Sugarcane farmers hit by RSSI infestation to receive assistance

BACOLOD CITY, Philippines, Philippines — The government has allotted P235 million in financial assistance for sugarcane farmers displaced by the red-striped soft scale insect infestation as well as to curb the spread of RSSI in the Visayas.

The assistance will be coursed through the Department of Agriculture, and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

At a meeting with local chief executives in Talisay, Negros Occidental on Friday, Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said a major portion of the response strategy involves cash relief through the DSWD.

Of the amount, P200 million will be distributed to at least 12,400 sugarcane farmers, who will receive P10,000 each, Laurel said.

The rest will be downloaded directly to municipal and city mayors in Negros Occidental for spraying operations in affected farms.

Tiu Laurel said P25 million would be used for the lease and operation of drones that will be tapped for aerial spraying, and P10 million for the procurement of chemical pesticides and other treatments.

As of July 17, the pest attack has affected 30,591 hectares of sugarcane fields in the Visayas.

The figure represents 33.48 percent of the 277,080 hectares of sugarcane plantations across the region.

Negros Island Region recorded the largest RSSI-infested farms with 28,464.75 hectares followed by Western Visayas with 1,523, Eastern Visayas with 592.5 and Central Visayas with 10.30 hectares, according to the Sugar Regulatory Administration.

Since organic biocontrol agents are currently limited, Laurel said the first wave of the spraying operation would utilize approved systemic chemical agents.

Ground spraying operations will involve a combination of manual backpack sprayers, roadside spray tank vehicles and specialized drones, which will be brought to Negros from Isabela province.

Cadiz City Mayor Salvador Escalante, chairman of the Association of Chief Executives in Negros, said the group adopted a unified protocol in addressing the RSSI infestation by applying chemical treatment on farms, which extent of damage are classified under Level 2 or 3.

Biological control agents will be used in farms that are not severely damaged or those classified under Level 1.

To break the cycle of annual RSSI attacks, the DA said it would scale up its biological control capabilities.