A file photo shows farmers harvesting rice in Pulilan, Bulacan. The World Bank will extend its largest-ever loan to the Philippines next year to promote climate-resilient agri-food systems, particularly those based on rice, the Filipino staple food. On 6 December, they announced that their board will approve a $1-billion (over P58-billion) program-for-results financing (PforR) for the Philippines Sustainable Agriculture Transformation project by 5 June 2025.
This program aims to achieve the following specific goals: diversify crops, increase the number of farmers who use climate-smart practices and technologies, increase productivity, and increase volumes of agricultural products sold at farmgate (as a proxy for farmers' incomes), as well as select perishable goods that benefit from improved post-harvest handling and storage, according to the World Bank document. Analy Labor
