ACEF to fund P100-million scholarship program for agriculture students

MANILA, Philippines – The government would provide P100 million worth of scholarships to some indigent students this school year, Sen. Loren Legarda said recently.

At the Kapihan sa Manila Hotel media forum, Legarda said incoming college students may avail of the scholarship program to be funded by the Agricultural Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (ACEF). The full scholarship would be offered to students who would take up agriculture-related courses in state colleges and universities.

Enacted in 1996, the ACEF is a funding facility aimed at supporting those whose livelihood depends on our primary sector, agriculture. It enables farmers and fisherfolk, cooperatives and agribusiness entrepreneurs to compete in an extremely competitive and increasingly globalized agriculture market.

“We really want students particularly children of indigent families to take up agriculture by providing them scholarships,” Legarda said. Interested students may visit her office at the Senate to apply for the scholarship program this year. Legarda said she hopes that the program would be renewed every year.

Legarda chairs the Senate committee on agriculture and the Congressional Oversight Committee on Agricultural and Fisheries Modernization. — Helen M. Flores