BY VANNE TERRAZOLA
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SENATOR Cynthia Villar said the government will continue to fund its assistance programs for local farmers amid the continued importation of rice and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Villar, in her statement on Monday, said there is no need for additional cash for the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF) since the Rice Tariffication Act already guarantees an annual P10-billion budget.
The chair of the Senate Agriculture and Food Committee was commenting on the P8-billion fund requested by the Department of Agriculture (DA) for its Rice Resiliency Project amid the coronavirus outbreak. The Department of Budget and Management released to the DA last April the requested fund, which included an allocation for “enhanced RCEF”.
“The RCEF does not need any additional budget allocated from the COVID-19 prevention,” Villar said.
She noted that the DA, aside from the RCEF, has a separate National Rice Program, which has yearly a P7 billion budget for buying fertilizer and hybrid seeds.
The Republic Act 11203, enacted last year, mandates the provision of an annual P10-billion budget to the RCEF for six years from the tariffs collected from rice imports.
The RCEF shall be used to help farmers compete with imported rice, by giving them farm equipment, inbred seeds, low-interest credit, and training. The RCEF is expected to aid in lowering the cost of local rice.
“This cheaper supply of rice from our own rice farmer helps lower rice prices for Filipino consumers,” Villar said. (Vanne Terrazola)
