Rice self-sufficiency goal still worthy

Shortly after Super Typhoon Yolanda unleashed its wrath on parts of the Visayas, Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala made a declaration that the Philippines will not achieve rice self-sufficiency this year, because about a third of the country’s rice-growing areas were devastated.

The National Food Administration (NFA) then ordered the importation of 500,000 metric tons (MT) of rice from abroad through a government-to-government deal, with Vietnam bagging the contract. While the 500,000-MT of rice from Vietnam will primarily be used to boost the country’s buffer stocks from 50 days to 90 days, it is obvious that much needs to be done to make sure the Philippines attains 100-percent rice self-sufficiency in the next few years, given that climate change is expected to cause more intense weather disturbances not only in the Philippines but in many Asian countries as well.