Aquino: PH agriculture’s past result of lessons unlearned

SCIENCE CITY OF MUÑOZ—President Benigno Aquino has likened Philippine agriculture’s unremarkable performance in the past to a case of pupils not listening to their teacher.

In a speech read by Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala during the Gawad Saka awards at the Philippine Rice Research Institute here on Tuesday, the President said agriculture ministers of countries exporting rice to the Philippines learned from Filipino agriculture experts, whose ideas were neither applied nor fully supported in their country.

Mr. Aquino, who missed the event due to poor weather, said the Department of Agriculture’s (DA) budget will be increased to P74.1 billion in 2013 to improve the country’s food output.

“As I traveled abroad, I had opportunities to listen and talk with the ministers of agriculture in other countries. They were high praises for the institutions in our country for their excellent expertise in agriculture and for their excellence in teaching agriculture,” Mr. Aquino said in the speech.

The President cited the International Rice Research Institute, University of the Philippines at Los Baños and Central Luzon State University as excellent teachers of agriculture.

“It is noteworthy that we are acknowledged as a teacher in the field of agriculture but we are not listening to our own lessons,” he said.

As a result, he said, the countries that learned from the Philippines have started exporting rice here.

The President also said the mismanagement of rice imports led to huge volumes of excess rice that rot in warehouses.

But Mr. Aquino said 2013 will be the year of a huge turnaround for the agriculture sector.

On behalf of the President, Alcala announced that 2013 is the “National Year of Rice,” which would be anchored on full rice self-sufficiency that is complemented by an increased DA budget.

“Because of honest and right administration and management, it’s not only rice self-sufficiency that we will attain in 2013 … We will be exporting rice in 2013,” Mr. Aquino said.

He said he is granting bigger budgets to agencies that deliver improved services.

“Those of you in agencies who are just sitting out there and doing nothing, you better start thinking. If you are not delivering good and appropriate services to the people, you have no place in government service,” he said.

The government cited 25 individuals and groups during the Gawad Saka awards. Each received P150,000 and a trophy. Anselmo Roque, Inquirer Central Luzon