World | Philippines
Government moves to pre-empt rice shortage
The government will aggressively import rice to shore up stockpiles ahead of the rainy season and to cover for a possible shortfall in the last quarter of 2008, a senior official said yesterday.
- By Barbara Mae Dacanay, Bureau Chief
- Published: 00:09 May 8, 2008
Manila: The government will aggressively import rice to shore up stockpiles ahead of the rainy season and to cover for a possible shortfall in the last quarter of 2008, a senior official said yesterday.
"We will continue to be aggressive. Our policy has been to go on an active procurement drive, active engagement of suppliers," said Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap.
Yap did not set dates for the projected procurement targets to be reached. He did not react to criticism that the government's intensified bid to stockpile rice would reflect on tight global supplies and record high prices.
The 675,0000-tonne buffer stock had been envisaged for the last quarter of the year in anticipation of the estimated 21 destructive typhoons that visit the country during the period from June to July each year, Yap said.
An inter-agency committee on rice has recommended the import of nearly 2.2 million tonnes of rice this year, the country's biggest purchase in a decade.
Mounting criticism
The government has been spending billions of pesos to subsidise rice for the poor even as it faces mounting criticism that it is not to blame for the country's dependence on other countries for the basic staple.
Thailand and Vietnam have openly expressed concern about the likely effects of the Philippines government's aggressive search for more rice.
Thailand also refused to be part of plans to create a Southeast Asian rice cartel that would fix the price of the commodity.
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