Imee: Empower farmers’ coops

Laoag City—Senator Imee R. Marcos sponsored a legislative measure on Sept. 9, 2024, that aims to further empower and strengthen cooperatives, which are considered a lifeline for farmers, fisherfolk, small businesses, and families as proven during the COVID-19 pandemic and other crises.

“Sa panukalang ito, layon nating gawing mas madali at mas abot-kaya ang kanilang mga pangarap sa pamamagitan ng tax exemption, mas mababang kapital, at maluwag na patakaran sa pagsasagawa ng joint venture,” Marcos said.

Senate Bill No. (SBN) 2811, which proposes the passage of the “Revised Cooperative Code of the Philippines,” aims to shore up the financial position and capacities of agricultural cooperatives by allowing farm and fisheries clustering and consolidation; and inter-cooperative arrangements “to pursue value and supply chain solutions and other agribusiness development programs.”

This encourages big cooperatives to “adopt” micro agricultural cooperatives by infusing capital and know-how.

The bill also exempts duly registered agricultural cooperatives and non-agricultural cooperatives whose reserve funds have an existing balance of PHP100 million and below from all national internal revenue taxes, fees and charges, customs duties, advance sales or compensating taxes on their importation of machineries, equipment, accessories, and spare parts.

Agricultural cooperatives are exempted from payment of registration fees, and their capital requirement lowered. They are also given the ability to enter into joint ventures with private partners, directly sell to national and local governments, and given preferential rates for loans made in government financial institutions.

Data from the Cooperative Development Authority (CDA) show, 20,752 cooperatives were registered in 2023, with membership reaching 12.4 million.

Marcos stressed, cooperatives have been a “tested and proven instrument of government to promote rural development,” aligned with Section 15, Article XII of the Constitution which states, “Congress shall create an agency to promote the viability and growth of cooperatives as instruments for social justice and economic development.”

“As early as 1973, my late father, President Ferdinand Edralin Marcos, issued P.D. 175, aiming to strengthen the coop movement. He stressed the importance of cooperative institutions as means of attaining a more equitable distribution of income and wealth, and providing the common man a dignified level of existence,” she said.

The senator highlighted the role of cooperatives in attaining inclusive economic growth, posting total business volume amounting to PHP485.4 billion and total assets of PHP719.3 billion, with a net surplus of PHP23.7 billion.

SBN 2811 allows duly recognized and registered foreign cooperatives to invest, partner with or become members of local federations, provided they comply with Philippine laws, including the constitutional limit of 40 percent foreign ownership, taxation laws, and the “Anti-Money Laundering Act,” among others.

Foreign cooperatives are barred from interfering in any way in the management and internal affairs of the cooperative federations, which shall be wholly owned and controlled by Filipinos.

“Hindi na sapat ang mga lumang batas na tila naglalagay ng piring sa ating mga kooperatiba… Sa pamamagitan ng mga repormang ito, binibigyan natin ng pag-asa ang mga nasa kanayunan, ang mga OFW na nagnanais maging bahagi ng kooperatiba, at lahat ng Pilipinong naghahangad ng patas na pamamahagi ng kita at ng yaman,” Marcos said.

The substitute bill was prepared by the Senate Committee on Cooperatives, chaired by Marcos, and the Committees on Constitutional Amendments and Revision of Codes, Ways and Means, and Finance.

 

Imee urges youth to venture into modern farming

Meanwhile, Marcos on Sept. 11, 2024 enticed the youth to venture into agri-fishery and livestock innovations through an invitation to participate in the Young Farmers Challenge (YFC) program.

The YFC program is a competitive financial grant assistance of the Dept.  of Agriculture (DA) intended to bring back Filipino youth to agriculture by providing access to capital for possible ventures into agriculture, agri-fishery, agribusiness and agri-entrepreneurship enterprises. It also provides business development assistance.

Since 2021, a total of 3,625 YFC beneficiaries have been operating their agribusiness enterprises in 1) production (crop production, poultry, livestock, aquaculture, vermiculture, urban agriculture, horticulture); 2) food processing (chocolate, mushroom by-products, processed vegetables, processed fruits); 3) digital agriculture; and 4) supply chain business solutions.

The YFC has also monitored 219 enterprises, held local trade expositions and exhibitions, and Kadiwa activities.

In 2023, out of 4,812 applicants nationwide for the Start-Up category, there were 496 provincial awardees; 48 regional awardees for the Upscale category; and 14 enterprises from state universities and colleges (SUCs) for the Intercollegiate Competition.

In a media interview after the launching of the rice paddy art in the City of Batac that features her as an advocate of agricultural development, the former Ilocos Norte governor expressed hope that through the YFC program, the youth will be encouraged to get into the agriculture sector that is now more profitable through the use of advance science and technology.

“I am deeply honored to be featured in the project. It not only celebrates my work but also pays tribute to the dedication of Filipino farmers and the future of agriculture,” she said.

The senator underscored the need to make agriculture a profitable enterprise to entice the youth, otherwise, the country will continue to lose workers in the agriculture sector as most farmers are now aging.

She noted that the average age of Filipino farmers now is between 57 and 59 years, and cited Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) data showing that the agriculture and forestry sub-sector recorded the largest drop in annual decreases in the number of employed persons in March 2024 at 881,000.