Jasmin Kate Vallez

History of the Department of Agriculture: 'DA Then and Now'

Eleven days after the proclamation of the Philippine Independence on June 12, 1898, President Emilio Aguinaldo formed his government with the Department of Agriculture and Manufacturing as one of the first agencies.
The Department was headed by three directors, Jose Alejandrino (1898-1899), Graciano Gonzaga and Leon Ma. Guerrero, both during the latter part of 1899. In 1901 during the American regime, the Department was renamed Insular Bureau of Agriculture under the Department of Interior and was headed by Americans, Frank Lamson-Scribner (1902), WC Welborn (1904), and Dr. George Nesom (1907). In 1910, the Bureau, under the supervision of the Department of Public Instruction, was headed by Frederick Taylor (1911-1914) and Harry Edwards (1914-1916). After Edwards, the helm of the bureau was again given to a Filipino, Adriano Hernandez who himself was a practicing farmer. In 1917, the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources (DANR) took over the functions of the bureau and was led by Secretaries Galicano Apacible (1917-1921), Rafael Corpuz (1921-1923), and Silvestre Apostol (1923-1928). During the administration of Secretary Rafael Alunan, Sr. (1928-1932), the DANR became the Department of Agriculture and Commerce. The Bureau of Agriculture was split into two bureaus, the Plant Industry and the Animal Industry.
The following year, the Fish and Game Administration and the Fiber Inspection Service were established under the leadership of Secretary Vicente Singson Encarnacion (1933-1934). From 1934-1938, Eulogio Rodriguez, Sr. was appointed Secretary and was replaced by Secretary Benigno S. Aquino, Sr. until 1941. During Aquino’s term, the Fish and Game Administration was restructured and the Division of Soil Survey was created. Upon the outbreak of the Pacific War, Pres. Quezon re-appointed Secretary Rafael Alunan, Sr. (1941-1942) as Secretary of Agriculture and Commerce. After the Japanese liberalization on July 4, 1945, the government rebuilt the country and reconstituted the agencies including the Department of Agriculture and Commerce (DAC). With the resumption of the Commonwealth Government, President Sergio Osmeña reappointed Vicente Singson Encarnacion as Secretary of the DAC. Thereafter, Mariano Garchitorena (1946-1948) was appointed by President Manuel Roxas. In 1947, the Department was renamed as the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources (DANR). In September 1948, President Elpidio Quirino appointed Placido L. Mapa as Secretary. Two years later, Vice President Fernando Lopez served concurrently as the DANR chief. During his term, the Bureau of Agricultural Extension (now Agricultural Training Institute) was established, along with the organization of the 4-H Clubs and Rural Improvement Clubs (RICs) nationwide. In 1953, President Quirino reappointed Placido L. Mapa as Secretary. Under his tenure, the Rice Economic Board was set up, making the rice industry the first commodity to have an integrated national planning. Salvador Araneta (1953-55) was later named as Secretary and three major agencies under the DANR were created, namely: Agricultural Tenancy Commission, precursor of the Department of Agrarian Reform; Philippine Tobacco Administration, forerunner of the National Tobacco Administration; and Philippine Coconut Administration (now known as Philippine Coconut Authority). During the latter part of his term, President Magsaysay appointed Juan G. Rodriguez (1955-60) as DANR chief, whose term was highlighted by several milestones: the Philippines became a member of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO); launch of the National Rice and Corn Production Program; and creation of the Rice and Corn Coordinating Council, forerunner of the National Agricultural and Fishery Council (NAFC). On September 14, 1959, the DANR offices moved from Manila (at Agrifina Circle) to Quezon City (along Elliptical Road , Diliman). When Cesar Fortich became the DANR chief in 1961, the Abaca Development Board (forerunner of the Fiber Development Authority) was created. Jose Locsin, then concurrent Chairman of the National Economic Council, succeeded Fortich from September to December 1961. In 1962, President Diosdado Macapagal appointed Benjamin M. Gozon as Secretary. During his term, two agencies were created: the Bureau of Agricultural Economics (forerunner of the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics); and the National Rice and Corn Administration or RCA (now known as the National Food Authority). The following year, President Macapagal appointed RCA Administrator Jose Y. Feliciano as concurrent Secretary of Agriculture. Feliciano launched the Agricultural Marketing News Service that provided regularly farmers and consumers prices of selected commodities. In 1965, President Ferdinand Marcos named Vice Pres. Lopez as Secretary, serving for the second time in a concurrent capacity. Considered as the “rice czar,” he successfully implemented a production program that enabled the Philippines to export rice for the first time in 1968. During the early years of Martial Law, in May 1974, President Marcos reorganized and split the DANR into two agencies: Department of Agriculture (DA); and Department of Natural Resources (DNR). Arturo R. Tanco, Jr. was named as DA Secretary. Four years later, government departments were transformed into ministries. With Tanco remaining at the helm of the Ministry of Agriculture, the Masagana 99 rice production program was launched which made the country self-sufficient and a rice exporter. A similar program on corn also made the country self-sufficient in white corn. In June 1978, the MA established 12 regional offices nationwide. Six years later, in June 1984, the agency was renamed Ministry of Agriculture and Food (MAF). The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources was transferred from the Ministry of Natural Resources. In 1984, under a parliamentary government, Assemblyman Salvador H. Escudero III — former Director of the Bureau of Animal Industry and MAF Deputy Minister — served as MAF Minister. Escudero implemented the Intensive Rice Production Program (IRPP), an import-substitution program, expanded government’s animal dispersal program, particularly the Bakahang Barangay (cattle raising the at village level) and Pagbababuyan (swine raising). On February 1986, as a result of the ‘EDSA People Power Revolution,’ Corazon C. Aquino was catapulted as President. She named Ramon V. Mitra, Jr. as MAF Minister who implemented policy and institutional reforms that freed the agriculture markets, enabling farmers to enjoy higher farmgate prices. MAF Deputy Minister Carlos G. Dominguez was appointed to replace Minister Mitra. On January 30, 1987, President Aquino signed and issued Executive Order No. 116, which renamed and reorganized the MAF into the Department of Agriculture. Under DA, Dominguez introduced reforms in the rural credit system and established Comprehensive Agricultural Loan Fund (CALF). In 1988, the Livelihood Enhancement for Agricultural Development (LEAD) program was launched to speed up farmers' organizations access to financing, management expertise, and marketing. Agriculture and Fishery Councils (AFCs) were set up at the sectoral, regional, provincial and municipal levels to provide inputs on major programs and policy decisions and help plan and monitor DA projects. Senen C. Bacani, appointed in Janaury 1990, implemented the Rice Action Program (RAP) and Corn Production Enhancement Program (CPEP) enabling the Philippines to once again export rice in 1992 and attained self-sufficiency in corn, respectively. In 1992, President Fidel V. Ramos named Roberto S. Sebastian as DA chief who introduced the Key Production Approach (KPA) which became the basis in the formulation of the Medium-Term Agricultural Development Plan (MTADP). In 1996, President Ramos appointed Dr. Salvador H. Escudero III, serving for the second time as DA Secretary. During that time, he launched the Gintong Ani food production and security program. He also organized subsistence farmers into functional groups and cooperatives, aimed at transforming them into viable producers and entrepreneurs.

In July 1998, President Joseph Ejercito Estrada designated William D. Dar as Acting DA Secretary who introduced the Estrada administration's 10-point agenda in agriculture and fisheries under the Agrikulturang Makamasa program. In March 1999, President Estrada named former Senate President Edgardo J. Angara as DA Secretary who authored the Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization Act of 1998 or AFMA (Republic Act No. 8435). He put into action the law’s visions of transforming and modernizing the country’s agriculture and fisheries sector.

Domingo F. Panganiban continued the implementation of AFMA as the government’s comprehensive framework and platform for rural development when he assumed office in January 2001. A month later, he was replaced by Leonardo Q. Montemayor who implemented the AFMA with special emphasis on its social equity aspect. He launched the Ginintuang Masaganang Ani Countrywide Assistance for Rural Employment and Services (GMA-CARES). Secretary Luis P. Lorenzo Jr., took the helm of the Department in December 2002 and spearheaded the launching of the Roll-On, Roll-Off or RORO transport program. The hybridization programs of the Department were intensified and interventions were focused on the Mindanao regions. Secretary Arthur C. Yap, appointed on August 23, 2004, continued to uphold the vision of a modernized smallholder agriculture and fisheries, a diversified rural economy that is dynamic, technologically advance and internationally competitive. Under his term, Goal 1 (develop two million hectares of new lands for agribusiness to contribute two million to the 10 million jobs targeted by 2010) and Goal 2 (make food plentiful while keeping the price of "wage goods" at low prices) were unveiled. During Panganiban’s 2nd term as Secretary, a total of 203,000 hectares of idle lands and 313,000 jobs were developed under Goal 1 and ten Huwarang Palengke (outstanding markets) were identified under Goal 2. Food lanes were designated for easier, faster and kotong-free transport of agricultural products. When Secretary Yap took the agri seat on October 23, 2006, he has aggressively and consistently implemented various projects and policies towards the attainment of food security and self-sufficiency. Under FIELDS, the government’s centerpiece program on agriculture, unveiled during the 2008 Food Summit, Yap has set achievement records for the Philippine agri and aqua sectors. Secretary Bernie Fondevilla continued DA’s mandate of providing sufficient food and sustainable livelihood for the Filipino people through modernized technologies and facilities when he took the agri seat on March 2010.
On June 30, 2010, President Benigno Simeon Aquino III appointed two-term congressman of Quezon and civil engineer by profession Proceso J. Alcala as Secretary. One of the principal authors of Republic Act 10068, or the Organic Agriculture Act of 2010, he is keen on increasing rice production and do away with rice imports by 2013 by expanding areas planted to rice to include uplands, marshlands and idle farmlands.
Our Mission, Vision and Commitment:
The Department of Agriculture designated as the lead agency to boost farmers' income and reduce poverty incidence in the rural sector through the Medium Term Philippine Development Plan (MTPDP). With its vision, "Prosperous rural communities, built on profitable farms that provide surplus for agro-industry and food security".
With emphasis on agribusiness, the agriculture department will undertake two goals under the new economic blueprint of the Administration.
GOAL 1: "Develop at least two million hectares of new land for agribusiness in order to contribute 2 million jobs targeted in 2010" • Idle or marginal agricultural lands; • Offshore and inland bodies of water for aquaculture • New and existing agricultural areas which will be developed for intercropping with high value crops and raising of livestock, poultry and fish
GOAL 2: "Reduce costs of wage goods through productivity enhancement, more efficient logistics, and improved retailing linkages" • Production support to enhance farm and fishery productivity • Logistical support to raise distribution efficiency • Governance and institutional support to provide a policy and regulatory environment conducive to efficient production and distribution of agribusiness commodities. • The major task of the MTPDP is to fight poverty by building prosperity for the greatest number of the Filipino people. To ensure better quality of life, the country must open up economic opportunities, maintain socio-political stability, and promote good stewardship as well as focus on strategic measures and activities, aimed to spur economic growth and create jobs.

BACKGROUND
The Philippines, one of the largest island-groups in the world with 7,100 islands and islets, is strategically located within the area of nations that sweeps southeast from Mainland Asia across the equator to Australia.

Its boundaries are formed by three large bodies of water: on the west and north by the South China Sea; on the east by the Pacific Ocean; and on the south by the Celebes Sea and coastal waters of Borneo.
The total land area of the Philippines is 300 thousand square kilometers or 30 million hectares. It constitutes two percent of the total land area of the world and ranks 57th among the 146 countries of the world in terms of physical size.
The Philippines, advocates the archipelago doctrine, as such it gains exclusive to all resources living or non-living in and at the bottom of an area of about 276,000 square nautical miles. 1. The Philippines is divided into three major island groups: 2. Luzon, with an area of 141 thousand square kilometers; 3. Mindanao, with an area of 102 thousand square kilometers; and
Visayas, with an area of 57 thousand square kilometers.
CLIMATE
Climate Map of the Philippines
Based on the seasonal rainfall distribution, the climate of the Philippines is classified as follows;
Type I: Two pronounced seasons with maximum rain period from June to September and a dry season which lasts from three to six or seven months.
Type II: No dry season with a very pronounced maximum rain period from December to February.
Type III: No pronounced maximum rain period with a short dry season lasting only from one to three months.
Type IV: Rainfall more or less evenly distributed throughout the year.
The tropical cyclone season in the country is from June to December, with the months from July to September having the most frequent occurrence of more than 3 cyclones each month.
Annual relative humidity ranges from 75 to 86 percent and annual mean temperature is between 19.20 and 28.20 C while annual rainfall ranges from 914 to 4,358 millimeters

LAND RESOURCES
Land Area
The Philippines is an agricultural country with a land area of 30 million hectares, 47% of which is agricultural land. In the Philippines, prime agricultural lands are located around the main urban and high population density areas.
Land resources in the country are generally classified into forest lands and alienable and disposable lands. A total of 15.8 million hectares were classified into forest lands, and 14.2 million hectares are alienable and disposable lands. Out of the 14.2 million hectares alienable and disposable lands, 93% or 13 million hectares are classified as agricultural lands.
Land Distribution
The Total area devoted to agricultural crops is 13 million hectares. This is distributed among food grains, food crops and non-food crops. Food grains occupied 31% (4.01 million hectares), food crops utilized 52% (8.33 million hectares) while 17% (2.2 million hectares) were used for non-food crops.
For food grains, the average area utilized by corn was 3.34 million while rice occupied 3.31 million hectares.
Of the total area under food crops, coconut accounted for the biggest average harvest area of 4.25 million hectares. Sugarcane with 673 thousand hectares; Industrial crops with 591 thousand hectares; 148 thousand hectares for fruits; 270 thousand hectares for vegetables and rootcrops; 404 thousand hectares for pasture and 133 hectares for cutflower.
According to land capability, 78.31% of the alienable and disposable land are prime agricultural areas, 6.1 million hectares are highly suitable for cultivation.

FARM SYSTEM/STRUCTURE
Philippine agriculture is characterized by a mixture of small, medium and large farms.
Majority of the farms in the country are all small farms averaging about 2 hectares. These are simple farms which are owned and managed by single families ranging from subsistence to commercial production.
Farming is generally undertaken on small farms. Two-thirds of all farms in 1988 were no larger than three hectares. Eighty-five percent of all farms were no more than five hectares. Over a period of ten years ending in 1996, the proportion of small farms had been expanding. The Philippine Agrarian Reform Council Secretariat reported that the government had acquired and distributed about 4.1 million hectares of agricultural lands to agrarian reform beneficiaries. Under this Program implementing the comprehensive agrarian reform law, a farm household cannot own a farm larger than five hectares. A typical farming system consists of a major crops, with rice, corn and coconut as common base crops, and a few heads of livestock and poultry.
Rice, corn, coconut and many crops are principally produced by small farms. Prior to CARP, there were large plantations in rubber, coffee, oil palm, cacao, banana, pineapple, etc. Contract growing schemes operate in corn seeds, banana, tomato, cucumber, oil palm, asparagus and broiler chicken.

AGRICULTURE IN THE ECONOMY
Philippine agriculture plays a vital role in the economy. This attaches the high priority of transforming agriculture into a modern, dynamic and competitive sector. A sustained expansion of the national economy requires sustained growth in the agricultural sector.
Agriculture including forestry and fishery, plays a dominant role in the Philippine economy. The country's population is predominantly rural (70 percent of the total) and two-thirds of this population depends on farming for their livelihood. In terms of employment, about one-half of the labor force is engaged in agricultural activities.
Primarily, Philippine agriculture consisted of rice, corn, coconut, sugar, banana, livestock, poultry, other crops and fishery production activities.
The sector's contribution to the economy has been substantial 23% of gross domestic product in 1995. It registered a growth rate of 3.2%. The growth was mainly due to the expansion of the poultry, livestock, and palay subsectors.

Officials
Secretary- PROCESO "Procy" ALCALA
Field Operations- JOEL S. RUDINAS
Administration and Finance- ANTONIO FLETA
Policy, Planning, Research and Regulation- SEGFREDO R. SERRANO
Special Concerns- BERNADETTE ROMULO-PUYAT
Chief of Staff- CLARON ALCANTARA