Genuine AGrarian Reform

1. THE CONCEPT OF
GENUINE AGRARIAN
REFORM

2. ASSESSMENT
• ALL DATA, EXCEPT AS OTHERWISE INDICATED ARE LIFTED FROM PHILIPPINE
DEVELOPMENT PLAN 2017-2022
• Continuous decline in the contribution of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (AFF) to
the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).
• AFF annual average share to GDP is only10 percent from 2013 to 2015.
• Slow structural transformation
• Weak growth of AFF
• Annual average gross value added (GVA) grew by only 1.0 percent from 2013 to 2015,
and by 1.3 percent in the first three quarters of 2016

3. ASSESSMENT
• Drop in employment in AFF translated to an average annual labor productivity
growth of only 2.9 percent in the last three years.
• AFF labor productivity has been the lowest compared with the industry and
services sectors,
• The GVA of crops, the primary driver of AFF, grew only by 0.2 percent during the
period 2013 – 2015
• The country remains a net importer of food products for at least $1B per year

4. CHALLENGES
(PER PDP 2017-2022)
• Insufficient working capital which inhibits farmers and fisherfolk from using the
appropriate type of inputs, farm equipment, and facilities that will expand
production and spur entrepreneurial activities in the rural economy
• Lack of access to credit and insurance
• Low farm mechanization and inadequate post-harvest facilities.
• This result in relatively high losses, reaching up to 16.5 percent of production in rice,
7.8 percent in corn, 15.5 percent in banana, 30.4 percent in mango and 45.1 percent in
onion.
• For the fisheries sector, post-harvest losses range from 20 to 40 percent of the total
outputs

5. CHALLENGES
• Inadequate irrigation
• As of 2015, only 1.7 million hectares or 57 percent of the 3.0 million hectare potential
irrigable area has been irrigated.
• Irrigation development has been slow
• The construction of small-scale irrigation systems has been limited
• Many of the existing irrigation systems need rehabilitation or restoration to improve
their efficiency.

6. SCANT SUPPORT FOR RESEARCH AND
DEVELOPMENT (R&D)
• The share of R&D programs remains low in the total budget of the Department of
Agriculture (DA) and Department of Science and Technology-Philippine Council
for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development.
• In 2015, the aggregate budget was at PHP3.8 billion or only 0.28 percent of the
AFF GVA (in current prices), which is lower compared to the one percent level
recommended for developing countries.
• The capacity for R&D is also adversely affected by the limited number of
permanent positions for scientists and researchers in agriculture, thus leading to
the contractualization of research jobs.

7. OTHER CHALLENGES
• Limited connectivity between production areas and markets, and poor compliance
with product standards resulted in low competitiveness of AFF products
• Weak institutions also fail to stimulate sector growth
• Includes laws and policies which are catered towards import and market dependent, export-
oriented economy
• Lifting of the quantitative restrictions (QR) on rice poses risks to AFF stakeholders who
remain uncompetitive (date June 30, 2017)
• Growing population threatens existing agricultural land use.
• Vulnerability to climate and disaster risks

8. MAJOR CHALLENGE: LANDLESSNESS AND SEMI-
FEUDAL EXPLOITATION
• There is agrarian problem brought by:
• Landlesssness
• 7 out of 10 farmers are landless.
• The others farmers own or lease an average of 1/2 to one hectare
• Of every 100 farmers, 21 are agricultural workers, 28 are unpaid family workers, 26 are under
some form of tenancy relation and only 25 own land.
• Inequitable work conditions and relations.
• High cost of land rents or Inequitable sharing of produce
• High cost of production
• Usurious rate of interest imposed on farmers’ debts
• Underpayment/Non-payment of farmers’ services
• EJKs and Enforced Disappearance

9. AGRARIAN REFORM PROGRAM DID NOT ADDRESS
LANDLESSNESS
• Present laws and policies do not meet the needs of the farmers for truly
comprehensive and genuine agrarian reform
• PD 27 – limited to tenanted rice and corn lands
• CARP/CARPER – provides for:
• Non-land transfer schemes
• Exemptions and exclusions from coverage
• Provides for ways for Los to keep their landholdings
• Requires farmers to pay land amortization
• Allows conversion of prime and even irrigated lands

10. CARP PERFORMANCE INDICATORS
• More than twenty eight (28) years since CARP
• 4,726,604 hectares reportedly acquired and distributed
• 2,970,644 agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs).
• CARPER failed to distribute 1.3 million target in 2009
• ARBs remained uninstalled
• The agriculture and agrarian reform sector remained the lowest contributor to GDP at only 9.49% in the first quarter of
2016.
• AVAs with contracts grossly disadvantageous to the farmers
• Low agricultural production
• Philippines is a net importer of food products for over $1 billion every year.
• Poverty incidence is worst in agricultural areas with farmers among the least-paid workers.
• Land use conversion (LUC) rampant - gradual decrease of agricultural lands hampering food security and displacing
thousands of farmers.

11.  CARP did not distribute so much agri-lands to farmers
 In 1989, the target for distribution was 10.3M hectares in 10 years. 3.8 M is to be
distributed by DAR and 6.6 by DENR.
 In 1995, the target was lowered to 7.8 M.; 4.3 to be distributed by DAR and 3.5 by
DENR.
• Of the target, only 4.7 M hectares were covered by CARP
• But there are ARBs who are still uninstalled
• CLOAs were cancelled
• ARBs not anymore in possession of lands for several reasons
AGRARIAN REFORM PROGRAM FAILED

12. GENUINE AGRARIAN REFORM PROGRAM: ANSWER
TO PEASANT UNREST
There is an urgent need to break up land monopoly
There is a need to ensure fair and equitable distribution of wealth
There is a need to actually distribute lands, both public and private, to landless farmers
Distribution of the lands to the farmers should be for free
There is a need to ensure that farmers have control of the land
Farmers should actually and directly cultivate the lands and benefit therefrom
Sufficient support service should be given to the farmers
Present agrarian reform laws/programs are not enough to ensure protection of the farmers, the promotion of
their rights and welfare
Since the time of Magsaysay up to the present administration, land reform laws were only used as a tool
to pacify peasant unrest but there was no genuine intent to break up land monopoly.
Agrarian reform must contribute to rural development and ensure food security

13. GENUINE AGRARIAN REFORM LAW AS
SOCIAL JUSTICE TOOL
 Advocates actual and free land distribution
 Abrogates of the non-land or alternative schemes (SDO, profit sharing, leaseback, joint venture) of
land distribution and instead implementing actual land distribution
 Promotes respects the rights to ancestral domain and self-determination of indigenous peoples in
land distribution
 Defines lands according to use or potential use for agriculture.
 Covers both public and private agricultural lands
 No exemption and exclusion
 Protects land from conversion
 Protects ARB’s security of tenure
 Expropriation of all private lands exceeding five hectares.
 Provides speedy completion of land distribution (five years)
 Provides just compensation to landowners

14.  It is the essence of a genuine agrarian reform program.
 To correct the social and moral injustice and inequity that
farmers have experienced and suffered.
 Farmers have already paid the value of the land
 The State, in recognition of social justice and general welfare,
has the duty to improve the living conditions of farmers and for
which reason it should not unduly burden them of paying the
value of the lands to be the owners thereof.
 The stark reality shows that the horrendous situation of the
farmers would result to non-payment of the amortization that
would again lead to their displacement
 The government has enough funds to fully compensate the
landowners, which funds were only lost to graft and corruption.
FREE LAND DISTRIBUTION

15. DAR’S THRUST AND POLICY DIRECTIONS
• DAR must DARE!
• It must be transformed into a government agency that would
• DEFEND the farmers, farmworkers, and other tillers of the land
• ASSERT their RIGHTS and welfare; and
• ENSURE their security of tenure

16. THRUST
• To inventory and determine the status of the distributed lands and verify the
status of the farmers
• To rectify or correct the flaws, defects, and problems encountered by the
previous agrarian reform program.
• To lobby for the enactment of an agrarian reform law that would acquire so
much lands, public and private, for free distribution to farmers, farmworkers, and
tillers of the land
• To provide sufficient provision for support services to the farmers.
• To provide mechanism to improved agricultural productivity and livelihoods
• To expand employment opportunities aimed towards achieving the goal of
improve quality of life of farmers.
• To strengthen organizational governance
• To ensure food security

17. POLICY DIRECTIONS
• With these facts and thrust, DAR’s policy direction are:
• Protection of farmers and ensure security of tenure
• Promotion farmers’ rights and welfare
• Contribution to rural development of agrarian reform program
• Ensuring food security
• To respect landowner’s right
• To strengthen DAR and its organization development program

18. PROTECTION OF FARMERS
• Aspects:
• Land acquisition and distribution (LAD);
• Private agri lands over 5 hectares must be covered and distributed for free to farmers
• Government lands, which are ADE used for agricultural purposes must be acquired and distributed to the farmers
• Status of exempted/excluded lands must be reviewed, and if possible acquired and distributed to farmers
• Farmers must be immediately installed to awarded lands
• No non-land transfer schemes
• Land use conversion (LUC) policy must be reviewed
• Prime agri lands not-negotiable for conversion
• Security of tenure
• Non-eviction of farmers
• Disturbance compensation must be given at all times
• Fixing of agricultural lease rentals that would favor the farmers

19. PRESENT UNDERTAKINGS
• Inventory of lands already covered and reportedly distributed and the status ARBs
• Inventory must show the current use of the land and whether the farmers are in possession
of the land. If not, why.
• Install corrective measures to the problems and concerns relative to the 4,726,604
acquired and distributed to 2,970,644 ARBs
• Distribute remaining 621,000 hectares of private agri-lands to ARBs.
• Review decision or orders granting exemption or exclusion to those lands previously
exempted or excluded from agrarian reform coverage especially those cases under
DOJ Opinion 44

20. PRESENT UNDERTAKINGS
• Lobby for the passage of a law that would cover the remaining 621,000 private agricultural
lands
• Law should consider coverage of lands previously exempted or excluded from
agrarian reform coverage at the least cost, if not free, to the farmers
• The law should also rectify the problems encountered and presently faced by
ARBs especially the payment of amortization under pain of foreclosure by the LBP
• The law should cover subsequent transfer of agricultural lands to third persons.
• The law should reclassify inalienable lands of the public domain which are now
being tilled by the farmers into agricultural land and distribute them for free to
the actual tillers and occupants.
• Coordination with the DENR, DOJ, NCIP, to have a single repository of land records.

21. PRESENT UNDERTAKINGS - LUC
• Address gradual decrease of agricultural lands.
• Moratorium and further study on land use conversion, particularly those land areas
covering prime agricultural lands, as a major component for food self-sufficiency and
security.
• Inventory of lands with LUC order or clearance especially those which remained
undeveloped for five (5) years since conversion order or clearance was issued.
• Clear and strict policy on LUC
• Coordination with other government agencies such as the DILG, DA, DENR on the
issuance of clearance or certificate needed for the issuance of conversion order or
clearance.
• Amendment or repeal of section 20 of the Local Government Code which allows
continued conversion of agricultural lands

22. IMPERATIVE NEED
• Resumption of peace talks and approval of CASER
• Passage of Comprehensive and Genuine Agrarian Reform Program
• Passage of other pro-people, pro-environment laws
• National Land Use Plan
• People’s Mining Act
• New Fisheries and Forestry Code
• Wages Increase
• Respect for human rights