Israel-Funded SPIS! P40-B Solar Irrigation Project Gathering Dust At NEDA-ICC

Four years ago, after failing to get funding support for the Solar-Powered Irrigation System (SPIS) which I introduced to the Department of Agriculture in 2017, I personally received a “go-ahead” signal from President Rodrigo Duterte to negotiate for a soft-loan with the government of Israel.
Through the help of then Israeli Ambassador to the Philippines Rafael Harpaz and an Israeli multi-national agricultural company, the LR Group, I was able to get a loan commitment of P40-B from Israel financing institutions.
The amount was supposed to build modern Solar-Powered Irrigation System (SPIS) covering 500,000 hectares all over the country to boost our rice production by at least 4-million metric tons every year.
Following the approval by Israel of the SPIS Project Funding, the LR Group, as a gesture of goodwill, built two prototypes of Solar irrigation Systems in Lumban, Laguna.
One of the units was designed to replace the diesel-engine powered water pumps while the bigger set up featured the “fertigation system.”
In early 2019, upon orders of Malacañang, a task group was formed to process the project for submission to NEDA-ICC which at that time was under Sec. Ernesto Pernia.
In June 2019, following my open dispute with the Economic Managers over differences in policies in relation to Agriculture, I resigned as Secretary and moved to MinDA.
Today. four years after the project was given the approval by President Duterte, the loan documents are gathering dust at the NEDA ICC.
Now, I have this strong feeling that there was really a conspiracy among the pro-importation Economic Managers led by then Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez to prevent the Filipino farmers from achieving rice sufficiency in the country.
Ang dami nating sinayang na panahon at pagkakataon.
In 2019, the Peso to Dollar exchange rate was only P50 to $1 while now its P59.
Kung nagawa na sana ang SPIS noon, hindi na tayo dapat kabahan na kukulangin ng bigas.
It is my hope that the new administration, with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. himself heading the Department of Agriculture, would revive this project.
#KungGustoMaramingParaan!