Agri in focus as economic team charts growth plans

Economic managers are exploring measures to boost the agriculture sector, which they consider a laggard in 2018, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) said yesterday.

In a press briefing, Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno said the agriculture sector grew by a paltry 0.8 percent in 2018, contributing only 0.1 percentage point to the overall gross domestic product (GDP) growth in 2018.

“Simply put, the farm sector had virtually zero contribution to economic growth last year,” Diokno said.

Had the sector grown at its potential of four percent, Diokno said full-year economic expansion would have reached 6.5 percent, the lower-end of the government’s revised GDP growth target for 2018.

“It’s for these reasons that the Duterte administration is prioritizing the agriculture sector. For our farmers and fisherfolk in the rural areas, higher productivity will mean higher incomes. At the same time, for consumers, this means lower prices for staple food items like rice, vegetables, fish, and meat,” Diokno said.

According to the budget chief, economic managers are now coordinating with officials in the agriculture and agrarian reform sectors to ensure a more sustainable growth trajectory.

He said members of the Cabinet also discussed meas- ures to help farmers and fisherfolk.

In addition, Diokno said the Land Bank of the Philippines presented ways to improve small farmers’ access to credit and loan facilities, to ensure that more resources are channeled into the agriculture sector.

The DBM, for its part, is also reviewing studies by agriculture experts to find ways to enhance the allocation of resources.

The agency cited, for instance, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), which recommended the government to direct more resources in improving supply-chain connectivity and to focus on agricultural research and extension services.

“Once ready, we will share our findings in hopes of reversing the poor performance of agriculture. This will take a holistic approach, both in policy formulation and program implementation,” Diokno said.

Meanwhile, the budget chief also urged farmers to shift to high-value crops and allow the government to liberalize the importation of rice.

Diokno said the implementation of the Rice Tariffication Bill would allow the entry of imported rice from other countries, such as Thailand and Cambodia, putting pressure on local farmers to become more competitive.

He said this would also make the food manufacturing sector, and in turn, the exports sector, more competitive as it would allow the use of cheaper raw materials.