Greater challenges

THE Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Iloilo placed the province under a state of calamity. The damage of Tropical Depression “Agaton” to the province’s agriculture is escalating.

We say not only in Iloilo but across the country, the government must enhance proactive measures in addressing our vulnerability to both natural hazards and climate change. The Global Climate Risk Index shows that the Philippines is among the most affected countries by extreme weather events. These pose greater challenges to our development programs. Experts already warned that climate change impacts will likely make poverty reduction more difficult, further erode food security, and prolong existing and create new poverty traps.

We are specifically concerned by the risks posed by climate change in the agriculture sector and our poverty-reduction programs. The country’s agricultural adaptation program must ensure more investments in agricultural research and infrastructure, improved water governance and land use policies, better forecasting tools and early warning systems, a strengthened extension system that will assist farmers to achieve economic diversification, and access to credit and crop insurance to make significant improvements in the country’s food security goals.

We have long been warned of the ill effects of disasters and climate change to the country’s rice and crop production because both strong typhoons and droughts affect the agriculture sector. Past experiences have proven this fact. Typhoons, floods and droughts from 1970 to 1990 resulted in an 82.4 percent loss in total Philippine rice production; while disasters from 1990 to 2006 have caused an average of P12.4 billion worth of agricultural damages per year.

The war against poverty will be much harder if disaster vulnerability remains unaddressed. Disasters are greatly felt by the poor because the effects are magnified in their life. The government must look into how its social protection programs can be scaled up not only to address structural poverty, but also to build resilience against the recurring impact of natural hazards.