Irrigation eyed as solution to rice problem

MANILA -- Malacañang recognizes the Philippines“ long-standing problem of relying on rice imports to meet demand but assured the public that government is working to address it.

This, after the latest report of the United States Department of AgricultureForeign Agriculture Services (USDA-FAS) showed that the Philippines has emerged as the top global importer of rice, beating China.

The USDA-FAS has projected the country’s rice imports to reach a record 3 million metric tons (MT) by year-end—the highest in the world and the highest for the country while China is expected to import 2.5 million MT. Presidential Spokesperson Salvador said he was not surprised by the figures admitting that the country’s irrigation system needs improvement. “I’m not surprised. China is such a huge country. Tayo naman maliit lang. Ang dami ngang reklamo ng mga farmers natin. Wala tayong tubig, irrigation. ‘Yun ang nagiging problema. Samantalang sa China, punta ka dun, iba ang production doon (We’re just a small country. Our farmers have a lot of complaints. We don’t have water, irrigation. That’s the problem. While China, if you go there, their production is different),” Panelo said in a Palace briefing. Panelo lamented how an agricultural country like the Philippines is trailing behind its neighbors in Southeast Asia such as Thailand. “We recognize that problem. Ever since ‘yan ang nagiging problema natin. Yung mga tinuruan nating mga taga Thailand ang gagaling. Nag-aral lang dito, pagkatapos, talo na tayo. Kasi nga ever since ‘yan ang naging problema. Marami tayong rice land pero hindi pumapasok yung mga tubig (That has been our problem. The Thai we taught before are now experts. They study here, and we lose to them. Because ever since, that has been our problem. We have rice lands but water cannot enter),” Panelo said. “Kaya (That’s why) we really have to improve on our irrigation system para maganda ang production (so that we have better production),” he added.