Bigger Budget for Agriculture Research

Bigger budget for agri research pushed to cut imports.

The Philippine government is being asked to increase funding for agricultural research and development (R&D) to counter rising food costs and lessen dependence on food imports.

In pushing for the additional budget, Sen. Francis Escudero cited data from the Philippine Center for Agricultural Research and Resource Development (PCARRD) which noted that total agricultural and nonagricultural R&D expenditures as a percentage of the gross domestic product (GDP) dropped from 1992 to 2003.

Escudero pointed out that in 2003, total research spending was only 0.11 percent of the GDP, or around P2.4 billion, and was half of 1992 figures. He added that the 2003 ratio was also lower than other Southeast Asian (SEA) countries like Malaysia (0.69 percent) and Thailand (0.24 percent).

The Senator argued that when multinational firms record lower revenues, they invest more in R&D to discover new techniques to lower production costs and maximize output from current technology. “We should do the same thing to save on foreign currency,” he said. According to Escudero, “the rapid growth achieved by some SEA countries in the 1990s can be partially attributed to R&D and new technology.” He explained that when Thailand and Vietnam became self-sufficient in rice these countries were able to cut imports.

To drive home his point, Escudero recalled that in January this year, rice prices rose by 28.3 percent from the same period last year, eggs by 2.2 percent and meat by 7.8 percent, while total spending for food imports reached $4.079 billion in 2007.

By Business Mirror

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Agriculture Shows Resilience In Global Recession

The farm sector is proving to be more resilient among other economic sectors in the face of the global financial meltdown, a report jointly released by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) said.

In the report, titled “Agriculture Outlook 2009-2018,” FAO and OECD said their analysis revealed that the reduction in agricultural prices, production and consumption, associated with lower incomes is likely to be moderate, as long as economic recovery begins within two to three years. “Because food is a basic necessity, the agriculture sector is showing more resilience to the global economic crisis than other industries. But the risks could increase if the economic downturn deepens,” the report noted.

The joint report explained that while food prices have come down from record peaks of early 2008, they remain high in many poor countries. FAO and OECD said over the coming decade, prices for all farm commodities, except beef and pig meat (even when adjusted for inflation), are unlikely to fall back to their average levels before the 2007-08 peaks.

Average crop prices are projected to be 10 percent to 20 percent higher in real terms (adjusted for inflation) for the next 10 years compared with the average for the period 1997-2006. Prices for vegetable oils are expected to be more than 30 percent higher.

FAO and OECD warned, however, that episodes of extreme price volatility similar to the spikes in 2008 cannot be ruled out in coming years, particularly as commodity prices have become increasingly linked to oil and energy costs and environmental experts warn of more erratic weather conditions.

The report noted that although agricultural production, consumption and trade are expected to increase in developing countries, food insecurity and hunger is a growing problem for the world’s poor. The report argues that the longer-term problem is access to food rather than food availability, with poverty reduction and economic growth a big part of the solution. Agriculture growth is key for sustainable development and poverty reduction since 75 percent of the poor in developing countries live in rural areas.

The report says, in addition to more effective international aid, governments can best support domestic agricultural development through targeted policies such as infrastructure investment, establishing effective research and development systems, and providing incentives for sustainable use of soil and water.

By Business Mirror

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Philippines Developing Palm Oil Industry

RP to further develop palm-oil industry, surveys suitable farms.

The Philippines is now eyeing to further develop the local palm-oil industry starting with the survey of farmlands suitable to palm-oil plantations in Bukidnon.

This was disclosed by Jesus Arranza, member of the Philippine Coconut Authority’s (PCA) governing board and incoming president and chief executive officer of the CIIF Oil Mills Group.

“The PCA is set to conduct a topographic survey of around 100,000 hectares of farmlands in Bukidnon. This way, we have something to show investors in terms of where they can locate,” Arranza told reporters in a briefing in Quezon City yesterday.

Arranza said the survey is part of a program approved by the PCA three months ago. He, however, could not say how much money was allocated to the initiative.

The PCA is looking for “contiguous farmlands” as it would be costly for investors to locate plantations and mills in different areas, Arranza explained.

“You have to process palm immediately because delaying the processing would affect the quality of the oil,” Arranza added.

The incoming CIIF official said he is willing to join efforts that encourage investors, particularly Malaysians and Indonesians to locate in the Philippines.

“It will be good to have the Malaysians and the Indonesians here to invest in the local palm-oil industry. This will give the local industry a chance to learn other technologies in palm-oil processing,” he said.

Arranza said developing the local palm industry is good for the coconut industry because it allows stakeholders to further take advantage of the export market for coconut oil.

In a previous report released by the Mindanao Economic Development Council (Medco) in 2004, of the 304,350 hectares of land suitable for palm-oil plantation in Mindanao, only 20,000 hectares has been used by the industry.

Medco noted that Mindanao, particularly Caraga Region, has the highest potential for the palm-oil industry since it is one of the most suitable areas for palm-oil plantation due to good quality of soil type and fair weather conditions.

Oil millers in the Caraga region are Filipinas Palm Oil Plantations Inc., Agusan Plantations Inc. and Kenram Philippines Inc.

Medco noted in its report that palm oil is considered as the world’s most productive oil because its versatile composition is maximized not only for edible oils but also in making food, chemical, cosmetic and pharmaceutical products.

Citing a study published by the University of Asia and the Pacific, Medco said palm oil’s domestic demand will continue to increase 5 percent a year in the next 10 years to 2020.

In a report posted on its web site, the Department of Agriculture’s Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Service noted that the government can consider offering special long-term financing for palm oil, with a seven-year grace period, and duty-free importation of planting materials and farm equipment to entice more players in the local palm-oil industry.

By Business Mirror

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Govt Fast-Tracks To Increase Farmers Income

Govt fast-tracks organic-agri program to raise farm income.

President Arroyo is putting on fast-track mode the government’s organic-agriculture program in keeping with its goal of not only making farming more profitable for rural stakeholders but also promote environmental health and guarantee the sustainability of the country’s land resources, according to Secretary Arthur Yap of the Department of Agriculture (DA).

Yap said this eco-friendly objective is anchored on three imperatives: the long-term management of the country’s soil and water resources; considering the welfare and limited productive resources of those we seek to empower to make agricultural progress a means to food security and poverty reduction; and “mastering the land we cultivate without destroying their productive capacities and benchmarking progress against the best in the world to make agriculture a tool of economic competition.”

In a speech read for him by Undersecretary for Special Concerns Berna Romulo Puyat during the recent 5th Eco-Products International Fair (EPIF), Yap expressed concern over the reckless use of the country’s natural resources and over dependence on chemical-based pesticides and fertilizers that have had harmful, and possibly permanent, effects on the environment.

“In many parts of the country, in fact, the soil is by now so degraded that it has become virtually impossible to grow food without costly farm inputs,” Yap lamented. “If we are to continue on this course, then we will soon be remembered as the generation that left behind a bare cupboard for its children.”

The event was attended by former First Lady and EPIF 2009 chairman Amelita “Ming” Ramos; Development Academy of the Philippines president Antonio Kalaw; University of the Philippines-Los Baños Chancellor Dr. Luis Rey Velasco; former Sen. Helena Benitez, who is chairperson emeritus of the Philippine Rural Reconstruction Movement; and Horacio “Boy” Morales, president of the La Liga Policy Institute.

Yap said that because the government’s sustainable food-production policies integrate three main objectives—environmental health, economic profitability, and social and economic equity—the DA has put its organic agriculture program in its list of priority programs.

Organic farming, which seeks to wean farmers away from the use of chemical inputs, will help pare farm production costs amid the fluctuating costs of petroleum-based fertilizers, which have increased by about 300 percent over the last five years before returning to their normal price levels in the last quarter of 2008, he said.

“Let us remember that Filipino farmers need nothing other than what their environment richly provides: clear water, clean air, a treasure of forests to protect their farmlands, and an abundance of life in the hills and rivers of their illustrious heritage,” he said.

To speed up the implementation of its organic farming initiatives, Puyat noted that the DA launched the National Organic Agriculture Tamang Abono Program last October 16 during the World Food Day celebration in Bohol .

Under this program, which will be implemented in tandem with local government units and the private sector, the DA will establish community-based composting facilities, where each facility can provide organic fertilizer for 100 hectares; and upgrade existing Bio-N mixing plants to maximize the production of Bio-N—a microbial fertilizer that can replace 30 percent to 50 percent of the total nutrient requirements of crops.

The DA will also build additional Trichoderma laboratories, to cope with the increasing demand for Trichoderma inoculants to be used in all modified rapid composting (MRC) production farms, and conduct training programs on organic-fertilizer production and organic-farming technologies through the Agricultural Training Institute.

The organic agriculture program is part of Yap ’s reform agenda for the department, which now focuses funding on hard or “big-ticket” projects covering irrigation maintenance, postharvest facilities, and rural extension work, in lieu of “soft” projects like fertilizer support to farmers.

Instead of handing over fertilizer discount coupons to farmer-beneficiaries, which it did in 2008, the DA is now providing organic fertilizer manufacturing support to farmers in palay-producing provinces.

By Business Mirror

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Donate & Help Philippine Farmers Out of Poverty

You can help poverty stricken Philippine marginal farmers have a better life.

For those of you who are not familiar with our organization, Agriculture-Ph.com is involved in helping poverty stricken Philippine marginal farmer families increase their standard of living by helping them attain larger higher quality crop harvests, teaching them responsible agri-business, providing higher income from their farming efforts, and thus elevating their total standard of living out from poverty.

Philippine Agriculture Sector Problems

70 percent of the Philippine population are poor residing in rural areas, so poverty in the Philippines is primarily a rural problem. Farming development is one essential industry for poverty reduction in the Philippines. However, agriculture, the mainstay of the Filipino rural population, is a lagging sector in the Philippines currently for a variety of factors. The Philippine government has not been able in the past to help the Philippine farmers as much as the marginal farmers would like. The Philippine agriculture sector requires substantial increases in donations, investments, and improved policy environment for attaining higher rural farming productivity. As the poor rely considerably on natural resources for their sustenance, they lack the funds for their farming efforts for their basic sustenance, and have extra income from their crop sales.

Our Philippine Agriculture Sector Solutions

We educate train Philippine farmers with organic farming workshops, and lower cost organic farming products, providing them larger higher quality harvests with lower input costs. The biggest problem for Philippine farmers is that they cannot afford fertilizer for their crops so their harvest yields and crop quality is marginal at best. In fact, Philippine marginal farmers because of lack of funds use only about 10% to 20% the amount of fertilizer that farmers in developed nations use. The result is poor to substandard crop harvests and quality. Your donation and will help us to help the Philippine marginal farmers increase their harvest yield, crop quality, increase their crop sales revenues, and help raise them out from poverty.

You Can Help The Philippine Marginal Farmers

We are asking you to help us out by giving a tax-deductible donation to provide the Philippine farmers high quality lower cost organic fertilizer. We work very hard to provide complete assistance to the Philippine marginal farmers and we hope we can count on you for a generous donation of any amount. Any amount is always welcome. Contact us by email at mail@agriculture-ph.com on how to make your donation. We'll follow up with you on how to send your donation.

Recognition For Your Donation

We recognize your donation with the farmers your donation directly helps, with a letter of appreciation from them and us to you. We will also list your donation here on our website with the Filipino farmers and their specific farming projects your donation is applied to for you to track their progress. Your recognition can be anonymous at your request also.

Thank You Always For Helping Philippine Marginal Farmers Have A Better Life

We thank you for your time and consideration. We look forward to whatever support you can provide. If you are donating privately, please also check for matching funds through the company your with. Many companies have matching programs which you may not be aware of.

More Information

If you require additional information about us, please contact us and we will be happy to answer any questions you may have. You may also contact us directly by phone at + 63 918 917 2176.

Thank You Again

We thank you very much for your generous donation, for it is always appreciated by the Philippine marginal farmers. Philippine farmers deserve so much to have a better life for them and their families, for they provide all of us food to live by. God Bless the Philippine Farmers and You for helping.

Vegetables & Food Shortages

Indigenous vegetables can eradicate malnutrition, food shortage.

From the forest to the household backyard, indigenous vegetables could address malnutrition and head off the looming food shortage.

A study recently conducted by the Bureau of Agricultural Research (BAR), in partnership with the World Vegetable Center, a Taiwan-based research and development institution, shows that at least 10 promising indigenous vegetables are classified as priority crops for massive promotion.

These include alugbati (Basella alba), ampalaya (bitter gourd) or bayok-bayok for leaves (Momordica charantia), himbabao (Allaeanthus luzonicus), kulitis (Amaranthus), labong (bamboo shoot), upo or bottle gourd (lagenaria siceria), malunggay (Moringa), pako (fiddlehead), saluyot (Corchorus), and talinum (Talinum triangulare).

The study is part of the project dubbed, Promotion of Indigenous Vegetable for Poverty Alleviation and Nutrition Improvement of Rural Households in the Philippines, being implemented in the country through regional field units of the Department of Agriculture DA and the National Nutrition Council in cooperation with local government units.

DA regional executive director for Bicol Jose Dayao said on Thursday these “less popular veggies” continue to be underutilized despite their known contributions to health and nutrition.

According to the BAR study, that is due to a lack of available seeds and germplasm for widespread propagation, inadequate information on use, importance, and performance and input requirements, as well as how indigenous vegetables fit into commercial production systems, Dayao said.

Another problem is that these traditional vegetables are being replaced by high yielding commercial varieties which are more proficient and preferred by most producers and consumers.

As such, the genetic resource of indigenous vegetables is dwindling and at risk of extinction, he said.

The promotion of these vegetables seeks to address the problems and boost food security, improve nutrition and the income-generating capacity of the rural poor, while conserving the biodiversity of vegetables indigenous to the Philippines.

The initiative is in harmony with the DA’s program on sustainable-nutrition advocacy by promoting the production, marketing and consumption of highly nutritious vegetables, and with BAR’s national program on indigenous plants for health and wellness, Dayao said.

Through the project, the introduction and selection of indigenous vegetables is promoted through technology demonstrations on proper cultivation and use in selected rural areas giving priority to Bicol, Western Visayas and Northern Mindanao, or regions where malnutrition and poverty are prevalent.

The project pushes for the production of seeds, cultivation in backyard gardens, and consumption of these vegetables, Dayao said.

Other indigenous vegetables being promoted and exhibited by the DA in plots for technology demonstrations are eggplant, amaranth, cucurbit, radish, bottle gourd, luffa (smooth and ridged types), wax gourd, bittergourd, snake gourd, squash, jute, basella, kangkong, ivy gourd, basil, lablab, rosella, okra, yardlong bean, winged bean, cucumber, tomato, and vegetable soybean.

These vegetables were chosen based on nutrient content, medicinal and health benefits, nonfood uses, and volume of production and food preparation.

They are considered indigenous to the Philippines because they grow abundantly in rural areas, although not everybody knows their value as affordable and alternative sources of essential nutrients.

These vegetables are easier to grow, more resistant to pests, and are highly acceptable to local tastes. Indigenous vegetables are suitable as cash crops, source of daily sustenance, new crops and variations to diversify production systems and diets, Dayao said.

Initiating awareness about these vegetables and collecting their seeds are part of initial steps toward their preservation. The ultimate goal is to increase the actual use of these “unpopular” crops, he said.

Promising lineages have been identified, and their seeds are being prepared for distribution. Nutritional tests have also been conducted and production strategies are being developed. In no time, these so-called underused vegetables would soon find their way into the mainstream vegetable arena known to even nonvegetable eaters, he added.

By Business Mirror

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Koreans Place On Hold $12-M Corn Investment

The construction of postharvest facilities and development of 10,000 hectares of land for corn in Mallig, Isabela would have to be put on hold for the next few months due to a number of issues related to the importation of farm equipment and export volume that the Korean investors want resolved.

Philippine Maize Federation Inc. (Philmaize) president Roger Navarro said the concerns of the Korea Overseas Grain investment and Development Co. Ltd. (Kogid) are payments for expanded value-added tax (E-VAT) on imported farm equipment and the volume of corn that Kogid would be able to ship to Seoul.

“[The Koreans] also want to be assured that there will be a steady supply of corn from farmers in the area that will be developed and where the postharvest facilities will be situated,” said Navarro in a telephone interview.

The Philmaize chief noted that the Koreans want to know whether imported farm equipment for the project will be exempted from the 12-percent E-VAT. The Koreans also want to find out how much corn they will be allowed to ship to Korea.

Navarro disclosed that a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for Kogid’s $12-million investment in the corn sector was supposed to have been signed when President Arroyo recently went to South Korea for an official visit.

“The signing of an MOU for that project was supposed to be in the agenda. Prior to the official visit of the President, we received an e-mail from [Kogid] saying that the MOU signing has to be put on hold pending further review,” said Navarro.

He said representatives from Kogid will arrive in the Philippines in September to thresh out the issues concerning the project.

Philmaize and the Philippine Agricultural Development and Commercial Corp. would be Kogid’s partners in the project.

Earlier, Navarro said the project is a private-sector initiative and is seen as a way of jumpstarting the development of the corn sector.

By Business Mirror

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Angara Eyes Money for Agriculture

Angara eyes money for agriculture as planting season sets in.

Senator Edgardo Angara is pressing for long-term investments in agriculture as parts of the country enter the rice-planting season this June.

In a statement, the Senator cited UN Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that Filipinos eat an average of more than 100 kilograms (220 pounds) of rice each per year.

“Also, the country has continually faced the problem of high food cost, and it has the highest food prices among the Asean countries,” Angara added, noting that because Filipinos are accustomed to eating rice, the government has been considering increased rice importation to meet demands.

Angara warned that “this spells bad news, especially during the toughest times where the country is experiencing not only financial but also health crisis that is damaging our economy as a result of incapacitated labor force from killer diseases.”

He suggested the need for government to step in and be more aggressive. “We are spending billions of resources which otherwise could be allocated to long-term investments to boost our agricultural productivity. Our failure to initiate long-term and focused efforts to boost agricultural productivity could result to more poverty.”

According to Angara, the government budget for agricultural expenditures back in 2007 amounted to P35.55 billion, which was 8.16-percent lower than the previous year’s level. In the same year, agricultural loans which added up to P560.04 billion increased by 9.94 percent. About 24 percent of the loans were utilized for production purposes.

To address the problem, Angara has introduced the Agriculture Fisheries and Modernization Act as a masterplan for agricultural modernization which, he added, other countries in Southeast Asia have adopted. He is now prodding the government to ensure RP’s food security through long-term investments in agriculture.

By Business Mirror

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Has the Philippines Lost It's Rice Advantage?

RP has lost comparative advantage in rice says economist Arsenio Balisacan, who has now backtracked from his conclusion 26 years ago that the Philippines may become a net exporter of rice. The commodity is no longer the country’s comparative advantage.

“We should now look beyond rice as it only forms roughly 15 percent of agricultural output,” Balisacan told the BusinessMirror at the sidelines of the launch of four books one of which he wrote. The author of Securing Rice, Reducing Poverty wrote nearly three decades ago that rice, the staple food accounting for 25 percent of the food expenditures of the poorest 30 percent of the population, was a comparative advantage of the Philippines.

That is no longer the case today, said Balisacan, who is also director of the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Studies and Research in Agriculture.

Rice prices have been increasing, up to P40 a kilo on the average, according to government statisticians, and some economists say farmers are reaping from the windfall.

The spike in rice prices was aggravated by the importation of rice, according to Balisacan, as “the Philippines reacted nervously” to the price upsurge in the global commodities.

“When the country went to the world market, it added to the spike.” But Balisacan said the spike began two years ago when the price of oil and fossil fuel reached new highs.

It didn’t help that speculation also hit the commodity market and dragged rice into a regime of price volatility. Likewise, a drought in Australia and the biofuel movement, according to Balisacan, forced rice-producing countries like Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam to place restrictions on their exports.

The situation should force the Philippines to take a long, hard look on the rice economy, according to Balisacan.

“We have other crops like fruits and vegetables that we haven’t yet exploited. The focus on rice, because of the political issue surrounding it, comes to the neglect of these other crops.”

He added: “Let’s not force it if rice is not our comparative advantage. Importation is not that bad.”

According to agriculture officials, the Philippines is expected to import nearly 2 million tons of rice this year.

In his book, Balisacan wrote that “the twin forces of rapid population growth and low rice- productivity growth meant that rice consumption increasingly outpaced rice production, thereby necessitating rice importation.”

He told the BusinessMirror he expects rice imports will be a sustained strategy if productivity rises and government subsidy continues for three years.

But Balisacan said the point here is who will ultimately benefit from the imports, as he says poverty in the rural areas will not likely change in the next two decades.

By Business Mirror

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Quinapondon Samar Rice Farm

Eastern Samar Rice Seed Grower Farmer

Cirilo Abueva is President of Barangay San Pedro Quinapondon Eastern Samar Seed Growers Association. He uses Nutriplant Organics on his rice crops, and in turn sells his high quality seed harvest to other farmers providing them strong healthy rice seeds for new plantings and helping these other farmers to have larger harvests and better quality yield with lower input costs.

Natural Organic Farming the Way God Intended

From the soil to the seed to the harvest, Nutriplant Organics provide all the necessary nutrients for soils, plants to thrive, grow, fight off disease infection, and increase harvest yields and crop quality with lower input costs. With other simple natural organic farming methods we teach in our workshops, the result is high quality organic food without toxic chemical leftover residue damaging our food crops and our body as we eat toxic grown food.

Organic and Synthetic

Organic farming provides farmers higher quality and larger harvests for rice, corn, fruits and vegetables with lower input costs compared to synthetic granular bagged fertilizer which leaches your soil making it very acidic and bad for plants to grow. Get on board new school organic farming with Nutriplant Organics and our free farmer training workshops, and benefit from larger harvests and higher quality on all your farming crops.

Click the photos below for a larger view of Cirilo Abueva San Pedro Quinapondon Eastern Samar Rice Farm.











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Commodity Retail Prices Increase

Commodity retail prices lift NCR index in March

Despite fears of low consumption, retail prices in Metro Manila slightly rose month-on-month, according to the March 2009 General Retail Price index (GRPI) in the National Capital Region (NCR).

Recently released by the National Statistics Office (NSO), the GRPI data for March showed that retail prices were lower compared with levels a year earlier but are actually on the rise again from February. Retail prices in the NCR inched up to 0.1 percent in March from -0.1 percent in February.

The NSO attributed this increase to higher commodity prices, particularly food and pharmaceutical products and construction materials.

“Prices of foodstuffs such as rice, vegetables, chicken, cheese and butter were on the uptrend. Add-ons were observed in medicinal and pharmaceutical products. Price hikes were also noted in gravel, sand, selected lumber, plywood, cement, hollow blocks, GI sheets, electrical wires and footwear made of rubber plastic,” the NSO explained.

The NSO data showed that the food index rose to 0.2 percent in March from -0.4 percent in February. The monthly price increases in crude materials, inedible fuels index were higher at 0.1 percent in March from zero in February; and the chemicals, including animal and vegetable oils and fats index, 1.2 percent from 0.5 percent.

The beverages-and-tobacco index, meanwhile, stayed at its February rate of 0.6 percent while the mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials index contracted by 2.8 percent from a positive 1.4 percent in February.

The year-on-year growth rate of the GRPI in the NCR decelerated to 3.5 percent in March from 4.8 percent in February 2009. The year-on-year growth rate of the index in March 2008 was at 7.3 percent.

This may be attributed to the fact that commodity prices last year were high in the first quarter of 2008 due to the food and oil crises. Rice prices shot up to more than P40 per kilo while oil prices in the world market hit more than $100 per barrel.

With this, the annual price movement in the food index fell by 7 percent in March from 8.2 percent in February; beverages and tobacco, 4.6 percent from 5 percent; crude materials, inedible except fuels, 3.5 percent from 4 percent; and manufactured goods classified chiefly by materials, 1.7 percent from 3.2 percent.

The NSO said the rest of the commodity groups recorded higher annual growth rates. These include chemicals, including animal and vegetable oils and fats and miscellaneous manufactured articles.

The government and economists agreed the first-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) of 0.4 percent was significantly affected by an environment of low consumption. Despite the fact that overseas Filipino worker (OFW) remittances posted an increase, it failed to spur consumption.

Data from the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB) showed that while OFW remittances allowed gross national product to hit a growth of 4.4 percent and Net Factor Income from Abroad grew to 40.8 percent in the first quarter, per-capita expenditures posted a contraction of 1.1 percent.

NSCB Secretary-General Romulo Virola said OFW remittances failed to encourage consumers to spend as seasonally adjusted personal-consumption expenditure dropped by 3.1 percent during the first quarter of 2009 after more than 50 consecutive quarters of positive growth.

Former Budget Secretary and University of the Philippines economist Benjamin Diokno said this is a “worrisome” trend. He said per-capita GDP and per-capita personal consumption, which contracted by more than 1 percent, were hits of the increased hardships of Filipinos because of the global economic crisis.

By Business Mirror

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