Caught in chaos, farmers need better insurance
The pandemic and the natural disasters that hit the country affected consumption and the production of adequate food
Daily TribuneThe pandemic and the natural disasters that hit the country affected consumption and the production of adequate food
Photo | Analy Labor
Typhoons and severe weather can destroy crops and livelihood, prevent farmers from harvesting their produce or prohibit them from planting. Weather events like flooding and superstorms can put many farmers in jeopardy.
Senator JV Ejercito, an advocate of farmers' causes, said there must be a comprehensive insurance program to protect farmers and their crops from the impacts of various natural disasters.
"The pandemic and the natural disasters that hit the country affected consumption and the production of adequate food. The country's vulnerability to disasters and its disastrous effect on agricultural productivity calls for a more permanent and long-term solution to ensure that the agricultural sector, especially the small farmers, are protected and given support to sustain and protect their production," Ejercito said.
Ejercito filed a bill Senate Bill 390, seeking to automatically place all farmers with eight hectares of farmland and below under the government's crop insurance program.
Citing the vulnerability of farmlands to natural calamities, Ejercito said this measure would push a comprehensive crop insurance program to safeguard small farmers in times of crisis.
The measure, he added, will also expand the national government's existing crop insurance and improve the country's food security.
The senator cited that the Department of Agriculture recorded P3.12 billion of agricultural damage due to Super Typhoon Karding last September. The onslaught of severe tropical storm "Paeng" has reached P49.54 million just over the weekend.
Once passed into law, Ejercito said DA would be required to craft a comprehensive crop insurance scheme for small farmers in coordination with the Philippine Crop Insurance Corporation and in consultation with the Insurance Commission.
The bill also pushes insurance premiums for farmers who own or cultivate five hectares of farmland and will be subsidized by the national government.
Meanwhile, the national government will cover half the insurance premiums of planters owning or cultivating more than five hectares but not exceeding eight hectares of farmland.
