The regional technical director of the Department of Agriculture in Region 7 on Thursday admitted the need for the Philippines to be competitive in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) integration.
Director Joel Elumba told reporters in an interview Thursday afternoon here that while the Department of Agriculture has implemented new programs to address the needs of farmers, fishermen and other producers, the ASEAN integration program is a real challenge.
That is certainly a “problem” because there are imported goods coming from Malaysia, Vietnam and other countries in the region, Elumba admitted.
And so he says the Philippines has to be competitive by improving the country’s quality standards.
Meanwhile, the Agriculture official cited some general accomplishments of the DA-7 during the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte.
While unable to give specific numbers, Elumba mentioned among other things the implementation of the national color-coding mapping in the Central Visayas region.
This is a scheme where farmers are asked to go to the city or municipal agriculture office where they are provided assistance on what crops are suitable for planting in their lands,
Elumba also cited the provisio of easy loan for farmers, faster action in terms of services and the eradication of corruption in the agency.
Agriculture Sec. Emmanuel Piñol is definitely bent on prioritizing the farmers’ associations and beneficiaries to agricultural programs, assuring them of faster services as well, Elumba added.
Furthermore, farmers are now reaping the benefits of the department secretary’s order to provide free irrigation, Elumba said.
The Department of Agriculture is also continuously giving out fishing gear and pumboats to the fisherfolk as well as farm implements to prepare farmers to transition from the traditional way of farming using carabaos to adopting mechanized equipment, he added.
Elumba was in Dumaguete City as guest speaker during the sixth leg of the 11th Bright Leaf Agricultural Journalism Awards held here. (Judy Flores Partlow/PNA)
