By Rey Anthony Chiu | 07:21 AM February 12, 2022
If all turns out according to plan and commitments from the government’s Department of Agriculture get real, Bohol is set to get over P2 billion more in agriculture development in the next two years.
Agriculture Secretary William Dar bared this during his third visit in Bohol in thelast two years, February 8, 2022.
Here to administer the provincial rollout of the Rice Farmers’ Financial Assistance and interventions for the agriculture sector, Sec Dar, who surveyed the massive damage the agriculture sector sustained due to typhoon Odette, initially committed some huge funds for Bohol in the beginning months of 2022.
In the first quarter alone, Bohol will get P1.72 billion form the DA. And as if it was just a small amount, the secretary continued, We are requesting another P1 billion for the Quick Response Funds and from it, we are giving to Bohol some P120 million.
He also said for the regions devastated by typhoon Odette, the DA is requesting from the National Disaster and Risk Reduction Funds some P3 billion of which, P150 million goes to Bohol for the rehabilitation of the damages caused by the typhoon.
Earlier, Bohol Governor Arthur Yap, in his presentation to the aggie chief, Bohol outlined four priority development projects that dove-tail into the One DA Reform agenda.
The governor presented an ambitious livestock, poultry with corn industry hub in Ubay which would make Bohol-raised pork available in a box, another high value commercial cash crop processing center focused on cacao in Carmen, a coconut processing hub in Balilihan and a Food terminal set to be built in Talibon.
To these, the government through the DA secretary committed half a billion for the four-hubs proposal.
Apart from the billions all set for Bohol’s agri fisheries development and rehabilitation, the agriculture secretary additionally committed another P1 billion for the province towards the end of this year.
Everything is over and above the allocation for fisheries and aquaculture recovery in Bohol which the DA pegged at P7.5million, Sec Dar said.
Beyond that, the agriculture top official disclosed that the government is releasing fuel subsidies for corn farmers
Sec Dar, along with DA Assistant Secretary Arnel de Mesa, Development Bank of the Philippines Assistant Vice President Rallen Verdadero and DBP Senior Vice President Ricardo Josef Bandal, witnessed the rollout for the P5,000 Rice Farmers Financial Assistance and the ceremonial awarding of the DA Interventions Monitoring Card (IMC) as well as turn-over of projects from the DA Region 7 and other attached offices. (rahc/PIA-7/Bohol)
