The dry spell gripping the country could last until May or June and could lead to a spike in vegetable prices, an official said Thursday.
But Trade Undersecretary Ruth Castelo said the government would be imposing measures to cushion the impact of El Niño on basic goods, particularly farm products.
In other developments:
• Farmers and fishermen on Thursday demanded a P10,000 livelihood assistance from the government for the rural families affected by the dry spell brought by El Niño.
Manuel Rosario, Pambansang Katipunan ng mga Samahan sa Kanayunan secretary general, accused the government of being remiss in placing mechanisms as early as 2018 to mitigate the impact of El Niño.
“The Department of Agriculture said agricultural losses have reached P5 billion [in the first quarter of the year]. Who is at the losing end? Isn’t it us, the farmers?” Rosario said.
• The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said Thursday the country was expected to experience an overall heat index rating of “extreme caution.”
Many parts of the country could experience a heat index of 32 degrees Celsius to 41 degrees Celsius under the extreme caution category, the agency aid.
“People are likely to experience heat cramps, heat exhaustion, and even heat strokes,” the weather bureau said.
• The Energy department on Thursday warned it would not hesitate to impose sanctions and call for imprisonment against the companies or individuals found sabotaging the Luzon grid in the wake of the recent red and yellow alerts.
Energy Undersecretary Felix William Fuentebella made the statement after the Luzon grid was plunged into red alert status on Thursday due to lack of available generating capacity amid continuing high demand.
Aside from the possibility of a stronger and prolonged El Niño episode, Castelo said, the continuing rise in global crude oil prices could provide upside price pressures over the near-term.
“Vegetables are what we need to monitor because of the drought now happening in several regions in the country,” Castelo told reporters.
“That’s why the government is here; we want to minimize the effects. There will definitely be effects on agricultural products.”
Castelo said the members of the National Price Coordinating Council would be holding a meeting on Wednesday afternoon to make sure the government was ready to address the effects of El Niño on agricultural products.
“The NPCC will particularly do a close watch on the effects of El Niño on the price and supply of agri products,” Castelo said.
“We intend to address this through the NPCC by finding out how we can help farmers continue production or minimize at least the ill effects of El Niño.” With Rio N. Araja and Alena Mae S. Flores