayed fears that the transferred funds will affect the palay procurement program of the agency.
“NFA will continue to buy palay from our farmers.”
“NFA will continue to buy palay from our farmers. Dapat nilang gawin ito para ang mga magsasaka, hindi na sila lalapit sa mga mapagsamantalang traders na babaratin lang ang palay nila,” the lady senator said.
Under her proposed amendment, P3 billion will be transferred from NFA to the Landbank of the Philippines for year 2020 to assist the farmers as they adjust to the implementation of the rice tariffication law.
“This fund will go to 600,000 farmers tilling farms of one hectare or less kaya sigurado tayo na ang assistance mapupunta talaga sa kanila. Wala nang excuse para hindi makarating ang tulong ng gobyerno sa kanila,” Villar said.
During a Senate hearing on the implementation of RA 11203, Villar scolded NFA officials for coming up with excuses such as the lack of machinery and the high moisture content of palay for refusing to buy from local farmers.
Under the P10 billion Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund created under the rice tariffication law, P5 billion will be spent to procure farm machinery to be distributed to more than 900 rice-producing municipalities in the country; P3 billion for the production and promotion of the use of inbred seeds which will increase the production of palay by 50 percent; P1 billion for skills training; and P1 billion for cheap credit which will be managed by Landbank and the Development Bank of the Philippines.