Dr. Emil Q. Javier Even as we struggle with the rightful complaint of the rice farmers that the Rice Tariffication Act (RTA) has beggared them, there is a quick but enduring fix which somehow has been glossed over in the menu of interventions. To make up for their loss of income, the RTA provided for free farm equipment, inbred seeds, subsidized credit and intensified farmers’ training and extension support. Free seeds and farm equipment for land preparation and harvest bring immediate relief but these interventions are temporary, and costly to government. More enduring and with minimal recurring cost to government (and to the farmers themselves) is the provision of irrigation, in particular small irrigation units like small pond reservoirs, small diversion dams, shallow tube wells and, lately, solar-powered water pumps. The adequate and timely delivery of water is the single most important factor in rice cultivation. Lowland rice fields planted to inbred varieties with irrigation routinely produce 5–6 tons palay per hectare (more with hybrids). Rainfed lowland fields yield 3–4 tons per hectare while upland rice fields (dryland, not puddled) are worst with only 2–3 tons palay per hectare. We have 3.02 million hectares of farm land suitable for irrigation out of which to date we have developed 1.78 million. Most of our irrigation systems are large i.e. the national and communal types which are dedicated for rice but not very suitable for other crops. In the large irrigation systems, water is rationed by National Irrigation Administration (NIA) on a staggered basis (usually 2–3 weeks) in order for water to be equitably and timely distributed among all users. This is fine for rice because the individual rice fields can hold and retain water with the bunds (pilapil). The fields are flooded for the duration which only rice with its semi-aquatic adaptation is able to tolerate. On the other hand, the other crops are often shallow-rooted and require frequent and intermittent watering which is possible only if the farmer has full control over the availability of water. Most rice farmers will be better off if they are able to grow many other crops in relay after rice. These other crops like pechay, sweet/green corn, mungbean, tomato, chili pepper, eggplant, squash, melons, and even some ornamentals are early maturing, require less water than rice but most importantly they generate more income. The challenge and great opportunity therefore is how to make more productive the trillion pesos we have invested so far in the 1.78 million hectares of irrigated farms by making them suitable as well for the cultivation of crops other than rice. The key metric is cropping intensity i.e. the number of crops harvested from the same piece of land every year. The figures a few years back were 1.59 for the NIA-managed irrigation systems and 1.27 for the local government unit (LGU)-supervised communal systems. The national average of 1.37 versus the target of 2.00 deprives us the staggering figure of 1.12 million hectares of foregone productivity. Recommendations Following are some prescriptions to install more small irrigation units in the countryside to bring immediate but enduring relief to our beleaguered rice farmers:

1. To prioritize shallow tube wells and water pumps in the menu of free farm equipment under the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF) in the RTA.

2. For NIA to formally embed small irrigation units as complementary sources of water in the large systems they design and manage. This is apart from the stand-alone Small Irrigation Projects which NIA is asked from time to time to construct for the LGUs. 3. For NIA to provide more resources and extension support to the Irrigators Associations (IAs). The budget of ₱94.8 million out of ₱36 billion for the Irrigation Management Transfer Program is grossly inadequate. The IAs need support not only to grow rice profitably but equally importantly agronomic, market and business support for crop diversification. 4. Congress to raise the allocation of the Bureau of Soils and Water Management (BSWM) for construction of small irrigation units for rainfed lowland and upland farmers who are even poorer than those in the irrigated lowlands, 5. For the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization (PhilMech), Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI), Agricultural Credit Policy Council (ACPC), Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP), the larger, regional state universities and colleges (SCUs) and the DA marketing unit to converge their activities in the service areas of BSWM and NIA in collaboration with the LGUs to promote multiple cropping and crop diversification to fully exploit our investments in irrigation.

* Dr. Emil Q. Javier is a National Scientist and also Chairman of the Coalition for Agriculture Modernization in the Philippines (CAMP). For any feedback , email [email protected].