Agriculture dept’s 2022 budget seems ‘disconnected’ — congresswoman

MANILA, Philippines — Representative Estrellita Suansing on Tuesday pointed out a “disconnection” in the priorities of the Department of Agriculture (DA)’s 2022 budget.

The congresswoman cited the slashes in the farm-to-market roads, high-value crops, and corn, among others.

She also raised the plight of farmers in their province due to the lack of budget.

“Ito ‘yung problema namin sa Nueva Ecija, hindi bumibili ng palay ang NFA kasi kulang sa budget, kulang sa sasakyan, kulang sa bilaran,” Suansing, Nueva Ecija’s 1st District representative, said during the briefing on the National Expenditure Program of the DA for 2022.

(Our problem in Nueva Ecija is that the National Food Authority does not buy unhusked rice because of lack of budget, lack of vehicles, and lack of place to dry.)

Agriculture Undersecretary Fermin Adriano then defended the budget and said that the priorities were right.

“When we submit that, our proposal reflects the priorities but the determination of how much the DA will be receiving from the government it is done by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM),” Adriano explained.

However, Suansing countered that the DBM would not just trim the budget without justification.

“I would like to believe that DBM is dependent on the utilization and justification of the increase. Hindi naman siguro si DBM basta-basta na lang niya i-cut or ‘di kaya i-increase. Depende talaga ‘yan sa justification,” she noted.

(The DBM does not hastily cut or decrease budgets. It depends on the justification.)

With this, Suansing requested the DA for the utilization chart for the budget hearing with the committee on appropriations, as well as a breakdown of foreign-assisted projects and high-value crop budget breakdown.

Earlier, the DBM rejected DA’s proposed P250 billion for 2022. The agency’s 2022 budget is only P72 billion, P1 billion higher than this year’s budget.

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