DA watchdog tasked to keep FMR projects corruption-free
The Department of Agriculture (DA) has created a watchdog to monitor the implementation of farm-to-market roads (FMRs) and other infrastructure programs amid the ongoing government investigation into anomalies in the implementation of flood control projects.
“The recent controversy surrounding flood control projects underscores why we need a strong safeguards system,” Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said in a statement on Monday. “We cannot afford gray areas or blind spots.”
According to Tiu Laurel, the monitoring team will ensure transparency and accountability in DA projects while also ensuring that these adhere to environmental and social standards.
It will operate under the DA’s newly created Social and Environmental Safeguards (SES) Unit that will institutionalize safeguard measures first developed under the World Bank-supported Philippine Rural Development Project. These include environmental assessments, social risk reviews and stakeholder engagement protocols.
Tiu Laurel said the Interim SES Unit would draft a department-wide SES institutionalization road map and harmonize standards across all of the department’s offices, bureaus, attached agencies and regional field offices.
It will likewise embed safeguards into each stage of project planning and procurement and also ensure compliance with national regulations and development-partner requirements.
“A nationwide network of trained safeguards officers will provide oversight at both central and regional levels,” the DA said.
Interagency coordination
The watchdog will likewise coordinate with various government agencies, including the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples and the Department of Economy, Planning and Development, along with financing partners such as the World Bank and the International Fund for Agricultural Development.
Beginning next year, the DA will take over the development of FMRs from the Department of Public Works and Highways. This was after some eight out of the almost 3,000 validated FMR projects were found to be nonexistent based on an ongoing audit.
The national FMR road map outlines 131,000 kilometers of rural roads, although more than 60,000 km still need to be constructed.
Transparency website
As part of its implementation, the DA is developing the FMR Watch website, allowing individuals and groups to report any FMR-related issue by uploading photos, reporting progress and flagging issues directly from project sites.
Tiu Laurel earlier said the DA would create a portal so that people can check the exact location of agricultural road projects as well as visit and inspect these sites.
Apart from FMR projects, the DA said it is expanding its infrastructure with food hubs, cold storage facilities and rice mills. France has pledged support for around 300 steel bridges in 52 provinces, designed to improve access for farmers in remote areas.
