Modern agri-tech pivotal to encouraging youth to pursue farmwork

The Department of Agriculture (DA) highlighted the importance of integrating innovations and modern technologies in farmwork, as this will not only increase efficiency and yield but will also encourage the young generation to pursue work in agriculture.

“If we look at the DA's responsibility, it's not only in food security,  poverty alleviation, [and] increasing the income of the farmers; we have to see to it that we can still pass the baton [on] to the next generation, that they would be able to still produce quality, affordable commodities,” Agriculture Undersecretary Jerome V. Oliveros said Thursday on the sidelines of the Israel-Philippine Agrotech Innovation Forum in Makati City.

The average age of Filipino farmers is 56, according to PhilRice. Thus, Oliveros said that farming should be passed on to younger generations and be perceived as one of the best sources of livelihood.

“We want to promote farming as bankable. But then again, for us to be able to do that, we needed to innovate,” he added.

Eleven Israeli agriculture technology companies visited the Philippines this week and presented various innovations for farming, including real-time field data, drip irrigation systems, and water use efficiency.

“These are the kinds of technologies that we wanted to bring here. We wanted to promote this because if it is practiced, the next generation will probably see that it's not that hard. It's a better way of doing things. It's a better way of producing by adopting this technology,” Oliveros said.

More solar-powered irrigation systems

Moreover, Oliveros said the DA is looking into establishing more solar-powered irrigation systems nationwide, as these are robust and cost-effective.

“[L]ast 2018,  LR Group of Israel started the solar water irrigation project in Lumban Laguna. It's called fertigation. Imagine it was in 2018. The Secretary and I visited Lumban Laguna last February, and we saw that project. Up until now, it's still running. It's been there for more than five years. [It covers] about 30 hectares. So we wanted a lot of these solar water irrigations all over the country,” he said.

The DA last month revealed its proposal to borrow €350 million, or over P22 trillion, for the development of Philippine Solar Irrigation Projects (PSIP).

DA spokesperson Assistant Secretary Arnel de Mesa said that Agriculture Secretary Franciso Tiu Larel Jr. wanted next year's budget to have a P5  million investment in developing PSIPs, further disclosing that the agency currently has a proposal with the Asian Development Bank of the said amount for the project.