NOTING the country’s high risk to natural and climate change-induced disasters and calamities which has a huge impact on the local farmers, Davao City 1st District Rep. Paolo “Pulong” Duterte has filed a proposed measure that would enhance the resiliency and adaptability of the agricultural sector to these global phenomena.
“One of the major consequences of these inevitable natural and climate-change-induced disasters and calamities is the increasing vulnerability among the local farmers given that their agricultural lands become highly exposed and volatile to the wide range of impacts of these global phenomena,” Duterte explained.
House Bill No. 9327 also known as the Climate-Resilient Agriculture Act of 2023, seeks to institute a continuing program for all farmers and farmer’s organizations to formulate, use, and interpret crop climate calendars that are tailor-made for each specific locality or community. This program shall facilitate the prompt mitigation from the impact of weather events leading to uncompensated losses, financial burden, and unpaid debts.
Duterte further explained that the current increase in the farming inputs, even in basic commodities, due to exorbitant fuel prices and the loss of their agricultural produce and revenue due to this global phenomenon serve as a double whammy to the local farmers whose majority already fall below the poverty line.
“Given the agricultural sector’s role in the country’s economy, the amount of support and assistance it is receiving must be commensurate with its vital contribution to the country’s food security. Thus, they remain as one of the poorest sectors in the society with a poverty incidence rate of 30.6 percent as per data by the Philippine Statistics Authority in 2021,” Duterte added.
Under the Act, climate resiliency shall be a priority government intervention for the agriculture sector. Giving cognizance to the importance of agriculture in the country’s economic development, it stated that the government should enhance the resiliency and adaptability of the sector against the adverse effects of weather disturbances and climate change that endanger productivity levels and harvest yield.
The Department of Agriculture (DA) should establish and promote the use of crop climate calendars throughout the country. In coordination with municipal, city and provincial agriculturists, the DA should implement a continuing program for all farmers and farmer’s organizations to formulate, use, and interpret crop climate calendars that are tailor-made for each specific locality or community. These crop climate calendars shall be distributed free-of-charge to all farmers and farmer’s organizations and be also made available online.
The DA, through the Agricultural Training Institute (ATI), should provide regular training and capacity-building for farmers and farmer’s organizations in the practice of climate sensitive decision-making and the use of relevant tools and applications.
The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) would provide regular and up-to-date localized weather and climate information to city, municipal and provincial agriculturist’s offices and directly to the farmers through all available means of communication and information dissemination including internet, social media, television and radio. This information should be in simple English, Filipino and other regional languages or dialects as necessary and must be presented in a clear, concise and easily understandable form.
