The Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) will officially ask the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to review the effectiveness of the National Greening Program (NGP) in Mindanao as flooding continues in spite of billions spent for the program.
During the 4th Mindanao River Basin Management Council Meeting on Nov. 27, I questioned the effectiveness of the current interventions by government on the perennial flooding in the downstreams of Mindanao’s major rivers.
MinDA will also ask DENR to sync its reforestation program under NGP with the Green Mindanao Project (GMP) which promotes the planting of high value fruit trees in the deforested highlands and watersheds of Mindanao.
The GMP is one of the major programs of MinDA aimed at addressing the denudation of Mindanao mountains and highlands while improving agricultural productivity and reducing poverty at the same time.
The NGP, a government reforestation program which has been on-going for many years now, receives billions in annual budget.
For 2019, the NGP received a budget of P2.6-B for the planting of 980,000 trees in 900 hectares which means that government spent P2,600 for every tree planted.
That same amount could buy 13 seedlings of Abuyog Sweet Jackfruit, 26 Mangosteen seedlings and 5 seedlings of the Hass Avocado variety, all of which will grow well in the highlands.
Latest satellite maps of Mindanao showed the thinning of Mindanao’s forest covers and the negligible area covered by the NGP.
A variation in the implementation of the NGP in Mindanao could serve as a template of a new strategy in the country’s tree planting programs.
#GovernanceIsCommonSense!
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