OVER THE HUMP?: It might be too early to say we are over the palay shortage hump, but it is heartening to note that the dark scenarios of lengthening rice queues and food riots painted by the usual doomsayers have not materialized.

Keep your fingers crossed as the Department of Agriculture quietly works on short- and medium-term measures to assure a sufficient supply of rice and other food essentials, especially for the coming lean months.

Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap told us yesterday that the department has plugged the expected 10-percent demand-supply gap by the National Food Authority's contracting more rice imports.

Some 700,000 metric tons of rice will arrive this June, he said, in time for the July-September lean period before the onset of the wet or main harvest season that will further boost inventory.

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DOUBLE BUFFER: The contracted volume of imports is now close to 1.7 million MT, equivalent to 32 days of buffer stocks or double the normal buffer of 15 days.

Yap said the NFA will continue procuring rice through government-to-government purchases or directly from local farmers during the summer harvest. This will help assure a 30-day buffer until yearend.

The DA is expecting the summer harvest to top 7 million MT, which is higher than last year's dry yield of 6.7 million MT. As of May 16, field reports had shown that harvests had reached 6.59 million MT.

For the wet season, the DA is projecting a harvest of at least 10 million MT, thereby enabling the department to hit its 2008 target of 17.32 million MT.

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FUEL & FOOD: While ensuring an ample supply of affordable oil-based fuels may be difficult for the country, it has the capacity to produce its own food in the unlikely event that all nations will go “kanya-kanya” (to each his own) in feeding themselves.

I dare say that, Filipinos -- many of whom have known hard times at some stage of their lives -- would be able to cope with a food crisis.

While there are already colonies of survivalists in other countries reportedly digging in for an “oil peak” that could unhinge this dominantly oil-dependent world, I doubt if such extremist groups would appear among historically resilient Filipinos.

Costly fuel could be a problem to us in a global pinch, but food supply would be manageable -- with Filipinos and their government facing the problem together.

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OPTIMISM: Rice expert Robert Zeigler, director-general of the International Rice Research Institute, recently expressed optimism over the government's program to quickly make the Philippines self-sufficient in rice.

Zeigler noted that the record yields that Philippine agriculture has generated are even higher than the average yield of Thailand, the world's biggest rice exporter.

He said this is “testament to the ingenuity, hard work, and effectiveness of the DA” and the Filipino farmer, who, unlike his Thai counterpart, has to deal with typhoons all year round.

It is not mere coincidence that the administration has pumped more millions for rice self-sufficiency and stepped up the delivery of modern technology to help farmers improve their yields and incomes.

Kevin Cleaver, assistant president for program management of the UN International Fund for Agricultural Development, announced during his recent visit that the local rice problem “ could be handled pretty easily” in the immediate and long-term.

Yap said the funds needed will come from the President's P43.7-billion package for agriculture, called FIELDS ( Fertilizers, Irrigation and other rural infrastructure, Education and training for farmers, Loans, Dryers and other postharvest facilities and Seeds of high-yielding varieties).

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DA-LPP PACT: Pitching in, governors have gone to the extent of reversing the devolution (assigning down or decentralizing) of agriculture and health services to local governments.

The League of Provinces of the Philippines and the DA signed recently a memorandum of agreement to assign back to the DA all agricultural workers and technicians in the provincial governments to help carry out the rice self-sufficiency plan.

The MOA was signed by Yap and Misamis Occidental Gov. Loreto Ocampos, LPP president, witnessed by Camarines Sur Gov. Luis Raymund Villafuerte, LPP chairman, and Eastern Samar Gov. Ben Evardone, secretary-general.

The governors agreed to continue paying the salaries of their agricultural workers even while under the administrative and technical supervision of the DA. The department will pay for their official travel expenses and give them incentive allowances.

The governors also agreed to funnel part of their P12.5-billion share of the Internal Revenue Allotment for buying fertilizers.

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DA FLASH: As if living up to his being dubbed “Flash Gordon,” Sen. Dick Gordon -- who is also chairman of the Philippine National Red Cross -- is quick to respond when disaster hits any corner of the country.

While other officials wait or even keep away unless there is a photo-op, Gordon comes to the rescue almost by reflex. He does not waste time. Even in discussions, he goes straight to the point.

Gordon, btw, headed the Philippine delegation to the Asean-UN International Pledging Conference for the Myanmar cyclone victims held in Yangoon last Sunday. He attended earlier the 17 th governing board meeting of the International Federation of the Red Crescent in Geneva.

Last May 9, Gordon sent the first two of the three members of a PNRC team to Myanmar to lend their expertise in disaster management, particularly in relief goods distribution and water sanitation.

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