DA to use quarantine measures to prevent entry of pests, diseases

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines will rely on biosecurity and quarantine protocols to protect Philippine agriculture from pest and diseases that may threaten the country with the implementation and effectivity of the ASEAN Free Trade Agreement- Common Effective Preferential Tariff (AFTA-CEPT) scheme. 

In a meeting in Malacañang, President Arroyo ordered concerned agencies to strictly implement an improved set of bio-security and quarantine protocols to shield Philippine agriculture from pests and diseases as well as other environmental and human threats. 

Agriculture Secretary Bernie Fondevilla said that President Arroyo issued the directive during a recent Cabinet meeting.

Strengthening the country’s biosecurity and quarantine protocols would help the agriculture sector meet the challenges of a new global trading order under the AFTA-CEPT. 

The agreement provides that tariffs on farm goods traded among countries belonging to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) be reduced to zero to five percent starting this year. 

Besides the Philippines, the ASEAN includes Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei Darussalam, Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam, Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia. 

“In line with the efforts of the department to strengthen our quarantine and inspection measures on agriculture and fishery products entering our borders, the effectivity of the President’s directive will efficiently protect the country from the entry of agricultural and fishery pests and diseases as well as other human and environmental threats,” Fondevilla said.  

Fondevilla said closer coordination between the DA and the Bureau of Customs in implementing the government’s improved quarantine and biosecurity protocols will not only help safeguard the welfare of Filipino farmers but consumers  as well.

Last year, the DA issued a “harmonized” administrative order — AO 8 — to standardize the business processes of DA regulatory agencies in approving the entry of imported goods.

The harmonized AO orders all agencies and bureaus issuing sanitary and  phytosanitary (SPS) clearances, formerly known as import permits to use a single or uniform form for application, clearance, inspection, and confiscation; and ensures that all import-related business processes will follow a unified procedure.