Rice farmers
UNDOUTEDLY, rice farmers play a stellar role in government efforts to achieve food security in the Philippines.
Food security, along with employment, rising prices of goods, peace and order, and illegal drugs, has been a top priority of the government.
The welfare of our farmers, who comprise the bulk of the population, is something that cannot be ignored by concerned state authorities.
That’s why we laud the Department of Agriculture (DA) for its plan to distribute in September some P12 billion in cash aid to beleaguered farmers.
A total of 2.4 million rice farmers are expected to benefit from the cash aid, according to Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel.
The P5,000 financial aid to an eligible beneficiary will go a long way in meeting the farmer’s daily subsistence and personal needs.
The aid is under the Rice Farmers Financial Assistance (RFFA) program, which is funded from the excess tariff collections from rice importation.
Under the Rice Tariffication Law (RTL), the government allots P10 billion a year from tariff revenues for the Rice Competitiveness Enhacement Fund.
Every Filipino must support the government, through the DA, as it exerts best efforts to achieve food security in the country.
