DAR URGES PRIVATE SECTOR: OPEN AGRIBUSINESSES

Department of Agriculture (DA) Acting Secretary William Dar is urging the private sector to establish more agro-based industries and develop more markets for agricultural products.

The secretary noted that the country’s agricultural sector is in need of more agribusinesses that possess the management know-how, capital, and technologies that can help place agricultural outputs in the right market.

He stressed that an increased number of private agribusinesses and markets is one way to improve the quality of life of small farmers and fishers.

Part of the “catch-up plans” he presented a day after his oath-taking is the modernization of agriculture and how it should be treated as an industry.

According to him, this would be an opportunity to boost the capacity of the farmers and fisher folks to systematically transform into becoming “agri-preneurs.”

To put up the necessary legislations for future agribusiness partnerships with the private sector, the agriculture department will reach out to both Congress and the Senate for support, he explained. “This is how serious I am to collaborate with private sectors because we want to uplift small Filipino farmers and fishers,” Dar said. Dar also expressed his objective to create a provincial agricultural extension system to improve the DA’s partnership with local government units (LGU).

With the help of the LGU and concerned agencies, the DA will establish agricultural infrastructures and develop efficient logistics to speed up delivery and distribution of products nationwide.

In return, LGU will also be engaged in a fast intervention system related to disaster risk reduction and management.

Regarding policy matters and other concerns, Dar will convene a Secretary of Agriculture’s Group of Experts and a Technical Advisory Group to assist him in decision-making,

Banking on an “inclusive leadership,” Dar also said the new regime in the agriculture sector will build a more resilient agricultural industry that is peopled-centered, responsive and accountable.

An increased number of private agribusinesses and markets is one way to improve the quality of life of small farmers and fishers.

DEPARTMENT of Agriculture Acting Secretary William Dar (below) is banking on the private sector to help develop the country’s agriculture industry, which he said needs new technology and more markets to prosper.