₱1-T more funding for irrigation sought

The Department of Agriculture (DA) said the country's irrigation system needs additional funding of up to P1 trillion to boost agricultural output and reduce reliance on the importation of key crops such as rice.

- BY DEXTER BARRO II

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel made this statement during his presentation to the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Food, and Agrarian Reform chaired by Senator Francis Pangilinan.

Tiu Laurel told lawmakers that increasing investments in the agriculture sector is critical to reverse “decades of underinvestment that have left Filipino farmers behind and the country dependent on imports.”

He said one of the most important components of the sector are irrigation facilities, which are often outdated and have limited capacity.

"To irrigate over a million hectares of farmland, we need more than P1 trillion," Tiu Laurel said.

"Without it, we enrich foreign farmers while our own continue to struggle," he added.

In 2024, the country imported a record-high 4.78 million metric tons (MT) of rice, 32-percent higher than the 3.61 million MT recorded in 2023.