Duterte: Mindanao key to agri dev’t

MANILA – President Rodrigo R. Duterte is bullish about agriculture in the country saying Mindanao will be the key to driving developments in Philippine agriculture.

While mining industries and export processing zones can sprout everywhere, the President said, "what would make the industry valuable is actually (agriculture in) Mindanao, and only in Mindanao."

During the closing ceremonies of the 2016 Banana Congress held in Marco Polo Hotel, Davao City on Friday, President Duterte said he sees that the agricultural sector will "make it big… in the span of the next 30 years," provided the country is able to iron out law and order and stop extortion attempts of bandits on farm owners.

He also acknowledged that the banana industry is hampered by the continuous harassment of lawless groups in Mindanao.

"The greatest challenge of the banana growers in the Philippines is really the law and order. Until and unless you can put together a country that’s bereft of any revolutionary tax, extortion and everything, sinusunog ang property, it’s all because of the taxation. If it’s not taxation of the communists, it’s extortion of the roving bandits in Mindanao," he noted.

Organized for government policy makers, business leaders, technocrats, farmers and other stakeholders of the banana industry, the two-day congress served as a venue for the participants to share information on best practices in pests and disease management, value chain development, technology updates, maximizing benefits from trade and tariff agreements and market standards compliance.

Some of the industry stakeholders, particularly big banana plantations, have been seeking government support in fighting extortionists from the communist rebel group New People's Army (NPA) who are demanding revolutionary taxes.