By Mary Judaline Partlow
DUMAGUETE CITY – Alejandro Rafal, the head of the Department of Agriculture-Provincial Agriculture Technology Coordinating Office (DA-PATCO) in Negros Oriental, disclosed on Tuesday that the ongoing El Niño phenomenon has caused damages amounting to at least PHP77 million to rice, corn, and other high-value crops in the province.
Rafal mentioned that local government units commenced the submission of their drought damage assessment reports last week. In Bayawan City alone, the total damage to rice and corn surpassed PHP30 million, affecting 792 rice and corn farmers.
Mabinay town also reported roughly PHP18-million damage to crops, with 550 rice farmers affected.
In Zamboanguita, the dry spell wreaked havoc on 430 hectares of rice and irrigation worth PHP27.9 million.
Drought was so severe in the area that it rendered a small irrigation system out of service.
In northernmost Vallehermoso, damage was estimated at PHP1 million, with 88 farmers of rice, corn, and other high-value crops and livestock affected.
Rafal said the reports have yet to be validated to guide the DA, Department of Social Welfare and Development, and the Department of Labor and Employment in the distribution of government aid.
Meanwhile, government interventions continue, such as the distribution of seeds for intercropping or temporary replacement in areas affected by the dry spell.
Rafal said there is a possibility that the cropping year, which regularly begins mid-April, will be pushed back due to the abnormal weather phenomenon.
On Jan. 19, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. signed Executive Order (EO) No. 53 to streamline, reactivate, and reconstitute the old El Niño Task Force under EO No. 16 (s. 2001) and Memorandum Order No. 38 (s. 2019).
Under EO No. 53, the President instructed the task force to develop a comprehensive disaster preparedness and rehabilitation plan for El Niño and La Niña to provide “systematic, holistic, and results-driven interventions” to help the public cope and minimize devastating effects. (PNA)
