December 19, 2014
Sun Star Bacolod
By Teresa Ellera
NEGROS Occidental Third District Rep. Alfredo Benitez said the Sugarcane Bill which he authored in the House of Representatives was approved by the bicameral conference committee of both chambers of Congress Thursday.
Benitez said the highlight of the reconciled versions of the Senate and the House is the P2-billion mandated appropriation annually which will be used for the different projects of the sugar industry.
“Instead of earmarking, to which some did not agree, we use mandated appropriation,” he said.
Of the P2 billion, P1 billion will go to infrastructure while the rest will be used for block farming, socialized credit to help the farmers, scholarship program, and research and development.
Benitez said he expects that the Sugarcane Bill will be signed into law by President Benigno Aquino III on the first quarter of next year.
“After the bicam's approval, the House will ratify this with some amendments at the plenary and then submit it to the President,” he added.
The proposed law seeks to provide the sugar industry protection against the impact of the lowering of the tariffs on imported sugar by 2015 as provided by the Asean Free Trade Area-Common Effective Preferential Tariff Scheme (Afta-Cept).
It also aims to enhance and promote the development of sugar cane industry and enhance the value of the sugarcane through diversification, comprehensive regulation, and assured sources of financing.
Senator Cynthia Villar, chairperson of the Senate committee on agriculture and food, and main sponsor of the bill in the Senate, said the proposed legislation will put in place programs to promote and support the competitiveness of the country’s sugar industry.
"The fear among sugar farmers is that they will not be able to compete with cheaper and government-subsidized sugar from abroad and this will directly impact their livelihood," Villar said.
The sugarcane industry provides employment to at least 600,000 workers and contributes P76 billion annually to the country's economy.