Balingasag rice farmers receive PhP7k assistance as DA-10 continues RFFA payout
BALINGASAG, MISAMIS ORIENTAL — Following its recent payouts in Gingoog City and Medina town, this province, the Department of Agriculture – Regional Field Office 10 (DA-10) continues its ongoing regionwide rollout of the Rice Farmers Financial Assistance (RFFA).
On October 23, a total of 92 RSBSA-registered rice farmers, cultivating a maximum of two hectares rice area in this town, received Php7k cash assistance from DA-10’s Rice Program.
The payout aims to provide direct cash aid to offset financial losses of smallholder rice farmers due to fluctuating palay buying prices and high farming inputs costs.
Farming 1.5 ha of palay in Barangay San Isidro, RFFA recipient Leonelyn C. Padua shared that the assistance is helpful for her to address pest infestation and recoup losses from flood-caused rice lodging.
“Sa una, nakadawat ko og PhP5K, ug karon ang akong nadawat kay PhP7K na. Kini nga kantidad dako na kaayo ni’g tabang alang sa akong humayan sa pagsumpo sa mga peste, sama sa ilaga, ug pag santa sa kadaot nga dala sa baha. Busa, daghang salamat [sa DA sa suporta nga] masustinar ug mapalambo pa ang among pagpanguma”, she said.
(Before, I received PhP5K, and now I received PhP7K. This amount is a big help for me, especially in dealing with pests, rats, and flooding. I am very thankful to the DA for this cash assistance that helps us sustain and improve our ways of farming.)
The DA-10 is projected to distribute said cash aid to a total 75,349 qualified rice farmers across the region. The agency is allocated over PhP533-million under the 2024–2025 RFFA program to support this rollout.
The RFFA fund allocation is sourced from excess tariff collections on rice importation, as provided under the Rice Tariffication Law.
This cash aid forms part of the current administration’s investment in the agricultural sector to empower farmers and fortify their capacity for sustained productivity and competitiveness in a liberalized trading system.# (BJCE)
