Angara files agroforestry measure

Responding to the challenges of forest loss and degradation, Sen. Edgardo Angara is pushing for the enactment of Senate Bill 2201 or the Philippine Agroforestry Act which seeks to enhance the practice of agroforestry in the country.

“Agroforestry is the key to resource rehabilitation, sustainable development and preservation of our natural resources,” Angara said.

He stressed that through agroforestry, our country can achieve more market opportunities and investments, sustainable agriculture, land stewardship, improved water quality, and diversified farm income.

“The Philippines is one of the first countries to practice agroforestry. And for a country with roughly 24 percent of its population living in the uplands, the magnitude of the practice of agroforestry cannot be overstressed,” Angara said.

“So much so that I, in consultation with farmers, local settlers, and technical experts, am working on an agroforestry approach to make my hometown, Aurora, self-sufficient in food and the eventual food basket of Central Luzon,” he added.

Angara’s bill seeks to establish the Board of Agroforestry under the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) which will regulate and sustain the practice of agroforestry.

The Angara measure proposes that the board shall conduct a national board examination to be taken by all graduates of a four-year degree program in agroforestry or its equivalent.

Agroforestry practices help landowners diversify their products, markets, and farm income; improve soil and water quality; reduce erosion, non-point source pollution and damage due to flooding; enhance land and aquatic habitats for fish and wildlife; and improve biodiversity while sustaining land resources for the next generation.

“This measure shall be given utmost priority in order to rehabilitate and restore the productivity of denuded and degraded lands as well as increase the income of the marginal sectors of the society,” Angara said.