For so long, the agriculture department considered itself like a prodigal son. Compared to its brothers and sisters such as the education, public works, and defense departments which have always taken a big slice of the annual national budget, the agriculture component was left with crumbs, after suffering from budget cuts and slashes. But not this time. Based on what the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) submitted to Congress last Monday, Aug. 22, 2022, the proposed ₱5.268-trillion national budget for 2023 saw a huge increase in the budget for the agriculture sector.  According to the DBM, “to improve the performance of the agriculture sector, the budget of the Department of Agriculture (DA), its attached corporations, and the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) will be ₱184.1 billion, a 39.2-percent increase from its 2022 allocation. The figure includes ₱29.5 billion for irrigation services.” DBM Secretary Amenah Pangandaman said that this increase is in line with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s “directive to prioritize the agriculture sector, so as to invigorate and transform it from being an economic laggard into one of the main drivers of growth and employment.” The fact that the President is also heading the DA speaks volumes on the priority of this administration. “In support of the mandate of our President, and in anticipation of a global food crisis and for the long-term goal of food self-sufficiency, we increased the budget of the DA by 43.9 percent, to cover the funding requirements for its programs and projects,” said Pangandaman. It could be recalled that as early as May, the DA has already warned of a looming food crisis brought about by the prolonged Covid pandemic and rising fuel prices. Geopolitical crises also factor in, such as the diminished global supply of wheat from Ukraine. When President Marcos took over the DA, his first directive was for the agency to find solutions to the impending food crisis that is already affecting a lot of nations. “We have to think very hard about making sure that people have sufficient food… that is number one… at the price that they can afford. It’s useless to have food if they cannot afford it,” the President said, as he stressed on the importance not only of food availability and accessibility, but also of affordability. The proposed rise in the agriculture budget was lauded by lawmakers who have been advocating for this sector for a long time. Quezon 1st District Representative Wilfrido Mark Enverga, who is also chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture, said this was a “promise fulfilled” by the President. “Coming from an agricultural sector-district, we are very happy of the significant budget increase that the executive branch has asked for the DA under the 2023 National Expenditure Program (NEP),” said Enverga. “The increase in the DA budget is good news for our farmers. President Marcos was true to his word and made the country’s food security number one on his agenda.” Giving more financial leverage to the agriculture sector is a laudable and wise move but the next step is to make sure that the money will be used effectively and efficiently — with no room and no loopholes for corruption. If corruption will be pervasive, the rise in budget will just mean more “financial security” for the opportunists and not “food security” for this nation.