THE electronic database of farmers and fisherfolk is being updated to properly plan, implement and monitor the billions of pesos worth of agricultural projects for qualified beneficiaries.

Agriculture Undersecretary for Operations Roger Navarro said the agency would mobilize some 16,000 staff nationwide to fasttrack the delayed collection, updating and validation of stakeholders’ personal and farm data under its electronic database called Updating the Registry System for Basic Sectors in Agriculture.

Navarro explained the electronic database merges the agency’s broader plan to digitize operations to reduce costs in the food value chain, widen market access to make agriculture a more profitable venture and consequently provide consumers with a stable supply of reasonably-priced food.

“We were supposed to finish this update last year but we have so many islands to cover,” said Navarro.

Latest estimates suggest there are about 10 million farmers and fisherfolk, many of whom were identified as the poorest in the country. The DA had an initial list of 1.4 million of these stakeholders before the update started.

Aside from its staff, the DA will also seek the assistance of local government units in the data collection and verification.

The registration and updating of records and profiles of farmers, farmworkers, fisherfolk, and agri-youth will determine if these estimates are correct. It would also help identify those who deserve to receive DA’s assistance.

Navarro said farmworkers should not be on the list of DA beneficiaries because they don’t own the farm or crops.

He added that since farmworkers are only seasonally employed in farms, they should be in the list of other government agencies like the Department of Social Welfare and Development for proper handling.

“We have to make a distinction between a farmer and a farmworker. This will allow us to cleanse the list for better use of our resources,” Navarro stressed. Labor statistics showed that agriculture employs one in every four Filipinos.

Two years ago, the DA started to upgrade its management information system to enhance monitoring of projects and interventions and facilitate real-time recording of agri-fishery information.

Meanwhile, DA Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel, Jr., has issued two memoranda that outline the latest parameters for the registry update.

Laurel has endorsed the digitization project, confident it will improve efficiency in DA’s operations, project implementation and monitoring.

He is also looking to set up an agricultural statistics office to enhance DA’s ability to manage demand and production of food, thus maximizing returns to farmers and minimizing importation.