Loren seeks creation of two million jobs to prevent social unrest

Sen. Loren Legarda today sought to create two million more jobs as she warned of social unrest in the Philippines if more and more people are thrown out of work because of the global financial crisis.

Senator Legarda cited the report of the International Labor Organization that social unrest faced many countries, especially developing countries, as a result of the current global financial crisis.

"In the Philippines we face more protests and possibly the intensification of insurgency by the New People's Army and the secessionist group in Mindanao if the crisis deepens," said Loren. "Hence, we must act quickly and decisively.

Loren pushed for her bill seeking to boost the production and processing of rubber in the Philippines, providing more jobs and increasing the income of farmers and the national proceeds from exports.

At a hearing of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, which she chairs, Loren said that her bill could create some two million additional jobs.

She stressed the urgency of the bill in the wake of a warning from the International Labor Organization that massive unemployment arising from the global financial turmoil could create social unrest, especially in developing countries.

Senate bill No. 1651, authored by Senator Legarda, seeks to establish a Philippine Rubber Research Institute (PRRI) that would boost the production and improve the quality of locally raised rubber to world standards.

"We have the land, marginal land which we can use, we have the farm hands who need the jobs and with an infusion of funds from the stimulus package, we can immediately create two million jobs," Senator Legarda said.

Loren said that the PRRI would undertake research and development programs to increase the productivity of rubber trees and improve the quality of their products and make them more competitive in the world market.

"It is an opportunity we cannot let pass. Many tracts of land remain unproductive, many farmers do not earn enough, many farm hands do not have jobs. The equation on its face may look simplistic. One million hectares of marginal land, at two farmhands per hectare, that's two million farm jobs. Funds for the clearing of the land, preparation for planting and planting can come from agriculture's share of the stimulus package," Loren declared.

"The private sector can help in providing for the planting material in the form of the new high yield rubber clones which countries like Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia use. These countries supply more than half of the world's rubber requirements, I don't see why we can't compete for a larger share of the world market." Senator Legarda said, adding that the project can be done in phases, starting immediately and with a 5-year total timetable.

"At the end of five years, the first trees planted will already be producing raw rubber, during which time two million people would have been in gainful employment," she averred.

Loren said that in 2007, the national rubber production had gone up by 15 percent from 351,000 metric tons to 404,000 metric tons. The rubber production in 2007 was valued at P15.43 billion as compared to the P12.3 billion in 2006.

"We could just imagine the contribution that the rubber industry would provide the Philippine economy if production is increase and the quality is improved to boost exports," Loren told her colleagues during public hearing on the law she proposed.

The significant growth in rubber industry, Loren said, could be attributed to the Department of Agriculture's expansion of production area from 92,000 hectares to one million hectares under its 15-year Rubber Development Program.

However, according to Loren, the advance of the rubber industry could be further intensified with the creation of a research and development agency that would conduct research and craft programs for the improvement of the production and quality of the rubber products.

Loren declared that rubber is now being produced in ten provinces, namely, Sultan Kudarat, Isabela, Maguindanao, Benguet, Camarines Sur, Palawan, Antique, Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental and Mindoro Occidental.

Under Loren's bill, the PRRI that will be mandated to propagate and promote the planting, maintenance and wise utilization of rubber tress as a source of latex and finished rubber products.

Loren's bill would:

• Enable rubber producers and processors, especially small holders, to have access to quality rubber tree seedlings, modern production techniques, and other support services from production to marketing of rubber produce;

• Undertake training and capacity-building programs for rubber producers, processors and cooperatives in order to increase production of quality rubber and raise level of income especially of poor small-holders;

• Aid in the establishment of village-based rubber enterprises to generate livelihood opportunities and improve general well-being of the large percentage of workforce in agriculture communities;

• Promote cooperative development among small-holders and provide them access to resources, technological know-how, as well as decision-making process for the enhancement of their rubber enterprises and the protection of their welfare;

• Initiate research and development projects in order to address technology and policy gaps in promoting a robust rubber industry;

• Enter into agreements and receive grants from local and foreign funding agencies through the DA upon recommendation of PRRI Advisory Board.

SB 1651 also calls for the creation of a PRRI Advisory Board to develop policies and programs aimed at improving the technologies needed for the country's rubber industry in order to meet global standards for competitiveness and product quality.