Rice Sufficiency! (2nd of 3 Parts) Digitalizing Rice Industry Key To Boost Production

For over 125 years since it was created as one of the key agencies of government tracked with ensuring food for the country, the Department of Agriculture has yet to establish a reliable database which would give it accurate information on Philippine Agriculture.
Literally, the DA is still groping in the dark and unable to come up with exact figures on such important data in the rice industry as:
– What is the total area planted to rice?
– What is the total irrigated area and potential irrigable areas?
– What is the total area which could be planted to upland rice?
– What is the national average yield per hectare?
– Which rice varieties are suited in which areas of the country?
– What specific soil nutrients are needed in specific parts of the country based on accurate Soil Analysis?
– Which rice production areas have the potential of boosting harvests with minimal interventions?
– Which Rice Production Areas require post harvest facilities?
– Who are the actual rice farmers based on geo-tagged production areas?
All of these questions could only be answered if there is a Digital Database established using information gathered through actual survey of the area.
All of these years, Rice Industry Data had been products of estimation and sometimes, guesswork.
In fact, until today, there is no accurate listing yet of the actual rice farmers which makes the distribution of interventions difficult and flawed.
In March 2019, my third year as Secretary of Agriculture, the Digitalization Program for farmers and fishermen designed to collect accurate data which would have revolutionized Philippine Agriculture was launched.
The Pilot Area was my hometown of Mlang, Cotabato for the simple reason that I had the support of the Local Government Officials making the conduct of the digitalization program easy.
The program involved the validation of “real farmers and fishermen” using drones and digital technology to ensure that government interventions do not fall into the “wrong hands” and precise information on food production could be generated.
The format employed aerial mapping and geo-tagging technology to ensure that the location of the farms and houses of the farmers and fishermen are validated.
This was also aimed at correcting a major flaw in the delivery of government interventions which were marked by irregularities with seeds, fertilisers and machinery going to the wrong beneficiaries.
The delivery of interventions in the past were also marred by political interference leading some farmers to complain that only those who are close to the political powers received help.
With the implementation of the Farmers Database which uses Digital Technology through Aerial Mapping and Geo-Tagging, the interventions will be delivered directly to the real beneficiaries.
Three months after the program was launched, however, following my public disagreements with the Economic Managers led by then Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez over the Rice Tariffication Law, I resigned as Agriculture Secretary and moved to the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA).
Under a new Secretary, the program was abandoned.
While I pursued it as MnDA Chairman in the provinces of Misamis Oriental and Surigao del Sur, lack of funds prevented the program from coming to full fruition as a National Program.
This program must be pursued by whoever will assume the leadership of the DA because this is the only way that the dreamed Rice Sufficiency would be realized.
Accurate planning could only be accomplished by using accurate data.
#TheDreamNeverDies!