Senator Francis Pangilinan on Thursday said expanding funding for ‘digital agriculture’ in the proposed 2026 Department of Agriculture (DA) budget could help curb corruption, leakage, and falsified beneficiaries that have plagued large public spending programs.
He pointed to recent controversies involving flood control and other infrastructure projects as examples of how weak monitoring systems enable misuse of public funds and undermine taxpayer trust.
“No stealing happens when the public is watching. Digital makes it difficult to hide the truth, effectively protecting all of us who pay taxes,” said Pangilinan.
According to him, the bicameral conference committee increased the allocation for digital agriculture to P600 million from P500 million to strengthen transparency and accountability in the sector.
He said the additional funding is intended to support more accurate, efficient, and evidence-based decision-making across farming and food value chains nationwide.
The DA’s digital agriculture program focuses on the use of data systems, online platforms, and smart technologies to modernize how services are delivered to farmers and fisherfolk.
Key components include comprehensive registries for farmers and fishers, traceability systems for inputs and outputs, real-time monitoring tools, and data-driven planning mechanisms.
The program also envisions centralized dashboards that allow the department to track production levels, distribution of inputs, infrastructure projects, and emerging risks as they occur.
“This technology can ensure that subsidies, insurance, and other support go to real farmers and fisherfolk, not ghost beneficiaries,” the senator said.
He emphasized that open data and transparent processes, combined with public engagement, remain among the strongest safeguards against corruption in government spending.
On the operational level, the agency’s digital push includes platforms such as Kadiwa Online that connect producers directly to consumers and reduce reliance on intermediaries.
The program also uses drones, satellite imagery, and remote sensing technologies to support crop monitoring, yield forecasting, and post-disaster assessments.
“If we want lower food prices and higher farmer incomes, we need data and processes that are traceable and checkable,” Pangilinan concluded.
