THE Mabini-Cayacay Small Reservoir Irrigation Project, which irrigates 530 hectares of farmland in Bohol, was inaugurated by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. this year. The project is part of the plan of the Marcos administration of a nationwide expansion of solar-powered irrigation.
Photograph courtesy of PIA
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said he is pushing for the nationwide expansion of solar-powered irrigation to lower farming costs, strengthen food security, and modernize the country’s irrigation system, especially now that the country is reeling from the worst El Niño phenomenon and climate change.
According to Acting Executive Secretary Ralph G. Recto, the Solar-Powered Pump Irrigation Program (SPIP), administered by the National Irrigation Administration (NIA), is targeting to expand 10,000 sites nationwide by 2030.
NIA currently operates 4,036 SPIP sites across 43 provinces in all 17 regions, including 2,147 sites in Luzon, 1,102 in the Visayas and 787 in Mindanao.
“The President’s mandate is to ensure that farmers have reliable irrigation without depleting their income on irrigation costs. As the impacts of climate change intensify, we will build systems that are reliable in drought, resilient in times of disaster, and truly strengthen the livelihoods of our farmers,” Recto said.
NIA’s Vision 2030 roadmap states that the government is expanding the network to 10,000 sites, benefit two million farmers, irrigate an additional 100,000 hectares of agricultural land and move toward net-zero energy use in irrigation.
Solar-powered irrigation systems will operate water pumps, reducing farmers’ dependence on diesel and insulating them from fluctuations in fuel prices. Compared with diesel-powered pumps, the systems also require significantly lower operating and maintenance expenses.
“This is a long-term investment in food security. Every peso farmers save on diesel can instead be used for seeds, fertilizer, equipment and other needs that directly improve their productivity and income,” Recto said.
Smarter irrigation
Beyond expanding solar-powered facilities, NIA is also moving toward smarter irrigation through an artificial intelligence-based monitoring system that will use real-time data to track water availability, soil conditions and irrigation requirements.
The goal is to allow irrigation systems to deliver water more efficiently, minimize wastage, and respond more quickly to changing farm and weather conditions.
NIA data show that existing solar-powered irrigation systems have maintained high operational availability and can provide six to eight hours of irrigation daily.
The benefits are already being demonstrated in farming communities.
In Bacarra, Ilocos Norte, 12 solar-powered irrigation units serving 340 hectares significantly reduced annual irrigation expenses and helped farmers sustain as many as three cropping cycles a year.
In Bukidnon, AI-assisted irrigation scheduling has also demonstrated the potential to increase rice production through the use of satellite data and soil-moisture monitoring to determine when and how much water farms need.
Solar-powered irrigation facilities in Pangasinan, meanwhile, continued operating during the prolonged power outage caused by typhoon “Egay” in 2023, helping farmers protect their crops without relying on electricity from the grid or additional fuel.
Recto said these experiences demonstrate how renewable energy and digital technology can make Philippine agriculture more productive and resilient.
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