“We came here to let you know that the Department of Agriculture is here to help you during these trying times.”

This was the assurance of Agriculture Secretary Manny Piñol to Governor Susan Yap during a dialogue held at Tarlac City on July 27, 2018.

Tarlac was one of the provinces in Central Luzon severely affected by Tropical Storm Henry, Severe Tropical Storm Inday, and Tropical Depression Josie, which hit the country in succession.

Composed of 17 municipalities, the province suffered total agricultural loss amounting to P445,873,198 with 34.44% or 22,999 hectares of production areas damaged, according to Alice Cruz of the Provincial Agricultural Office of Tarlac.

As part of the immediate response of the national government, Piñol guaranteed the availability and immediate dispersal of rice, seeds, and other planting materials to affected farmers.

He added that the DA is ready to provide financial assistance under its credit programs such as the Production Loan Easy Access (PLEA). Under the said facility, farmers can avail of up to P50,000 loan with 6% interest per annum.

The Survival and Recovery Assistance Program (SURE), on the other hand that provides up to P10,000 grant and up to P25,000 loan per borrower with zero interest payable up to three years.

“Calamity is part of a farmers life. This is why DA has always been committed in delivering swift response as these are the times when our farmers need us the most,” he added.

The agri chief also announced the availability of the Quick Response Fund amounting to P729 million for major repairs of the damaged facilities provided that the province has declared a state of calamity.

On top of these, DA Regional Field Unit III headed by Director Roy Abaya will immediately provide an initial assistance of five kilos of rice per affected farmer family.

Governor Yap expressed her dismay on the losses that Tarlac suffered especially in their agro-industrial processing areas. Currently, the province produces okra, sweet potatoes, and Nalta jute or saluyot using for export to Japan using Japanese and Israeli technologies.

According to the lady governor, the batch that is scheduled for export in November were damaged by the recent weather disturbances.

However, the lady governor is positive that the province will easily recover given the interventions provided by DA. ### (Carlos Baldosa/DA-AFID)