FAO to collaborate in PHL agricultural resilience program

THE Department of Agriculture (DA) said the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) will help the Philippines make its agriculture and fisheries industry more resilient.

In a statement, the DA said the two sides are helping rural communities adapt to climate-related disasters.

FAO Country Representative to the Philippines Lionel Dabbadie cited the need to “invest in science (and) technology… and support innovation (of measures that can be scaled up).”

The DA and FAO are pursuing the Adapting Philippine Agriculture to Climate Change project supported by the Green Climate Fund, and another initiative known as Anticipatory Actions or Forecast-based Financing.

The resiliency initiative will be directed at 1.25 million poor farmers and five million indirect beneficiaries.

Implementation runs to 2030 in the Cagayan Valley, Bicol, Northern Mindanao, Soccsksargen, and the Cordillera regions.

“The FAO has been a long-time partner of the Department in developing the resiliency of farmers and fisherfolk through collaborative projects,” DA Assistant Secretary Arnel V. de Mesa said. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera