THE PHILIPPINE STAR

MONDAY I JULY 8, 2019 news

tFinancial aid to farmers to ensure food security'
ly DELON PORGALLA the President put agricultule bdck in o{fice, President Duterte has made technologically advanced post-hmvest "This couple is Ieading the chargr
the national development plan and it clear that no one should be left {acilities in the Philippines. in rice revolution. Their firm is now t
ensure an exponential increase in behind in our journey of progress. It is locatbd in AlanSalang, Leyte maior producer that integrates seei
Levte ReD. Marlin Romualdez ;bout 30 kilometers south of Taclo- growing, planting, farm manage.
rrged allies bf President Duterte in farmers' income," he said. The economic growth that we are
He said focus should be on agricul- experiencing mist benefit our farm- ban City, which is being develoPed ment, harvesting and rice produc.
he House of Representatives to help
he administration bpost the agricul- tural rcsearch and extension servicet er6, who coirprise a majority of the as the country's fifth largest rice tion in the Visayas and Mindanao,'
and assistance to farmers in production populatiory" he said. producing area. Romualdez pointed out.
ural sector's mandate in ensuring
and marketing, improved access of Romualdez made the re-
'ood security to 108 million Filipinos
ry giving financial aid and techno- small farmers to credit and loan facili- marks afur President Duterte
ties fmm Land Bank of the Philippines joined the inauguration of the
ogical support to farmers.
"Philippine agriculture needs to and other lending institutions. Leyte /ice processint plant
rlay a greater role in natjonal devel- "If we want to reduce poverty, we ot a couple whose busrness
rDmeht. The Duterte administration need to find ways onhow to increase modelzpromises to be "the
ris laid the foundation for the coun- the Filipino farmerb' income. We need national flagship for irmova-
:ry's economic takeoff," Romualdez to accelerate agricultural productiv- tion in rice production."
ity, but this must translate to bigger The rice processing plant of'
;aid, noting the 14 percent Poverty
:eduction objective by 2022. tike-home pay for those who till the Chen Yi Agventures, owned
"If Congress can enact laws sup- soil," stressed Romualdez, a leading by the husband-and-wife
team of Frpnch-italian Patrick
)orting agriculhlre, we can sustain candidate for speaker.
;he economic growth and make it Romualdez prodded his fellow Francois Renucci and FiliPino-
reneficial to ttie ordinary rnary" he legislators to prioritize t}e passage of Chinese Rachel Renucci-Tan,
;aid as he also called on economic President Duterte's pet bills that seek is touted as one of the 4rost
nanagers to a program ensuring to increase farmers' in-
'allocation of greater resoFrces" to come and accelerate l

iarmers across the counlry agricultural productiv-

"We all know the main Problems ity, saying this will help
n agriculture: lack of capital, lack cutPoverty level hy half
rf labor and the low vield. If we can belore 2022.
lddress these issuei, we can help "From Ddy One in