Agriculture Secretary William Dar launched the P500 million-worth Fuel Discount for Farmers and Fisherfolk (FDFF) Program at the Subic Port in Zambales on March 21, 2022.
“Kayo po rito sa Subic at Zambales ay mapalad kasi dito po sa Luzon, dito natin ini-roll out, dito natin inumpisahan iyong pamimigay ng national government ng fuel discount card sa qualified na mga mangingisda at corn farmers,” Secretary Dar said.
The FDFF Program of the Department of Agriculture (DA), created through the General Appropriations Act of 2022, aims to provide fuel discount vouchers to eligible farmers and fisherfolk who were severely affected by the rising prices of fuel.
This is one of the national government’s measures to mitigate the impact of the ongoing global economic challenges compounded by the Ukraine crisis.
“Tayo sa pangingisda at pagsasaka, tuloy-tuloy po dapat nating itaguyod at hindi dapat mahinto ang pangingisda at pagsasaka, dahil ang bansa ay nangangailangan ng sapat na pagkain. Itong panahon ng krisis, ipakita po natin na kaya nating buhayin ang Pilipinas. Pwede nating ipakita na mayroon tayong sapat na produksyon para sa ganun ay meron ding sapat na pagkain ang bawat Pilipino,” Secretary Dar said.
The DA targets to initially distribute the fuel discount cards worth P3,000 each to a total of 158,746 corn farmers and fisherfolk nationwide.
In Central Luzon, 2,255 corn farmers and 5,902 fisherfolk will benefit from the program. The 8,157 program beneficiaries are corn farmers or fisherfolk who own and operate agricultural and fishery machinery individually or through a farmer organization, cooperative, or association.
For the distribution of fuel discount cards, the DA partnered with the Development Bank of the Philippines, Department of Energy, and the local government units, among others.
Secretary Dar clarified that rice farmers are not included in the FDFF Program, because they are already beneficiaries of the Rice Farmers Financial Assistance (RFFA) Program with P5,000 direct cash assistance.
In his message, the agri chief also announced that the DA has kicked-off the implementation of the “Plant, Plant, Plant Program Part 2” to cushion the effects of the global crises while boosting local food production. The food security initiative was approved by President Rodrigo Duterte and was allocated P24 billion funding.
“With all the problems na nandiyan ay gusto nating pataasin ang level of production sa ating bansa. I believe na kayo pong mga mangingisda at magsasaka sa bansa ay tuloy-tuloy po dapat ang pakikipag-ugnayan sa gobyerno para sa ganun ay maibsan natin itong kasalukuyang krisis,” Dar said. ### (Gumamela Bejarin, DA-AFID)
