Tuesday, April 22, 2008 'Cooperativism is the solution'
"WE DON'T have to wait that people will ransack the NFA (National Food Authority) warehouses after the near stampede in Cogon market happened."
This is what Cooperative Development Authority (CDA)-Northern Mindanao director Orlando Ravanera stressed during the multi-stakeholders' meeting on cooperative bulk buying conducted recently at De Luxe Hotel this city.
In collaboration with the Mindanao cooperatives, the Department of Agriculture (DA), Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC), NFA, and CDA came up with proposed strategies to help disseminate the rice through the so-called cooperative way of distribution to dodge stampede.
The first was to ask President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to allow cooperatives to buy in bulk from NFA and for the Coops to distribute to their members in a cheaper price since they are tariff-free.
The second step, according to Ravanera, is to prepare profile of the members on how many are willing to avail the NFA rice and the last one is to develop a chain of distribution within the cooperative sector.
Another option, Ravanera continued, is for the cooperatives to go direct procurement from distributing countries -- Vietnam and Thailand.
But Victoria Duray, NFA Misamis Oriental provincial manager, said transactions must pass with the NFA and not to go direct importation.
In addition to that, a Coop must get license from the NFA to import and it must have financial capability and legitimacy.
"Actually, the target market of NFA is the poor people and not the impoverished ones. We have enough supply of rice, we don't have to panic," Duray added.
According to Ravanera, eliminating the intermediaries of the rice production will also lower down the price of rice if the cooperatives will do the bulk-buying of inputs, bulk transport, and bulk marketing.
Aside from the rice, the Mindanao coops also eyed to go direct with the manufacturers of fertilizers for the farmers to avail a cheaper price of fertilizers like urea.
In a related development, President Arroyo has granted approximately P500 million to finance fertilizers for the farming sector of the Philippines.
The predetermination of need of rice for Northern Mindanao and Caraga region was more or less 30,000 bags of rice per month.
The proposals will be raised on the upcoming visit of Arroyo here in the city this April 30.
Also in attendance at the said meeting were representatives from the National Economic Development Authority (Neda), state agri-loan provider Quedan Rural Development Corporation (Quedancor) and other key cooperatives here. (Ruary Feb B. Suminguit and Ma. Rosa Victoria E. Acao/Liceo de Cagayan University Interns)
