Farmers and fisherfolk may soon get timely technical assistance in the use of technologies and climate-smart farming practices with the inclusion of two bills in the priority list of the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC), according to the chairman of the Senate agriculture committee.
Senator Francis N. Pangilinan said his twin measures-the Agriculture and Fisheries Extension Act and the Agricultural Cooperatives Act-were shortlisted at last week’s Ledac meeting among the measures agreed on by the Executive and Legislative branches as deserving of passage in the Second Regular Session of Congress.
Panglinan, who has been pushing for the passage of these two bills since his return to the Senate last year, welcomed their inclusion in the Marcos administration’s priority list.
He underscored the urgent need to provide farmers and fisherfolk with stronger institutional support, better access to technology and knowledge, and more effective cooperative structures.
‘We need to get these bills across the finish line. It’s not enough that the promised support for farmers and fishers remain on paper. They deserve concrete systems and services to ensure such assistance reaches their farms and their fishing grounds,’ Pangilinan said, speaking partly in Filipino.
The proposed Senate Bill (SB) 1991, or the Agricultural and Fisheries Extension Services Act, seeks to establish a stronger, more responsive, and better-coordinated national extension system that will provide farmers and fisherfolk with timely technical assistance, research-based technologies, climate-smart farming practices, and continuous capacity-building.
SB 1990, or the Agricultural Cooperatives Act, will reestablish the Bureau of Agriculture Cooperatives. It aims to strengthen farmers’ and fisherfolk’s capacity to organize themselves and compete effectively.
Once capacitated, agricultural cooperatives will have improved access to financing, markets, equipment, and value-adding opportunities.
‘As it is, our farmers and fishers are not just reeling from soaring production costs; they have also been left behind in terms of new technologies, new farming practices, and new knowledge,’ said Pangilinan.
‘The farmers and fishers of a country that is rich in terms of soil and sea should not be left behind. They hold the dreams of their sector, but public servants must provide the support and opportunities to fulfill these.’
The two measures, Pangilinan also said, are closely linked to the country’s long-term food security agenda because a stronger agriculture and fisheries sector will bring down the prices of basic goods and commodities, increasing the buying power of ordinary Filipinos.
He expressed readiness to work with his colleagues in the Senate, the House of Representatives, and the Executive to ensure the timely passage of the two measures.