The Japanese government, through the Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica), has provided P158.5 million worth (¥317 million) of livelihood aid to farmers affected by Supertyphoon Yolanda (international code name Haiyan).
Jica said the assistance will be used to finance the Department of Agriculture’s (DA) Akbay Program (Agrikultura Kaagapay ng Bayang Pinoy Program).
The DA program aims to provide farming and fishing materials and training to four provinces in Region 8. It is estimated that some 42,500 individuals from some 8,500 typhoon-displaced families stand to benefit from the program.
“We hope to contribute to alleviating poverty in Typhoon Yolanda areas by giving the farmers opportunities to recover their livelihood and jobs. We hope that our development assistance will strengthen the resilience of vulnerable sectors,” Jica Philippines Chief Representative Noriaki Niwa said in a statement.
Jica said that around 1,360 farmers in Santa Rita and Basey in Samar received the livelihood aid. The assistance included the provision of vegetable seeds, fertilizer and tools.
Aside from crop production materials, the DA, in consultation with Jica, will also provide wooden bancas, motor engines and fish nets to fishermen under the program.
The Akbay Program is supported by the Japanese government and implemented by the DA through the Philippine Council for Agriculture and Fisheries, and local government units. The Japanese government and Jica provided the funding as part of its official development assistance to the Philippines.
The assistance of the Japanese government was allocated for procuring farming inputs, and/or monetizing the amount for development projects for farmers and fishermen.
Jica earlier identified 15 quick impact projects (QIP) for Typhoon Yolanda recovery and rehabilitation.
As of April 2015, Jica has turned over 7 of the 15 QIPs, including oyster racks and marine bio-toxin equipment in Leyte; submersible fish cages for Guiuan, Samar; Tolosa Multipurpose Livelihood Building in Leyte, rehabilitated classrooms of the Balangiga National Agricultural School and prefabricated day care centers in Samar.
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said in its January 2014 report that Yolanda’s damage to agriculture amounted to some P19.56 billion.
Majority of farmers and fishermen in regions 8 and 13 lost their source of income to the typhoon.