PH-PNG deal seen to employ 60,000 Filipinos

THE government is optimistic that the Joint Declaration on Agriculture Cooperation signed between the Philippines and Papua New Guinea (PNG) recently will provide more jobs for Filipinos.

According to Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol, at least 60,000 Filipino agriculture graduates, machine operators, and rice farmers are expected to be employed in PNG as a result.

The effect of this, he said, may not be felt immediately, but it should serve as an assurance that the next generation of Filipinos will have something to eat.

“We have to do something, because our population is growing exponentially and our land area is finite,” Piñol added.

The declaration stipulates that both countries will work on developing PNG’s rice industry while ensuring food security in the Philippines.

To do this, the government, through the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) and the Bureau of Soils and Water Management, will provide technological and technical assistance, while a private Filipino corporation will invest in commercial production.

“We agreed that once the requirement of PNG on rice is satisfied, excess production will be imported to the Philippines,” Piñol said.

“To satisfy their requirement, PNG would only need 30,000 hectares to produce rice. In two to three years, they can expect a sufficient rice supply for their people if they plant rice three times a year,” he explained.

PNG has a land mass of 48 million ha. and a population of 8 million.

During the visit of PNG officials in Manila last week, Piñol led the agriculture department in showcasing various rice technologies that PNG can adopt.

These include farm machines, highyielding and traditional varieties planted in the country, climate-smart technologies, and rice-based products.

PNG Minister for Agriculture and Livestock Benny Allen said they were excited to implement the partnership and learn from the Philippines.

“This is something new to us. We are happy to see these technologies, specifically the farm machines and rice varieties that the Filipino farmers are using,” Allen said.