Saturday, July 19, 2008 Road, water top demand of agri sector: official By Carlo P. Mallo
FARM to market roads and potable water remain to be the top demands of the agricultural sector here in Mindanao, according to the Department of Agriculture (DA).
Engineer Arnel De Mesa, deputy program director of the Department of Agriculture's Mindanao Rural Development Program, said that based on their consultation with various stakeholders of the agriculture industry here in Mindanao, farm to market roads still top the list of needs, along with potable water.
"This we will provide through the MRDP program," de Mesa said.
The MRDP program of the DA is geared towards the alleviation of poverty here in Mindanao through the implementation of rural infrastructure, livelihood enterprise, and biodiversity conservation projects.
Based on the plan, at least $10 million will be allocated for purely water and irrigation projects, while another $50 million will be spent on infrastructure related projects.
However, a 50:50 cost sharing scheme will be implemented in the implementation of MRDP projects. The National Government, through the MRDP, will cover 50 percent of the cost, while the remaining half will be covered by the local government units, particularly the recipient municipalities.
MRDP was made possible though a loan from the World Bank. Moreover, MRDP program Director Roger Chio said that MRDP is part of government's thrusts to avert a looming food crisis.
"We are working hand in hand with the national and local leaders to combat the food crisis," Chio said.
Meanwhile, two horticulture projects aimed at improving the quality of fresh produce in Davao Region was launched by the Australian Government on Wednesday, through its Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR).
The project is targeted to improve the domestic profitability and export competitiveness of selected vegetable and fruit value chains in the region.
The total cost of the project -- the vegetable and fruit value chain program -- is pegged at about P444 million, more than half of which will be shouldered by the Australian government.
The four-year vegetable value chain program, to be managed by the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries, aims to develop integrated soil and crop nutrient management in vegetable crops in the southern Philippines and Australia.
The program will also look at developing a cost-effective protected vegetable cropping system, particularly in the high rainfall areas of Leyte and Mindanao, to produce high value crops in the wet season when prices are high.
The fruit value chain program, on the other hand, will be managed by the Queensland Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries and implemented over the next four years in Leyte, Cagayan de Oro, and Southern Mindanao.
This program aims to improve domestic profitability and export competitiveness of the following fruit crops: mango, papaya, durian and jackfruit.
The two programs are the result of consultations and collaborations of Aciar with the private sector, local government units, non-government organizations, state universities and colleges, and farmer group representatives. These groups' involvement is critical to increase the prospects of sustainable adoption of project results and ultimately increase the productivity, marketability, and competitiveness of Philippine agricultural products.
These programs demonstrate the Australian Government's commitment to support the Philippines in its fight against poverty by paving the ways for a sustained means of livelihood, particularly in agriculture on which majority of people still depend.
Australia's official development assistance (ODA) to the Philippines, administered primarily by AusAID and also by other agencies such as Aciar, has grown to P4.4 billion (A$109.3 million) for 2008-09 -- an increase of nine percent over the previous year.
Australian ODA to the Philippines in the last decade has totaled more than P25 billion (about A$670 million).
