The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council has reported that damage to agriculture in the country from the El Nino weather phenomenon has reached P1.33 billion.
NDRRMC Executive Director and Office of Civil Defense Administrator Undersecretary Ricardo B. Jalad said based on the report by the Department of Agriculture, 84,932 farmers have been affected by El Nino as of March 18.
On the other hand, 70,353 hectares of farmlands were affected by El Nino in the Cordillera Administrative Region, Regions 1,2, 3, 4-A, 4-B, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11,12, and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.
Jalad said corn and rice were the commodities most affected by the El Nino.
As part of efforts to mitigate the effects of El Niño, cloud seeding operations for Regions 2, 11, and 12 started on March 19 and will end on March 25, with assistance from the Philippine Air Force.
Jalad said the DA is also implementing modifications in the cropping calendar and changes in cropping pattern as part of efforts to assist farmers.
During the NDRRMC first quarter full council meeting at the DND conference room, Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City, presided over by NDRRMC chairperson and Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, Jalad said the Department of Energy shall ensure that power plants have minimal forced outages and shall manage maintenance schedules.
The Department of the Interior and Local Government has prepared a memorandum circular to all local government units to help mitigate and prepare for the potential adverse effects of El Niño.
Other NDRRMC member-agencies, Jalad said, will carry on pursuing the initiatives committed during the two earlier NDRRMC TMG meetings with regards to El Nino.
Other matters were also discussed during the NDRRMC full council meeting.
The Department of Science and Technology proposed recommended actions that involves fortifying resilience of urban areas in preparation for sudden onset events like earthquakes such as the development of hazard and risk sensitive land use and infrastructure plans, continued improvement of monitoring systems, and community-based preparedness involving local government units and residents with protocols for preparedness and response.
The Department of Health announced that there is a downward trend in the measles outbreak and emphasized that it continues to implement initiatives to resolve it. It is also currently working on a joint circular with the Department of Education to impose school-based immunization.
The DoH aims to strengthen the communication strategy with the help of the Presidential Communications Operations Office in relation to debunking false claims on vaccines. (Francis T. Wakefield)