DA: Masagana program to pull rice farmers in

By Othel Campos

THE Department of Agriculture said it expects more farmers to join the government’s Masagana Rice Industry Development Program (MRIDP) after the average farmgate price of palay at the national level reached P19.06 per kilo.

DA undersecretary for Rice Program Leo Sebastian said the May farmgate price was about 10.6 percent higher from the P17.24 per kg price in May 2022.

As the overseer of the MRIDP, Sebastian estimates palay production to reach 8.605 million metric tons (MT) this year, or about 5.6 million MT of milled rice. This volume, in addition to the 1.8 million MT carryover stocks of milled rice and the arrival of 1.8 MMT imported rice, would be sufficient to meet the demand of 7 million MT from January to June, he said.

“By the end of June, the available stock would be good for more than 2 months, in addition to the incoming supply from new harvest and imports,”

LEDAC OKs 20 bills; MIF to be signed before SONA

By Charles Dantes, Maricel Cruz and Macon Ramos-Araneta

THE Legislative Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) chaired by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Wednesday approved 20 bills that must be passed by the end of the year, including the Bank Deposit Secrecy measure that will allow the Central

Bank to open accounts for cases involving money laundering and terrorism.

“Apparently, we’re the only country left in the world who hasn’t passed bank