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Farmers in the Philippines' Bicol region are bearing the brunt of the lockdown, which has been in effect last March 16, 2020 to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.
The situation is particularly difficult for rice farmers, the majority of whom are still struggling to recover from the effects of successive typhoons, drought, and cheap imported rice.
The Philippine government has allocated a government spending worth 1.17 trillion pesos ($23.2 billion), which includes assistance to the 18 million families most affected by the lockdown. More than a million families in Bicol are expected to receive assistance.
The Philippine lockdown was scheduled to end last May 15, 2020, though the government has stated that the country may have to cope with COVID-19 for the next two years.
In 2020, Ramon Oliva, a rice farmer from the Philippine province of Camarines Sur, has been tasked with maintaining the main dam at Mount Isarog in Pili. The dam supplies water to irrigate 34 hectares (84 acres) of rice farms in Naga City's village of Concepcion Grande, 385 kilometers (240 miles) south of the capital, Manila. Oliva came to visit the facility twice a week but has been barred from entering since March 16, when the national government imposed a lockdown, or enhanced community quarantine (ECQ), to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, which had affected 10,343 people and killed 685 people in the Philippines as of May 7, on the same year.
The stringent measures aren’t surprising; in the Bicol region, which covers six provinces, a total of 55 COVID-19 positive cases have been recorded last May 6, 2020.
“Not being able to maintain the irrigation facility will have devastating consequences for our rice farms,” said Oliva. He could only gain access to the dam in the first week of April thanks to a renewable certificate; the most recent expired last May 31. These regulations come on top of larger issues that local farmers are dealing with: the fields in municipality have been hit by severe weather events. The last two years have been difficult for low-income farmers like Oliva, who have been hit by multiple typhoons and El Niño driven droughts.
The Bicol region is prone to natural disasters. Typhoons, volcanic eruptions, floods, and drought wreak havoc on vulnerable areas in rural areas, where nearly 80% of the population lives. Farming and fishing are the main sources of income in this area. When Typhoon Kammuri hit the municipality in December 2019, devastating floods destroyed agricultural land and agricultural infrastructure. The previous years, in December 2018, Tropical Depression Usman caused the same level of devastation. Between major typhoons, the region experienced El Niño occurrences throughout the year, which dried up farmlands and aroused infestations.
The pandemic and the ensuing lockdown have incorporated to the hardship on farmers and traders, whose activities are now restricted. They suspect the problem will last until May 15, when the Philippines will enter a "new normal," or even prolonged. President Rodrigo Duterte has declared a state of emergency in the Philippines until the end of the year. Farming activity, on the other hand, should not be hampered under the ECQ. Legislation allows for the unhindered flow of essential goods and supplies, as well as the motion of essential workers such as farmers, who ensure the country's national food supply.
Agriculture is very important in the Bicol region. According to a 2012 census, the region has the most agricultural land in the country, with 765,820 hectares (1,892,382.43 acres) managed by 486,000 farm operators. Bicol has a total land area of 1.8 million hectares (4.4 million acres).
In addition to the effects of the typhoon, the new rice liberalization or tariffication law has driven down the price of locally farmed grains due to cheap rice imports, exacerbating the region's farmers' struggles. “It was like a death sentence for 75 percent of the farmers here,” said Kilusang Magbubukid sa Bicol (KMB).
The group has been in contact with the Department of Agriculture in Bicol about how farmers affected by Typhoon Kammuri can get assistance. However, due to the pandemic and the lockdown, these discussions have been halted.
Lockdown Obstruction
Rice, roots and tubers, coconut, abaca, banana, nipa, and mango are among the region's main crops. The region produced 8.06 tons of coconut, 7.08 tons of rice, 5.54 tons of pineapple, 3.6 tons of corn, 0.84 tons of banana, and 0.33 tons of mango in 2018.
The region also exports the lucrative pili elemi, a gum derived from the Manila elemi tree (Canarium ovatum), which is a key ingredient in luxury brands such as Chanel's beauty products and perfumes. Catanduanes province is a major exporter of abaca, or Manila hemp, accounting for 30.95 percent of total abaca production in the country in 2018. Masks are one of its applications.
With the steady arrival of imported rice, Secretary of Agriculture William Dar believes the harvest this season will suffice for the country's food supply until June and beyond. Early planting is being planned in order to maintain production in the third quarter of the year. Despite this, farmers and traders in the region are struggling to keep their businesses running due to varying interpretations of transportation rules at checkpoints and their unintended consequences.
While the price of rice has risen, it is still insufficient to cover the additional transportation costs. Since the imposition of the ECQ, the price has increased by 24 percent to 15.50 pesos ($0.31) per kilogram, but it should be at least 20 pesos ($0.40) per kilo for them to profit.
Travel restrictions and market visits that must be scheduled have resulted in additional costs for Noel Abio, a rice farmer from Camarines Sur. “The rice buyer would only do business on Mondays and Thursdays, which are market days,” Abio explained. “As a result, farmers temporarily brought their harvest home and waited for market day to sell palay, which doubled the transportation cost.” Transportation and movement of goods are the biggest obstruction of all farmers.
Further Readings
KMP: Farmers in typhoon-hit Bicol appeal for food, cash aid, and production support.
Mongabay: For Philippine farmers reeling from disasters, lockdown is another pain point
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