ZAMBOANGA CITY -- Business leaders and agriculture experts in Zamboanga Peninsula are converging here next month to promote an environmentally sound technology that will not only shore up the region’s farm output but also ensure sustainable development and food security.
Ricardo A. Marmoleno who heads the committee of the agriculture and food security of the city’s business chamber said the objective of the conference, dubbed as "Private Public Partnership for Agri-Business Prosperity in the Region," is to let farmers and agri-based traders know the newest agriculture technologies that are available in the market to help increase productivity and protect the environment.
"The concern in agriculture is not just to improve the bottom line for companies, but there is also the responsibility to contribute to improving the lives of the majority of Filipinos engaged in agriculture, whether for commercial purposes or simply to feed their families," Mr. Marmoleno said.
"Thus, we must also consider the impact on the environment of energy and fertilizer use, the issue of water conservation and sharing, pricing along the supply chain so that exploitation of the farmer producer is minimized," he added.
The Zamboanga Chamber of Commerce and Industry Foundation, Inc. said there is a need to boost the agriculture sector in the region since the local economy is heavily dependent on it.
At the same time, Mr. Marmoleno said the majority of the country’s labor force is employed in agriculture and agro-related activities considered the economic backbone of the country.
"[But] despite these, agriculture has always taken a backseat to non-agricultural industries," he said.
"Economic policies and planning have not focused enough on improving and enhancing the capabilities of those engaged in agricultural production, especially the small- and medium-scale farmers," he noted.
The conference, scheduled on Dec. 6 in this city, is also a parallel effort on how to translate those high level agreements in the United Nations such as the Rio+20 into doable actions on the ground, as it tries to address the effects of climate change, the scarcity of resources, how to encourage industry to adopt the concept of green technology, and saving the vulnerable sector in the face of global challenges.
"The United Nations has warned of a looming food crises which will greatly and adversely affect the world, particularly the poor. At present, small farmers in the Philippines can hardly produce enough food for themselves, let alone the teeming millions in our cities," Mr. Marmoleno said.
"One challenge in agriculture is to raise productivity by planting more plant varieties. Varieties that have higher yield and better quality of the crop," he further said.
Mr. Marmoleno cited the sardines industry in this city as a prime example on how a resource sector has failed to maximize its advantage.
"We can consider what role we can play in each of these areas, Zamboanga City supplies 85% of the canned sardines produced in the country, such that the city is referred to as the ‘Sardines Capital of the Philippines,’ but here there is no one engaged in the commercial production of tomatoes to supply the sardine canning factories," he said.
At present, most if not all sardines canneries here source their tomato paste from China due to its product consistency.
"We can push for increased agricultural productivity, helping the farmers link with groups that can enhance access to information the farmers need for entering local and national markets for their products, processing activities for added value of their crops and other ways of increasing the return on the farmers’ manpower inputs," Mr. Marmoleno said.
The Zamboanga Chamber of Commerce and Industry Foundation is Western Mindanao’s biggest business chamber. It traces its roots to the early 1970s.
But the chamber was registered as a foundation only in 1988, befofe it became affiliated to the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) as a non-profit and non-stock corporation.
From its roots as a fraternal organization, the chamber has long since moved beyond that to become a respected voice of businesses and industries,and a dynamic advocate of a growth-friendly regional business environment for Western Mindanao.
The chamber said it is a recognized partner of government for sector development. --Darwin T. Wee
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