Cut down on Agriculture’s Budget..
I haven’t read yet the DBM report but I have my own reason to believe the report may have a basis notwithstanding their recommendation to cut down on DA’s budget.
First is the issue on economies of scale. We don’t have large tracks of agicultural lands that can be considered for commercial plantation. Why?
1. We are a country divided into 7,107 islands therefore our farmholdings are small.
2. The several commercial landholding have been subdivided into small farmlots courtesy of Agrarian Reform. In effect, our supposed biggest farmholding is only 7 hectares.
3. Our farmers are aging and not many new farmers are willing to go into agricultural production. About ten years from now we will already be dearth of farmers because our young generation are into computers, health services, factory workers, and domestic helpers.
4. Small farmholdings do not have economies of scale (aka: low productivity). We spend more for less return.
5. Our population is increasing very fast so that agricultural lands are being converted into residential and subdivisions. Housing is an equally basic need and we cannot control land conversions unless we change the design of low cost housing from single detach to duplex or multiplex (ngek!)
6. Calamities have buried and submerged large tracks of rice lands in the Bikol Region, Northern Luzon and many more. These are realities that may really have caused DBM to reprogramme budget priorities. Maybe NEDA and DA may justify their budget by changing strategies from traditional agriculture to developing new farmers and going back to basics. As Ka Iking suggested,using organic fertilizers, feeds, and pestecides.
