THE Department of Agriculture (DA) said the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has approved its request for more funds to beef up government efforts to keep at bay animal diseases that could cripple the Philippine livestock industry.
Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar said on Tuesday that he followed up with Budget Secretary Wendel E. Avisado the DA’s request for P187 million to implement biosecurity measures and strengthen its capacity against animal diseases.
During a hearing at the House of Representatives, Dar revealed that Avisado has approved and has committed to release the budget also on Tuesday.
“We followed up our earlier request for P187 million. I talked to Budget Secretary Wendel Avisado and I said [the DA] has a memo for the President and we need the funds to be released quickly,” he said.
“Avisado said, ‘what day is today? Tuesday?’ And he said he’ll release the funds today [Tuesday],” Dar added.
The DA chief said he was about to seek the help of Malacañang as the agency needs additional funds to help hog raisers whose farms were struck by a still-unidentified disease.
“[The P187 million] is based on an earlier request and we followed it up. DBM Secretary Avisado is very kind. He believes in the program of the President that agencies should help solve the problems of farmers,” Dar said.
Biosecurity measures
Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) OIC-Director Ronnie D. Domingo said the P187 million will be used to strengthen measures against transboundary animal diseases, such as African swine fever (ASF).
Domingo said the BAI will buy diagnostic kits, laboratory supplies, disinfectants and 20 x-ray machines to be installed in airports.
“Since the beginning of the year, we have already requested that budget from the DBM because exotic diseases or transboundary animal diseases [in the world] are increasing,” he said in an interview with reporters.
“So instead of a reactive response, [the government] is being proactive [in its fight against animal diseases],” Domingo added. The money will also be used to pay for additional workers that the BAI will hire and mobilize for animal disease surveillance.
However, Dar
said he wants to channel part of the P187 million to an indemnification program
for farmers whose hogs will be culled. The
government culls hogs that are within the 1-kilometer radius of farms that may
have been infected. The approval of the fund comes at a time when the DA
is trying to contain a mysterious animal disease that has killed scores of hogs
in some backyard farms in Luzon.
Dar said the DA will seek additional funds as the government continues to conduct its operations to control the spread of the swine disease, which the agency regarded as a “major economic disease.”
Image credits: Nonie Reyes