Friday, August 22, 2008 House eyes increase in budget for agri By Carlo P. Mallo
MEMBERS of the House of Representatives are eyeing a bigger share of the proposed 2009 budget for agriculture, giving it the second largest portion of the pie.
In a press conference Thursday, Palawan Representative Abraham Kahlil Mitra said talks are ongoing on the need to increase the budget for agriculture.
Mitra, who is chair of the House committee on agriculture, did not specify the amount to be increased.
"It will give agriculture the second largest allocation of the budget, next to education," he said.
In previous years, the Defense department always received the second largest budget allocation.
Reports obtained by Sun.Star Davao showed that the Arroyo administration is eyeing a P1.4 trillion budget for 2009, or a 15 percent increase compared to this year's P1.2 trillion budget.
Unlike this year, wherein the P24.71 billion budget slice for the Department of Agriculture pales in comparison to the P140.24 billion share of the Department of Education, the budget allocation for 2009 will be more promising.
The P1.4 trillion 2009 budget has been drafted based on the commitments made by the President during her eight State of the Nation Address wherein she vowed to increase the budgets for agriculture, infrastructure, and education.
The recent food price crisis and artificial food shortages this year have been greatly taken into consideration in the drafting of the budget, Mitra said.
