The Department of Agriculture (DA) will prioritize the construction of farm-to-market roads (FMRs) in communist-insurgency affected areas across the nation as part of the national agenda to develop and improve logistics for the agriculture sector.

This was according to Secretary William D. Dar who announced that DA will work closely with the Department of Public Works and Highway to reduce road backlogs in the coming years on January 3, 2020 during a press conference at DA.

“We have about 10,000 kilometers of incomplete road networks, and we will prioritize the construction and rehabilitation of FMRs in communist-infested communities,” Dar said.

As the Department continues to enhance projects and programs to double the income of farmers in the next five years, more roads will be developed to give access to and from food production areas.

This will allow the food producers to bring their produce in trading areas and gain maximum profit from their production.

The plan is in-synch with the new thinking approach for agriculture, designed by the Secretary to level-up productivity and income in the agriculture sector.

Dar added that the project will encourage peace and cultivate development in the countryside.

“It is a double-purpose intervention,” he said. ### (Adora Rodriguez, DA-AFID)