The Department of Agriculture (DA) said it would provide “incentives” to local government units (LGUs) that would strengthen their agricultural extension system to help farmers improve their productivity through technology and knowledge transfer.
Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar said the DA would give LGUs “a lot of support” if they empower their agricultural extension services.
Dar added that the World Bank has already committed $500 million to implement the Provincial Agriculture and Fisheries Extension Systems nationwide.
“This time around, let us make the province-led Agriculture and Fisheries Systems work,” he said in a speech during a farmers’ forum in Benguet last September 21.
The DA said they would encourage the LGUs to adopt the “One Province, One System” agricultural extension approach, which also involves cities and municipalities, in addressing the lack of agricultural extension workers and slow transfer of technologies in the provinces.
Due to the devolution of power to local government units, the DA pointed out that its agricultural extension function has been transferred as the responsibility of the LGUs.
Due to this, Dar said it is important that local chief executives strengthen their extension services to improve farm productivity in their respective provinces.
In a separate statement, Dar also appealed to local chief executives to help the DA in addressing problems hounding the farm sector today such as the decline in palay prices and the control of African swine fever.
