Northern Mindanao representatives on Monday pushed for the institutionalizing of the Philippine bamboo industry which will represent key regional bamboo industry players.
Bukidnon’s first district representative Jose Manuel Alba said that he filed House Bill 7105 for the institutionalization of the said industry.
HB 7105 is an act promoting the development of the bamboo industry by strengthening the Philippine bamboo industry development council, creating the bamboo industry research and development center, providing incentives for bamboo plantation development, and appropriating funds.
“What we have right now is Executive Order 879, issued by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo issued in 2010. We need an enabling law that will put our bamboo industry at the forefront that we can call really ours,” Alba said.
Leyte 3rd District Representative Anna Victoria Veloso, who co-sponsored Alba’s HB said that at present, there are eight bamboo bills pending in the 19th Congress:
Veloso, addressing the private sector said that with their help and support, “We can work towards nurturing and harnessing bamboo as a construction and design material that will not only give our rural communities and farmers’ organizations the alternative income streams they need, but also help us tell stories of innovation, heritage, and climate change advocacy: stories that build pride of place.”
Data from the Department of Science and Technology showed that the Philippines is 6th among the largest exporters of bamboo in the world.
Ed Manda, president of the Philippine Bamboo Foundation Inc. said that the government should step-in and help develop the industry. “we need enabling policies and support from the government to be able to develop our bamboo industry. We need to improve the recognition of Bamboo as a potential for the next generations,” Manda said.
