Science, Society, and
Technology
NAME: Nicole Ann S. Tolentino
1 – BSA
ACTIVITY 4
AGRICULTURE, NATURAL
RESOURCES, AND
RURAL DEVELOPMENT
1. Sector Performance,
Problems, and Opportunities
Agriculture sector performance and its
implications.
• The Philippine agriculture sector has experienced stagnant growth,
with an average annual growth of 1.9% between 2010-2019, lower
than Indonesia and Viet Nam. This is due to policy distortions,
underinvestment, inefficient resource management, and weather
events. During the pandemic, agriculture output declined by 0.2% in
2020 and 0.3% in 2021. Despite this, agriculture accounts for 25% of
the country's employment and is crucial for rural families. Poverty in
rural areas is high, particularly for farm households. Increased
agricultural productivity is needed to address poverty and improve
food security. ([Link]
documents/[Link])
Untapped economic potential
• The agriculture sector in the Philippines has significant
potential, with rice, corn, coconuts, sugarcane, bananas,
pineapple, coffee, mangoes, and tobacco accounting for over
50% of the total area. However, challenges such as low value
addition, limited diversification, and low productivity hinder
agricultural transformation. The country's strategy since the
1960s has focused on rice self-sufficiency, implementing
targeted programs and enforcing trade barriers to protect the
domestic rice industry from international competition.
([Link]/sites/default/files/linked-documents/53353-002-
[Link])
a. Trade Policy and
Regulatory Reforms
Rice Tariffication Law—transformational
reform for Philippine agriculture.
•The Rice Trade Regulation (RTL) replaced quantitative
restrictions on rice imports with simple tariffs to address
domestic market distortions. It revoked the National
Food Authority's monopoly and limited buffer stocking
to domestically grown rice. The RTL allows unlimited
rice imports with tariff rates of 35% for ASEAN
member states and 40% for imports outside ASEAN.
([Link]
documents/[Link])
Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund.
• The RTL aims to boost the domestic rice industry's
competitiveness through the RCEF, a time-bound financing
mechanism. It covers four programs from 2019-2024: rice
farming machinery and equipment, rice seed development,
expanded rice credit assistance, and rice extension services.
The RCEF has benefited 2,187 farmers' cooperatives and
associations, and tax revenues over ₱10 billion support
financial assistance, titling of rice lands, crop insurance, and
productivity enhancement programs.
([Link]
documents/[Link])
b. Public Services to the
Agriculture Sector
Relaxed restrictions on agricultural land sales and
transfers and simplified land
titling.
• Insecure agricultural land tenure limits on-farm investment and
undermines economic benefits of land reforms. The Philippines
initiated the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program in 1988,
but property rights and intergenerational land transfer
arrangements remain unresolved. In 2019, the government
approved the Agricultural Free Patent Reform Act and
amendments to simplify procedures for judicial confirmation of
imperfect or incomplete land titles.
([Link]
Philippine Water Supply and Sanitation
Master Plan, 2021–2030 launched.
• The country's water supply and demand gap is widening, with
12.40 million people experiencing water stress and scarcity.
Most water service providers are not financially and
technically capable of delivering services, and only 68.9% of
748 water districts are operational. The water supply and
sanitation segment is fragmented, and government agencies'
efforts are uncoordinated. A unifying apex body and reforms
are urgent, including establishing effective institutions,
building climate resilience, and enabling funding access.
([Link]
documents/[Link])
c. Social Protection to Rural
Families
Protecting affected rice farmers.
•The government provided ₱5,000 each
inunconditional cash transfers to about 2.0
million rice farmers listed under the Registry
System forBasic Sectors in Agriculture who
are tilling 2 ha or less, totaling around ₱22.0
billion mostly from the excess rice import
tariffs collected in 2019–2021
([Link]
documents/[Link])
Enhancing credit assistance to smallholder rice
farmers and agri-based micro and
small enterprises.
• The Agricultural Credit Policy Council provided interest-free
loans to small rice farmers in 2020, and later provided
concessional loans to smallholder farmers, fisherfolks, and
agri- and fishery-based micro-and small enterprises to mitigate
the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The SURE COVID-
19 Program, Kapital Access for Young Agripreneurs, and
ANYO Loan Programs helped these groups mitigate the
pandemic's effects, enabling women's access to credit.
([Link]
documents/[Link])