Philippines
1
NEDA Inputs for the Philippine Statement
Intergovernmental Preparatory Meeting of the CSD17,
23-27 February 2009, UN Headquarters
1. Discussions in the thematic area of agriculture are of particular interest to
the Philippines given the agriculture sector?s share in the economic sector,
and more importantly, the number of people engaged in and dependent on
the sector. Philippine agricultural development is an important
consideration in improving overall rural welfare, essential to the poverty
reduction strategy of the Country.
2. The Philippines has adopted agribusiness development as one of the
strategies to reduce rural poverty. Agribusiness development is an
approach that will address agricultural production constraints as well as
post-production handling, value-adding and distribution concerns.
Adequate and timely interventions to address these factors would then
lead to job creation and income stability in the countryside.
3. Long-term food security remains an important goal for the country
regardless of the crisis issue. Thus, productivity growths will be essential
in achieving efficiency and equity objectives and would thus require
sustained support. These would have to be in the context of maintaining
competitive markets and investment in productivity-enhancing measures.
4. Policy options should recognize and consider (i) farm-market linkages that
affect the flow of goods and services, as it largely influence prices of
agricultural commodities/food items at the consumer level; as well as (ii)
greater access of farmers to credit facilities which are not restricted only to
limited goods, but considers multiple options for flexibility on where and
how to invest resources.
Global Food Crisis
5. Vulnerability to high food prices and food insecurity is not limited to the
rural population. As in the case of the Philippines, those in the urban areas
were equally affected by the steep rise of food/rice prices, especially
during the 2008 food crisis.
6. The inability of domestic agricultural systems to supply the consumption
needs of the populace, particularly urban populations, its primary target
market, triggers an internal imbalance in food supply. With urban areas
highly dependent on imports and the rural sector for food, changes in the
supply and its subsequent effect on prices makes its population equally
vulnerable to price variability.
2
7. Sustainable upland agriculture should be supported to buttress lowland
food production while ensuring integrity of the upland ecosystem for its
ecological, economic and social values.
Capacity building, Financial and Technology Supports
8. A food security assessment is suggested to be conducted to identify
underlying causes of food insecurity across countries. A similar activity
has been proposed by the ASEAN-UN Strategic Plan of Action on Food
Security which can be replicated by the UN system with other regional
cooperation bodies.
9. A sustainable green revolution may be supported, but should encompass
not only sustainable agricultural practices but also strengthen key inter
and intra country institutions that manage the sector. Key to this are
international and regional information and knowledge management
systems that support agriculture development in general, and market
information, early warning systems, technology transfer and skills
development in particular.
10. Reinvesting in agriculture, the main theme of the 2008 World
Development Report, should earnestly be considered.
Biofuels
11. Given that biofuel crops could compete for land with food crops and even
lead to increased deforestation, current biofuels and land use policies and
other related programs and projects being implemented should be
reviewed to avoid conflicts that could affect food supply and natural forest
cover.
Climate Change Challenges
12. Adaptation and mitigation measures to reduce/minimize impacts to the
agriculture sector/food security should be with reference to the United
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Work on
climate change should be anchored on the agreements of the Convention.
As a country Party to the UNFCCC and signatory to the Kyoto Protocol
(Non-Annex 1 Party), the Philippines intends to remain an engaged
stakeholder toward combating and adapting to climate change, with a
particular emphasis on alleviating poverty and advancing sustainable
development.
13. Climate change adaptation and mitigation programs and initiatives and
should be part of the core development efforts, specifically the
identification of appropriate policies together with sound planning and
timely actions. The integration of climate risk management in agriculture
and food security planning is a necessity given the critical dependence of
agriculture and food production on climatic patterns
14. Mutual cooperation should be fostered by the government with
development partners to overcome the emerging climate change impacts.
New and additional resources for climate change should be identified.
15. As an initiative to narrow the resource gap for climate investments, publicprivate
partnership for projects that have climate benefits should be
strengthened. Governments should make their regulatory frameworks
more conducive to leverage donor and private investments for innovative
and climate-resilience projects. With the increasing attention on climateproofing
economies towards improving resiliency against climate-related
disruptions and shocks, incentives to adapt climate must be in place to
sustain interest of funding institutions and private sector to participate.
Income and employment opportunities emanating from climate-friendly
technologies and innovations (e.g., alternative energy generation,
innovative engineering and construction, food production, etc) should be
promoted.
NEDA Inputs for the Philippine Statement
Intergovernmental Preparatory Meeting of the CSD17,
23-27 February 2009, UN Headquarters
1. Discussions in the thematic area of agriculture are of particular interest to
the Philippines given the agriculture sector?s share in the economic sector,
and more importantly, the number of people engaged in and dependent on
the sector. Philippine agricultural development is an important
consideration in improving overall rural welfare, essential to the poverty
reduction strategy of the Country.
2. The Philippines has adopted agribusiness development as one of the
strategies to reduce rural poverty. Agribusiness development is an
approach that will address agricultural production constraints as well as
post-production handling, value-adding and distribution concerns.
Adequate and timely interventions to address these factors would then
lead to job creation and income stability in the countryside.
3. Long-term food security remains an important goal for the country
regardless of the crisis issue. Thus, productivity growths will be essential
in achieving efficiency and equity objectives and would thus require
sustained support. These would have to be in the context of maintaining
competitive markets and investment in productivity-enhancing measures.
4. Policy options should recognize and consider (i) farm-market linkages that
affect the flow of goods and services, as it largely influence prices of
agricultural commodities/food items at the consumer level; as well as (ii)
greater access of farmers to credit facilities which are not restricted only to
limited goods, but considers multiple options for flexibility on where and
how to invest resources.
Global Food Crisis
5. Vulnerability to high food prices and food insecurity is not limited to the
rural population. As in the case of the Philippines, those in the urban areas
were equally affected by the steep rise of food/rice prices, especially
during the 2008 food crisis.
6. The inability of domestic agricultural systems to supply the consumption
needs of the populace, particularly urban populations, its primary target
market, triggers an internal imbalance in food supply. With urban areas
highly dependent on imports and the rural sector for food, changes in the
supply and its subsequent effect on prices makes its population equally
vulnerable to price variability.
2
7. Sustainable upland agriculture should be supported to buttress lowland
food production while ensuring integrity of the upland ecosystem for its
ecological, economic and social values.
Capacity building, Financial and Technology Supports
8. A food security assessment is suggested to be conducted to identify
underlying causes of food insecurity across countries. A similar activity
has been proposed by the ASEAN-UN Strategic Plan of Action on Food
Security which can be replicated by the UN system with other regional
cooperation bodies.
9. A sustainable green revolution may be supported, but should encompass
not only sustainable agricultural practices but also strengthen key inter
and intra country institutions that manage the sector. Key to this are
international and regional information and knowledge management
systems that support agriculture development in general, and market
information, early warning systems, technology transfer and skills
development in particular.
10. Reinvesting in agriculture, the main theme of the 2008 World
Development Report, should earnestly be considered.
Biofuels
11. Given that biofuel crops could compete for land with food crops and even
lead to increased deforestation, current biofuels and land use policies and
other related programs and projects being implemented should be
reviewed to avoid conflicts that could affect food supply and natural forest
cover.
Climate Change Challenges
12. Adaptation and mitigation measures to reduce/minimize impacts to the
agriculture sector/food security should be with reference to the United
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Work on
climate change should be anchored on the agreements of the Convention.
As a country Party to the UNFCCC and signatory to the Kyoto Protocol
(Non-Annex 1 Party), the Philippines intends to remain an engaged
stakeholder toward combating and adapting to climate change, with a
particular emphasis on alleviating poverty and advancing sustainable
development.
13. Climate change adaptation and mitigation programs and initiatives and
should be part of the core development efforts, specifically the
identification of appropriate policies together with sound planning and
timely actions. The integration of climate risk management in agriculture
and food security planning is a necessity given the critical dependence of
agriculture and food production on climatic patterns
14. Mutual cooperation should be fostered by the government with
development partners to overcome the emerging climate change impacts.
New and additional resources for climate change should be identified.
15. As an initiative to narrow the resource gap for climate investments, publicprivate
partnership for projects that have climate benefits should be
strengthened. Governments should make their regulatory frameworks
more conducive to leverage donor and private investments for innovative
and climate-resilience projects. With the increasing attention on climateproofing
economies towards improving resiliency against climate-related
disruptions and shocks, incentives to adapt climate must be in place to
sustain interest of funding institutions and private sector to participate.
Income and employment opportunities emanating from climate-friendly
technologies and innovations (e.g., alternative energy generation,
innovative engineering and construction, food production, etc) should be
promoted.
Stakeholders