EDITORIAL — Support for agriculture

From the outset, the project was controversial, with critics lamenting the elimination of the images of democracy icons Benigno Aquino Jr. and Corazon Aquino along with heroes of World War II from Philippine banknotes.

Now Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. himself is seeking a reversal of the shift to polymer banknotes, citing its adverse impact on millions of people who rely on the country’s abaca industry.

The image change accompanied the shift to polymer banknotes, which was pushed by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas when Benjamin Diokno was its governor during the Duterte administration, and later when he became finance secretary under President Marcos.

Diokno, currently a member of the controversy-wracked Monetary Board, deemed the polymer banknotes to be more durable, secure and hygienic than the old ones made partly of abaca fiber. Historians, however, decried the elimination of the portraits of World War II heroes Jose Abad Santos, Josefa Llanes Escoda and Vicente Lim from the 1,000-peso banknote – the first of the polymer series to be rolled out in 2022.

The old banknotes bearing the heroes’ portraits remain in circulation, and the BSP has advised the public that the polymer banknotes remain valid as legal tender even if folded. But the criticisms persist, and now a new issue has cropped up for a return to the old banknotes: the need to stimulate agricultural production.

Specifically, the production of abaca, a hemp indigenous to the Philippines. In 2023, the country produced 86 percent of global abaca supply. The old banknotes were fashioned out of 20 percent abaca and 80 percent cotton blend.

Tiu Laurel is pushing not only for a return to the use of abaca fiber in banknotes, but also for the use of the hemp in the production of Philippine passports. 

The Philippine Fiber Industry Development Authority places the number of abaca farmers in the country at 120,145. These farmers and the families dependent on them are considered to be among the poorest Filipinos. The last thing they need is a drastic reduction in abaca demand particularly from their own country.

The shift to polymer banknotes is just one of many moves that ignore the urgent need to support marginal livelihoods in the agriculture sector. It’s not too late to shift gears.