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The Farmers’ Muddle & The Updated PH Development Plan 2017-2022

On Facebook, via National Economic & Development Authority (NEDA), the gentlemen and ladies who prepared the 332-page  Updated Philippine Development Plan 2017-2022 (downloadable as pdf), are asking for feedback, and so as a self-assumed (if self-assured) Crusader for Farmers’ Progress, after my perusal, these are what I have to say:

(1)  The Vision is Excellent. “Metatag, maginhawa at panatag na buhay (strongly rooted, comfortable, and secure life for all.”

(2)  The Strategies are Well-Conceived: “Malasakit” (referring to government Concern for the people), “Pagbabago” (Social Transformation) and “Patuloy na Pag-unlad” (Continuing Progress) (the English translations are mine).

(3)  The Goal is Brilliant as well as Complete. “The Goal is to lay down the foundation for inclusive growth, a high trust and resilient society, and a globally competitive knowledge economy.”

Three time’s a charm!

Now I want to concentrate on the Goal, the first part, “inclusive growth,” which means to me economic progress that includes the poor. That is to say, those who are on the poverty line and below are able to rise from their economic insufficiency to economic sustainability – mainly as fruits of their genius and, literally, ground works.

I do declare: To solve the problem of poverty, first you must look for the causes – now, where is the foundation to accomplish that? After programmatically scanning those 332 pages, I found that the brains of The Updated Plan 2017-2022 did not search for or did not include causes of poverty! How can you solve a problem when you do not know the root cause(s)?!

Now then, with me being the son of an Ilocano poor farmer of Asingan, Pangasinan, plus from the perspective of my educational background of BS Agriculture major in Ag Edu (UP '65), plus my 45 years off-and-on varied experiences as Editor In Chief of technical publications based at the campus of UP Los Baños in Laguna, I want to tell those who prepared the approximately-137,000-word Updated Plan what they ignored, what are the causes of poverty of our farmers, which have kept the poor that poor since the Spanish colonizers taught the islands agriculture (you may want to check that out, see my essay, “Christianity Not Only Brought To The Philippines Culture – Also Agriculture![1]” 18 March 2021, Asa Ka Pa!). I will package them and call the result The Farmers’ Muddle, comprising of the following:

(1)   Relatively high costs of inputs – seeds, fertilizers, pesticides

(2)   Improper use of technologies – cultivating soil and planting seedlings

(3)   Reliance on fast-cash loans – at usurious interests

(4)   Inefficiencies in harvesting and drying – if non-mechanized

(5)   Ill-timed selling of new harvest – price dictated  by merchants.

On the high costs of inputs, the updaters of the plan could have directed the Department of Agriculture, which is now under Secretary of Agriculture & Servant Leader William Dar, to formulate a Farm Production Package considering the actual situations of poor farmers, and all of the above. That should have gone into one complete chapter of The Updated Plan. You cannot simply forget those millions and sleep soundly at night!@517


[1]https://asakaparin.blogspot.com/2021/03/christianity-not-only-brought-to.html

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