A lasting legacy

Before President Rodrigo Roa Duterte stepped down from office, he left the Filipino people, particularly our farmers, a P75-billion coco levy fund, signed into law as EO 172 also known as the Coco Farmers Industry Development Plan. The CFIDP which, welcomed by the Department of Agriculture, was developed in order to set the direction for the rehabilitation, industrialization and modernization of the coconut industry and aims to improve the lives of 2.5 million coconut farmers.

The Duterte Legacy, as we have often heard both on mainstream and social media, has pointed out the Duterte administration’s accomplishments and, in my own personal view, more than elaborating the gains of the past administration, former president Rodrigo Duterte’s achievement has clearly paved the way for a deeper understanding of what a whole-of-nation must accomplish in order for our countrymen to understand, more so feel, as tangible as it may get, the effects of both government and civic duty that fortifies a nation.

In this regard, and pointing toward the agricultural industry, an industry that at this very moment we see as a crucial turning point for many Filipinos who are currently facing a recession, just like the rest of the world, the whole of nation and through the Department of Agriculture, various players and stakeholders have now joined forces for the social protection of farmers and their families that form part and product (if one can call it that) of a whole-of-government cooperation. EO 172 as William Dar said, is a clear manifestation of the Duterte administration’s commitment to uplift our farmers and foster a competitive Philippine agriculture. It is also, overall, seen as a way to alleviate poverty and attain social equity through the goals set for the coconut industry.

Through the approval of the CFIDP, the release of trust funds through Republic Act 11524 ensures a funding of P75 billion over the next five years. This after four decades of waiting, as PCA administrator Benjamin Madrigal Jr. said, is now being implemented as former president Duterte promised in his campaign.

According to the Department of Agriculture, the coconut sector contributed more than $1 billion in export revenues, with coconut oil being one of the top agricultural export commodities in 2019, which places the Philippines as the number one exporter of coconut oil in the world. Moving forward, my hope presses most on the young people who can further propel the industry through innovation and perhaps by being “cocopreneurs” as some call it.

We are gearing up further for self-sustainment and this is an economic priority under our new administration where, as President Marcos says, a robust agricultural sector is a foundation needed in order to build a strong economy. I fully agree and certainly, a legacy that has left something for the people was not only a promised kept but also looked upon as a powerful instrument that will benefit coconut farmers.