Magsaysay urges farmers to borrow from ACEF fund

Sen. Magsaysay Jr. urged farmers and fishermen to avail themselves of loans from the P2.846-billion agricultural modernization fund intended to help the agriculture and fishery sectors enhance their competitiveness.

Magsaysay said the amount is part of the P5.11-billion collections under the Agricultural Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (ACEF) accumulated since 1999 and being lent to farmers. Some P2.263 billion from the said collections has already been disbursed to 53 approved regular ACEF projects and 93 approved Sugar-ACEF projects.

Last week, the ACEF-executive committee, which includes Magsasay, approved three more projects – the coffee revitalization project of the Cavite State University, the integrated seaweed enterprise proposed by the Agarophyta Phil. Inc. and the expansion of hybrid and OPV corn seed production and processing project proposed by the RJR Agro-Industrial Enterprises.

Magsaysay, chairman of the Senate committee on agriculture and concurrently the chairman of the Congressional Oversight Committee on Agricultural and Fisheries Modernization (COCAFM), said ACEF is one of the sources of funds for the implementation of the Agricultural and Fisheries Modernization Act (AFMA).

"With the available funds from ACEF, farmers and fisherfolk can be relieved from the problem of fund sourcing for their competitiveness enhancement activities," Magsaysay said even as he proposed that one-third of the ACEF should go to the socially and economically deprived regions.

ACEF was created in 1996 under Republic Act 8178 or the law "Replacing Quantitative Import Restrictions on Agricultural Products, Except Rice, with Tariffs," to cushion the impact of the lifting of quantitative restrictions on affected sub-sectors of agriculture.

Proceeds of the fund come from the importation of certain agricultural products allowed to enter the country under minimum access volume (MAV) category, which the Philippines committed to the World Trade Organization under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT).