ADB commits $40B to boost food security

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has committed $40 billion over the next five years to bolster food security in the Philippines, ADB President Masato Kanda announced Tuesday at the BIMP-EAGA Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

BIMP-EAGA refers to the Brunei-Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area.

Under the food security financing, Kanda said the ADB will soon approve a $400 million loan to expand economic activities related to marine resources or the blue economy in supporting the Philippines' National Adaptation Plan.

"We are strengthening financing, policy guidance, project support, and capacity building," Kanda said.

"Coastal resilience is also needed to sustain fisheries and aquaculture, an important source of nutritious food for all," he continued.

To date, the ADB has provided $500 million for agricultural and community development across the country. In its April Asian Development Outlook, the bank urged the creation of a Blue Economy Council to harmonize sea-resource policies between government and the private sector, aiming to reduce the national poverty rate to 9 percent or lower.

"Fisherfolk had a high poverty incidence of 30.6 percent in 2021, well above the 18.1 percent national average for the same year. The degradation of fishery resources exacerbates economic hardships for these communities," ADB said.

"Establishing more marine protected areas and enhancing their management through community participation can help restore fisheries resources and protect biodiversity," the institution added.

The ADB said the council can efficiently craft incentives for investments in marine biotechnology, offshore renewable energy, and ecotourism.

"Marine renewable energy — offshore wind, solar, wave, and tidal energy — can help reach the country’s target of increasing renewable energy’s share in power generation to 35 percent by 2030 and 50 percent by 2040," ADB said.

If sustainability efforts are done efficiently, the ADB said the fisheries industry could expand over 30 percent, while ocean-based power could grow by over 11 percent.