IMMEDIATE ACTION. Department of Agriculture (DA) Secretary William Dar turns over PHP846.75 million worth of assistance to Cagayan Governor Manuel Mamba for typhoon-affected farmers on Sunday (Nov. 12, 2020). Apart from the aid, rice donation from DA-National Food Authority (NFA) worth PHP18.12 million was also given. (DA photo)
MANILA – The Department of Agriculture has announced the release of some PHP2.2 billion in assistance to Cagayan Valley farmers hit hard by Typhoon Ulysses.
In a briefing Sunday, Agriculture Secretary William Dar provided the breakdown of his office's assistance to the local government units (LGUs) of the region.
"Tamang-tama po ‘yung paghahanda po namin for dry season planting. Ito na sana Nobyembre, last two weeks at hangga’t Disyembre. Mabuti na lang hindi po namin pa naibigay po lahat doon sa mga probinsiya (We were just about to distribute our assistance to them [before Ulysses hit]. Hopefully [there's no more weather disturbance] as we are to release aid on the last two weeks of November to December, in time for the dry season)," he said.
Over the weekend, Magat Dam released water due to the typhoon.
Office of Civil Defense in Region 2 acting chief Harold Cabreros said the flood-affected 21 municipalities and one city in Cagayan, and 22 municipalities and three cities in Isabela.
He also mentioned that 15 municipalities in Nueva Vizcaya and five municipalities in Quirino were severely affected by the flooding.
Dar said the DA is going to distribute hybrid rice seeds, inbred rice seeds, fertilizers, hybrid corn seeds, assorted vegetable seeds, seedling trays, including livestock such as poultry, goats, and ducks to kickstart the rehabilitation of the ruined croplands.
Dar said Cagayan province will get PHP 846 million while Isabela will receive PHP986 million, noting that more agricultural areas were damaged after Typhoon Quinta and Super Typhoon Rolly passed by the province.
Nueva Vizcaya is set to receive PHP148 million while the province of Quirino, still a part of the Cagayan Valley Region, will be given PHP96 million.
Apart from the financial and farming starter kits, the National Food Authority (NFA) has also allocated PHP41 million worth of rice for the victims of the typhoon.
As of Nov. 16, DA said total damage and losses incurred due to Typhoon Ulysses increased to Php2.53 billion.
Among those affected included about 73,181 farmers and fisherfolk and 71,466 hectares of agriculture areas, devastating 109,117 metric tons of produce.
Affected DA regional field offices are continuously conducting Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment (RDANA) to assess and validate damage and losses in the agriculture and fisheries sector.
The affected commodities include rice, corn, high-value crops, fisheries, livestock, irrigation facilities, machineries and equipment, and agricultural infrastructures in the Cordillera Administrative Region, Ilocos Region, Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, Calabarzon, and the Bicol Region.
The increase in values is attributed to updated reports from the CAR, the Ilocos Region, Central Luzon, and Bicol.
The DA also urged the farmers to avail of their Survival and Recovery (SURE) loan program under the Agricultural Credit Policy Council (ACPC).
They can avail of some PHP25,000, which is broken down to PHP5,000 for emergency and PHP20,000 for recovery.
It was mentioned earlier that the loan will be provided with zero interest and no collateral payable in 10 years.
The affected farmers may also seek assistance from the Philippine Crop Insurance Corporation (PCIC). (PNA)
