The current El Niño weather phenomenon has caused extensive damage to agriculture, with nearly P1 billion worth of crops as of the end of last month.
According data from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), Western Visayas posted the highest crop losses worth P564 million, followed by Mimaropa (Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon, Palawan) with P319.8 million, and the Ilocos region with P54.5 million.
The agency reported that as of the end of February, 24 provinces in Luzon and a province in the Visayas had potential for meteorological drought conditions, 17 provinces for dry spell, while 10 provinces for dry conditions.
The Department of Agriculture, for its part, has reported that in Cagayan Valley, corn farmers have incurred P180 million in losses, mostly in rainfed farms.
In Negros Occidental, the provincial government has reported more than P55 million in losses to rice and corn planted in 1,064 hectares.
The total losses in the agriculture sector could shoot up in the weeks ahead until April when El Niño is expected to wind down, according to experts.
However, the government has already rendered more than P362 million worth of assistance to farmers in the Mimaropa region who had borne the brunt of the dry spell.
The weather phenomenon, characterized by below-normal rainfall conditions, has so far affected 16,709 farmers and fisherfolk and nearly 15,000 hectares of crops around the country.
Water interruptions due to El Niño have also been reported in Western Visayas and the Zamboanga Peninsula.
The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration declared the onset of El Niño on July 4 last year. The government’s Task Force El Niño said the impact of a strong El Niño would affect 80 of the country’s 82 provinces.
Farmers are appealing to the government to provide them with subsidies and other forms of assistance to help them recover.
Government weather forecasters said about 240,000 hectares of farms might be directly affected by the drought, mostly in the northern portions of Isabela and southern portions of Cagayan.
It is good that cloud seeding operations have started in Cagayan Valley to generate rains in agricultural areas in the provinces of Cagayan, Isabela and Nueva Vizcaya.
These should be carried out as well in other areas affected by the drought.
The concerned government agencies appear to be responding quite well to the adverse impact of El Niño on the agriculture sector.
We hope our farmers recover fully from this setback in the months ahead.