Category: Regulatory Reform

Implementing Agency:

City Government of Pasig

Year Implemented:

10 July 2020 – present

Themes:

Digitization & New Technologies, and Perspectives on Productivity, Governance, and Development

General Description

The TAPAT (Tulong at Pampuhunang Ayuda sa Taga-Pasig, or Help and Capital Aid for Pasig Residents) is an initiative that offers loans to entrepreneurs and job-seeking residents to jumpstart Pasig City’s economic recovery from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background and Problem

As COVID-19 has not only impacted public health in the Philippines but has also severely hindered its economy, it follows that recovery does not only depend on medical measures such as mass testing and vaccination, but also through the revitalization of the economy both at the local and national levels. Building back towards normalcy means that workers and business owners have to be able to reliably provide for their families, but the economic stability and opportunity needed to achieve this has been limited. 

Solution and Impact

On 10 July 2020, the City Government of Pasig officially launched the TAPAT program in order to address the challenges faced by the local economy amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. The program, which can be accessed online via https://pasig.accessleap.com, provides three kinds of financial assistance designed to address the diverse challenges faced by the residents of Pasig City.

The first kind of loan, Balik Negosyo (Return to Business), provides loans of up to PHP 10,000 to micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) so that they may be able to make the necessary adjustments to comply with updated health and safety standards. The second, Bagong Negosyo (New Business), also provides up to PHP 10,000 for the establishment of new MSMEs. The third category, Balik Trabaho (Return to Work), offers loans of up to PHP 5,000 to displaced workers for the completion of application requirements for new employment.

All loans under TAPAT only require payment at the beginning of the second year after the loan is approved, providing a cushion period that enables borrowers enough time to settle their obligations with no interest rate. A 3% interest rate would be imposed if borrowers would fail to pay within the given allowable payment period.

The loan process itself is designed to be as contactless as possible, with applications accomplished online and the loans themselves disbursed through an electronic money transfer service.

Milestones

As of 1 September 2020, around 2,000 loan applications have been approved under the TAPAT program. The City Government has allotted PHP 200,000,000 for the program, aiming to cover up to 40,000 beneficiaries. As of 3 November 2021, seven batches of loan disbursements have been completed.

The program is also attempting to expand its coverage beyond business and employment through the addition of a loan category for families. It is also seeking to partner with private institutions and organizations to strengthen the program in its efforts to contribute to the economic recovery of the city and its residents from the economic effects brought by COVID-19.

Photos

A screengrab of the Pasig TAPAT website 

(Source: https://pasig.accessleap.com/home/local_business_assistance)

A screenshot of the TAPAT Loan Program scheme

(Source: https://www.pasigcity.gov.ph/article-post?news=6964001) 

Sources

Casinas, J.A. (2020, July 10). Pasig City formally launches loan program for economic recovery. Manila Bulletin. https://mb.com.ph/2020/07/10/pasig-city-formally-launches-loan-program-for-economic-recovery/

Kabagani, L. J. (2020, September 3). Pasig to release 1st batch of small loan grants. Philippine News Agency. https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1114328

Marquez, C. (2020, July 2). Pasig to launch ‘TAPAT’ program to provide loans for business owners. Inquirer.Net. https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1300942/pasig-to-launch-tapat-program-to-provide-loans-for-business-owners

Tobias, L. A. (2020, November 7). LGU loans and other small business loans. The Manila Times. https://www.manilatimes.net/2020/11/07/business/columnists-business/lgu-loans-and-other-small-business-loans/792488/Pasig City Website (2021, November 9). Tulong at Pampuhunang Ayuda para sa Taga-Pasig (TAPAT) Loan Program. https://www.pasigcity.gov.ph/article-post?news=6964001

Implementing Agency:

Provincial Government of Iloilo

Year Implemented:

28 September 2020 – present

Themes:

Digitization & New Technologies, and Perspectives on Productivity, Governance, and Development

General Description

The Provincial Agri-Fishery Information System – Farmers and Fisherfolks Agri-Fishery Resource System (PAIS-FARMS) collects and consolidates agricultural production data in order to provide key stakeholders with the necessary information to resolve marketing problems during harvest season and enable higher productivity.

Background and Problem

The economy of the Province of Iloilo is dependent on agricultural production, particularly rice and fish. Recent events have provided significant challenges to this, however, in the form of Republic Act No. 11203, also known as the Rice Tariffication Law, and the COVID-19 pandemic. The enactment of RA 11203 has led to an estimated revenue loss of about PHP 80,000,000,000 in 2019 alone, while community quarantine measures beginning in 2020 have constrained supply chains and generated even more massive losses for farmers and fisherfolk in the province,

To help cope with these challenges, the Provincial Government of Iloilo decided to pivot away from dependence on rice subsidies, as has been practiced by other provincial local government units (LGUs), and instead focus on developing a system to manage agricultural production data that would allow for smarter and better-informed decision making in distribution and marketing. The existing Municipal Agricultural Information System (MAIS) developed in Mina, Iloilo, was thus scaled up and implemented on the provincial level.

Solution and Impact

PAIS-FARMS is a computer-based system that gathers data on agricultural production at the barangay level and consolidates the information at the municipal and provincial levels to provide a realistic snapshot of the province’s current situation and capacity that helps in aligning with and addressing market demand. This system is linked with other existing databases managed by the Department of Agriculture, allowing for the effective management of each section of the value chain, from the farmers and fisherfolk to agricultural retailers, credit institutions, processors, and distributors, among others. This results in reduced wastage or oversupply of commodities, minimized dependence on importation, and improved food sufficiency in the province, especially during crises.

The system is able to efficiently and effectively manage agricultural production data through:

1. Determining the availability and location of commodities that can be sourced to for consumption, further processing, and export;
2. Forecasting production volume to help farmers determine where, when, and what crops to plant or not to plant; 
3. Matching available and upcoming commodities with the market; 
4. Tracking extension services already provided to farmers and identify gaps and interventions needed;
5. Guiding farmers, associations, cooperatives, agricultural workers, business development workers, business-minded people, government agencies, and other stakeholders in planning, designing, implementing, and monitoring of programs, projects, and services;
6. Serving as the benchmark for investors and business-minded people in deciding what, when, and where to invest in agriculture in the province;
7. Identifying commodities that have the potential for export processing, with assistance from the academe for research and development; and
8. Reducing importation of commodities that can be grown locally through intensive advocacy.

Milestones

PAIS-FARMS is set for replication in 43 other municipal LGUs within Iloilo, through individual Memoranda of Agreement with the provincial government, covering system installation, data establishment and management, and provision of IT equipment. Royalties are also still to be paid to the Mina LGU, for their role in conceptualizing the original form of the system.

Legislative efforts have also been made to establish an Agricultural Information System similar to PAIS-FARMS at the national level.

Photo

Elected government officials toast the launching of PAIS-FARMS in Mina, Iloilo on September 28, 2020 

(Source: PICAO)

Sources

Montemayor, R. (2020, September 6). Winners and losers from the rice tariffication law. Inquirer.Net. https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1332019/winners-and-losers-from-the-rice-tariffication-law

PAIS-FARMS Operations Manual. Courtesy of Provincial Government of Iloilo

Panay News. (2020, October 10). Agri-fishery info system to benefit local farmers. https://www.panaynews.net/agri-fishery-info-system-to-benefit-local-farmers/

PICAO. (2020, September 29). Iloilo Launches Internet Tool for Agribusiness. Official Website of Province of Iloilo. http://iloilo.gov.ph/agriculture-and-fisheries-information-technology-computers/iloilo-launches-internet-tool

Toreno, S. M. H. (2020, September 30). Iloilo launches agri-fishery information system. Department of Agriculture, Regional Field Office 6 Website. https://westernvisayas.da.gov.ph

Implementing Agency:

Department of Agriculture Western Visayas and City Government of Iloilo

Year Implemented:

March 2020 – present

Themes:

Perspectives on Productivity, Governance, and Development; Digitization & New Technologies

General Description

Kadiwa on Wheels is a joint initiative of the Department of Agriculture in the Western Visayas Region and the City Government of Iloilo, that seeks to help ensure food security despite the quarantine measures imposed by the government during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is a mobile market that enables citizens access to fresh agricultural products sourced directly from farmers or through their agricultural associations and cooperatives. The Kadiwa ni Ani at Kita Online Service is its online component.

Background and Problems

The lockdown measures imposed by local governments on their constituents have severely constricted the mobility of market goods from various parts of the country, contributing to soaring market prices and threatening food stability in a country where 16.6% of the population lives below the poverty line. Farmers and agricultural cooperatives have had their supply chains interrupted by restrictions on travel to traders and middlemen, forcing them to sell their products at a loss or risk spoilage.

Solution and Impact

The Department of Agriculture launched a partnership with the Iloilo City Government to create a rolling marketplace that sources its products directly from farmers and delivers them to designated spaces in various town plazas. Farmers associations and cooperatives from Iloilo provinces manned the mobile markets, which officially started operating in March 2020.

Besides the upscaling of the program in an official capacity, the Department of Agriculture’s Regional Executive Director for Region 6 Remelyn Recoter championed the initiative on a provincial level, paving the way for other local governments to coordinate with national initiatives to ensure food stability in their respective localities. The agency facilitated the implementation of the initiative by issuing food passes in the entire region, ensuring the unhampered movement of agriculture and fishery products.

To further reach communities affected by quarantine, DA opened its Kadiwa ni Ani at Kita online service using Google Forms (https://bit.ly/2BY1S9J) to continually provide a stable food supply without having to raise prices significantly. The online initiative accepts orders in bulk and delivers within two days. The agency also collaborated with delivery services such as Grab and Tapao PH to bring goods directly to consumers’ homes.

Milestones

As of May 2020, Iloilo City markets generated sales of PHP 3,684,368.00, or about 46% of the PHP 8,096,082.42 in total sales for the entire Western Visayas region during the two-month community quarantine.

In the same month of the original Kadiwa on Wheels launch, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources inaugurated a seafood version of the initiative, seeking to market agri-fishery products from the provinces to communities deprived of movement due to community quarantine.

According to Executive Director Recoter, the Kadiwa project is one of the key COVID-19 responses that will continue to be implemented even after the pandemic has passed. As of February 2021, Region 6 markets—via wheels, outlets, and online—have earned over 62.8 million pesos since the pandemic started, involving eleven sites in the region and the participation of 3,528 households, 54 farmers associations, individual farmers, and private companies.

A 1 billion peso fund has been created by the national government to upscale Kadiwa and introduce improvements in production monitoring and transportation.

Photos

Farmers from the municipalities of Tubungan and Lambunao selling fresh vegetables and high-value crops at Kadiwa on Wheels located in Molo, Iloilo City (Source: PIA)

Kadiwa on Wheels in Iloilo City (Source: JMG Improgo)

Kadiwa ni Ani at Kita Online Service via Google Form (Source: https://bit.ly/2BY1S9J)

Sources:

AgriMag. (2020, April 6). DA’s Kadiwa Ni Ani At Kita Store Now Online. Agriculture Monthly. https://www.agriculture.com.ph/2020/04/06/das-kadiwa-ni-ani-at-kita-store-now-online/

Lena, P. (2021, February 2). DA’s Kadiwa earns over P62-M in W. Visayas since pandemic. Philippine News Agency. https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1129340

Magcamit, Y. (2020, March 30). Department of Agriculture receives budget approval from IATF to aid farmers and ensure food security. Nolisoli. https://nolisoli.ph/77250/alpas-covid-19-department-of-agriculture-budget-approval-bn-ymagcamit-20200330/