DA eyes $12.5 million for agricultural export support

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Agriculture (DA) plans to allocate about $12.25 million to boost the country’s agricultural exports.

DA spokesperson Arnel de Mesa said the agency would provide increased funding for promotions.

He added that the DA would channel about half of its $24.5-million grant from the World Bank to fund its export promotion program.

The DA conducts its export expansion program through its Agri-Fishery Export Development and Promotion Office

The funding will be sourced from the World Bank-funded Technical Assistance for Sustainable Agriculture Transformation (TASAT) grant.

Among the project’s targets are to strengthen the country’s export development by enhancing crop diversification and regional export through intensification of high-value cropping.

He added that this would enable the country to shrink the gap between agricultural exports and imports, as importation still surpasses farm exports.

“Our target is to narrow down the trade deficit, the gap of our imported items and exports,” De Mesa said.

The DA is looking to improve the productivity of the country’s key agricultural products like tropical fruits, coconuts and other high-value crops to support export expansion.

“We just need to improve our productivity because our productivity is low. We have a very strong comparative advantage compared to other countries,” he added.

De Mesa said the DA has facilitated the exports of several Philippine fruits including mangoes and pineapples to Europe, Canada, the United Arab Emirates and Hong Kong.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said the government has been expanding its efforts to open fresh export markets for the country’s agricultural products.

He said this would enable local farmers to receive higher income and provide better jobs for those working within the agricultural value chain.

“Expanding market access allows our producers to secure better prices, increase incomes, and invest in improving productivity, helping drive inclusive growth in rural communities,” Tiu Laurel added.

The country recently logged record-high farm exports reaching $1.03 billion in April, a 33.2-percent increase from $772.68 million in the same month last year, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority.