The entire province of Iloilo has been placed under a state of calamity due to the damage brought by the El Niño phenomenon to its agriculture and livelihood, which topped PHP 1 billion.
The declaration was recommended by the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (PDRRMC) and was approved by the Sangguniang Panlalawigan during its regular session on Tuesday.
This enables the government to utilize the PHP 61-million quick response fund and the allocation of PHP 15 million to assist affected farmers and residents.
Only PHP 12.78 million will be coming from the province’s quick response fund (QRF), while the rest will come from the funds of the PDRRMO.
Iloilo is the second province in the Western Visayas region to declare a state of calamity after Antique on April 18.
Based on the records of PDRRMC, it shows that 12,069.49 hectares of rice fields; 4,651.90 hectares of land planted with corn, and 2,007.81 hectares planted with high-value crops as well as 23,699 farmers were affected by drought.
At least fifteen of the 42 towns and cities in Iloilo had earlier been placed under a state of calamity due to drought. These are Sara, Estancia, Bingawan, Dingle, Balasan, San Dionisio, Lemery, Banate, Barotac Viejo, Ajuy, Mina, Janiuay, Calinog, Sta. Barbara and Passi City.
Meanwhile, Badiangan, Barotac Nuevo, Balasan, Bingawan, Concepcion, Dingle, Dueñas, Leganes, Lemery, Leon, Maasin Miag-ao, New Lucena, Pototan, San Dionisio, and San Rafael were affected by low or scarce water supply.
Occidental Mindoro, Antique, Sultan Kudarat, Basilan, Maguindanao del Sur, Maguindanao del Norte, South Cotabato, and Negros Oriental are the other provinces placed under a state of calamity amid losses in the agriculture sector due to extreme heat.
