Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan raised concerns after the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) reduced the proposed budget of the Department of Agriculture (DA) from P245 billion to P176 billion for the fiscal year 2026.
He expressed this during his interpellation of House Bill No. 4058, or the proposed Philippine national budget for 2026, at the Senate’s regular session on Thursday, November 13.
Pangilinan, chairman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Food, and Agrarian Reform, is seeking a higher budget for the whole agricultural sector, pointing out how the lack of resources for agricultural workers has made farmers and fisherfolk the poorest sectors.
“If correct spending is important so that we can address what we all agree to be an underperforming (agriculture) sector, may we know why the DBM and the economic managers agreed to, (or) did not provide the budget request as requested by the Department of Agriculture?,” he asked Senator Win Gatchalian, the bill’s sponsor and the Senate Committee on Finance’s chairman.
The DA, he said, requested a P245 billion budget for 2026 but the DBM approved only P176 billion.
“May we know the rationale behind the reduction?,” he furthered. ”Because the context of my question is such that when are we going to catch up? Or is there a catch-up plan to bring our underperforming agriculture and fisheries sector to perform properly, effectively, and to make greater contributions to GDP (gross domestic product)?”
“Nag doble yung ating importation of agriculture products in the last 10 years, 9 years, and that should that not create alarm bells? That something is clearly wrong with our agriculture performance,” he said.
Pointing out that President Marcos himself once took on the agriculture portfolio as a secretary and has repeatedly said he was serious in addressing the challenges of the agriculture sector, the senator asked if there is a long-term strategic or a three-year strategic plan to increase the allocations for agriculture and fisheries.
“I’d like to see a three-year plan if possible to squarely address the underperformance of the agriculture and fisheries sector,” Pangilinan stressed.
The senator is also currently pushing for the renationalization of extension services, partnerships with the private sector, and the strengthening of agricultural cooperatives to uplift the lives of farmers and fisherfolk.
These would also complement the full implementation of the Sagip Saka Act, a landmark law that he passed in 2019 to allow national government agencies and local government units to buy directly from farmers and fisherfolk without public bidding.