Agriculture sector seen to decline in first half

MANILA, Philippines - Because of the ongoing drought, the agriculture sector is expected to decline in the first half of this year and possibly post a recovery only in the second half of the year, according to Dr. Rolando Dy, executive director of the University of Asia and the Pacific’s (UAP) Center for Food and Agribusiness.

In an interview, Dy projected a “low-end” negative growth for the agriculture sector for the first half, based on early reports of damage to palay (which, comprises one-fourth of total agricultural production) and corn.

Fortunately, Dy pointed out, the country has other agricultural crops which it can rely on such as sugar, coconut and even mangoes.

Once the El Niño phenomena ends, Dy said, the agriculture sector is expected to rebound in the second half of the year since it would be starting from a low base.

Last year, the Philippine farm sector managed to eke out a 0.37-percent growth due to the series of strong typhoons and flooding that hit the country in the last half of the year.

The DA had been pessimistic about the sector’s growth prospects because of early indications of a drought due to the El Niño phenomenon which is expected to last until July.

As of Feb. 17, the DA reported that crop damage caused by the drought had reached P3.77 billion.

Acting Agriculture Secretary Bernie Fondevilla has ordered field officials of the DA to work with local government units (LGUs) for the speedy distribution of a package of assistance to palay and corn farmers in Isabela, Cagayan and other provinces already reeling from drought.

A state of calamity has been declared by the provincial governments of Isabela and Cagayan in their respective provinces.

The DA started its mitigation measures as early as September last year.

The DA’s intervention measures include cloud-seeding operations with the help of Aboitiz Corp. covering the Magat Dam, and the distribution of an initial 115 units of open source pumps through RFU Region II and the National Irrigation Administration-Magat River Integrated Irrigation System (NIA-MARIIS).