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Abstract
The
study was conducted to evaluate the impact of the 1997-1998 El Niņo on
the agriculture sector compare it with the past occurrences and draw up
some policy recommendations. The study covered a total of 30 barangays
in 15 provinces all over the country. Primary data were gathered using
group discussions with key informants in the barangays. Secondary data
on the damages and mitigating measures were gathered at the national level.
Every
new episode of the drought was more severe than the last. This was reflected
in the area affected, production losses and value of damages, with losses
in corn always higher than those in rice. The 1982-83 drought affected
152,660 hectares of rice land, incurring production losses of 628,480
MT valued at P851,955. This more than doubled during the 1991-1992 El
Niņo. For the 1997-1998 El Niņo, production losses reached 1.8 million
MT valued at P12 M and covering an area of 961,396 hectares.
Production
of crops such as rice, corn, vegetables, and fruits , as well as livestock
were severely affected by the drought. The drought was most felt during
the dry season in the survey areas. A third cropping of rice became impossible.
During the dry season, yield of lowland rice was only 5% of yields during
normal times, while upland rice farmers were unable to harvest.
For yellow and white corn, yield during the dry season cropping declined
by 37% and 27%, respectively, thereby decreasing production by 42%
and 38%, respectively. The third crop of corn was planted only in half
the normal planting area. Other crops that were negatively affected in
the surveyed barangays included cassava, rubber, lanzones, banana, tobacco,
and vegetables. Livestock production decreased partly because there were
thinner grasses for grazing and feeding and some were sold partly to provide
income for farmers to enable them to cope with the drought. Swine, goat,
and cattle were disposed of, while poultry were affected by the avian
pest and heat stroke.
During
the peak of the drought, 55% of rice areas and 70% of corn farms had scarce
water supply. The rest of the farms had no water. Natural sources of water
for household use were either dried up, decreased in water level or intruded
with salt. Only 5% of the surveyed barangays reported that they still
had plenty of water for household use.
The
common mitigating measures implemented by different organizations in the
barangays included swine dispersal, free fertilizers, and rice , provision
of credit for livestock and crop production, cash loan, discounted
price for insecticides, and income generating activities for women. The
mitigating measures provided by the local and national governments included
provision of shallow tube wells, construction of small farm reservoirs,
small water impounding projects; rehabilitation of irrigation systems
costing some P2.7M as of August 1998; direct assistance like distributions
of seeds, fertilizers, and pesticides, costing P219 M as of October 1998;
cloud seeding which has 1,300 sorties covering 1,874 hours; information
and educational campaign; food for work program; and research and development.
Non
government organizations were also active in helping barangays mitigate
the effects of the drought. Notable of these included the Red Cross, Tabang
Mindanao and the Caritas Manila. Total fund effort netted almost P92.5
M excluding donations in goods and services. The fund was used to buy
108,769 sacks of rice distributed to 252,000 families in Mindanao. This
translated to less than half of sack of rice per family.
The
project noted however that the mitigating measures, especially those aimed
at helping production of rice, corn, and vegetables were not successful.
Availment of STWs needed so much paperwork before they could be released.
Those who were able to put up the STWs found that water no longer flowed
in the wells. The program on distribution of vegetable seeds was not successful
because the available water in the barangays were not enough to sustain
its planting growth. Cloud seeding operations were not successful in inducing
enough water for the farms.
The
coping mechanisms of the farm households included planting other crops;
selling of livestock for income; borrowing of money for farm inputs
and household use; looking for alternative sources of income whether within
or outside of the barangays; gambling, reducing quality and quantity of
meals and letting the children stop school.
Source:
Aida R. Librero; Fezoil Luz C. Decena; and Aleta Belissa C. Durana.
PCARRD. Terminal Report., June 1999.
For
more information, please contact PCARRD.
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