DAVAO CITY (PIA) –An agriculturist from the Department of Agriculture XI confirmed that the weather condition today has shifted from El Niño phase to the neutral phase.
Joedel Leliza , the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management focal person said that the PAGASA (Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration) has forecasted the possibility of La Nina phenomenon.
“There is a great possibility that La Nina will occur affecting the Davao Region, “ Leliza said.
He said the farming sector is highly vulnerable to weather changes like flooding, thunderstorms and heavy downpours.
Leliza said financial aid worth P317,000,000 will arrive in Davao for rehabilitation of areas victimized by the shear line last January, 2024.
He said farmers will have their share of the funds which might be used also as assistance for other sectors of the society that might be affected by the La Niña phenomenon.
Leliza said they also have a regular fund which is called buffer stocking program, where they use buffer stocks like seedlings which serves as replenishment for people who would be affected by the La Nina.
Macario Gonzaga, Regional Executive Director of the DA XI said Davao del Sur ranks the highest in terms of destroyed rice paddies and cornfields during the El Nino phenomenon.
He said 1,100 farmers were affected by the long dry spell.
Gonzaga said the one thousand hundred ten-strong farmers called on the DA XI and asked for assistance.
“Fruit trees were affected by the long dry spell like the Durian and Mangosteen,” he said.
John Paul Matuginas, DA-11 High Value Crops Development Program focal person, said there were areas in Davao Region that were hardest hit by the El Nino this year.
He said the DA XI responded to the farmers’ needs like fertilization, training on the irrigation side so that Durian farmers will have an idea on how to water their plants.
Gonzaga said the Durian Industry in Davao Region has diminished from 100 percent to only 10 percent.
He encouraged Durian farmers to produce some more to address the demand.
Gonzaga guaranteed that with higher production, there would be a high demand that will bring higher income for the farmers. (JSGD/PIA Davao del Sur)
