Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

TWENTIETH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

1707

House Bill No.

Introduced by Rep. ANGELO MARCOS BARBA
2” District, Ilocos Norte

EXPLANATORY NOTE

No less than the 1987 Constitution mandates the State “to promote
industrialization and full employment based on sound agricultural
development and agrarian reform, through industries that make full and
efficient use of human and natural resources, and which are competitive in
both domestic and foreign markets.”

As an agricultural country, the Philippines takes pride in its rich flora,
fauna, and agricultural products and by-products recognized locally and
internationally. Various places in the country also thrive in their rich produce
but lack the medium or resource to promote this to nearby places, to the entire
country, and to the rest of the world. Consequently, many of the agricultural
products went undisposed due to poor linkages and information
dissemination, that can be addressed through an organized and unified
system or database of agricultural information.

Indeed, there is a call for a need to establish and institutionalize a
Philippine Integrated Agricultural Information System or PIAIS.

The PIAIS is a comprehensive information database that will collect
and synchronize agricultural data from various sources, which include, but not
limited to research institutions, municipalities and cities, universities, private
companies and independent research arms, and farmers. This computerized,
web-based agricultural inventory will greatly contribute in establishing
reliable, relevant, and updated knowledge on the agricultural data of every
locality in the country. Further, PLAIS will also be of great help in improving
linkages not only from farmer to co-farmer, but also to the consumer and the
market.

Apart from the information and data relative to agriculture and its
products, crop harvest, volume, and type forecasting, including an inventory
of specific classification of crop varieties planted, livestock, poultry, and
aquaculture produce in a particular area or locality are included in the PIAIS.
Moreover, a registry of farmer or fisherfolk’s contact details and farm location
will also be included in the proposed database.


This proposed measure will not only boost the Philippines as an
agricultural country, but also, and most importantly, secure a stable market
for the country’s agricultural and fisheries products, thereby ensuring an
appropriate return of investment from our local farmers and fisherfolk.

The Department of Agriculture (DA), Department of Science and
Technology (DOST), Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG),
and the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT),
are the proposed agencies mandated to spearhead the collection of
information and creation of the PIAIS.

On behalf of the 2” District of Ilocos Norte, and for the greater benefit

of our Filipino farmers and fisherfolk, the approval of this measure is
earnestly sought.

ANGE! ‘COS BARBA


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

TWENTIETH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House Bill No. 1707

Introduced by Rep. ANGELO MARCOS BARBA
2™ District, Hocos Norte

AN ACT ESTABLISHING THE PHILIPPINE INTEGRATED
AGRICULTURAL INFORMATION SYSTEM (PIAIS) IN ALL CITIES
AND MUNICIPALITIES

Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the
Philippines in Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the “Philippine
Integrated Agricultural Information Systems Act.”

SECTION 2. Declaration of Policy. — It is the policy of the State to uplift
the socioeconomic conditions of farmers and farming communities
nationwide in order to promote their welfare and empower their sector in the
overall development and progress of the country. Pursuant to this, an
integrated, computerized, web-based agricultural commodity supply inventory
and registry system linking farmers and organized communities all over the
country needs to be established to provide an easy-to-access local and global
real time information for agricultural commodities, with an end view of
creating a wider range of market linkages among farmers and agricultural
buyers. Furthermore, through a synchronized and integrated agricultural
information system, the National Government shall have access to real-time
agricultural information which can rationalize the objectives and policy
directives in the agricultural sector.

SECTION 3. Objectives. - This Act aims to attain the following
objectives:

a. Provide an up-to-date database of agricultural and fisheries products
ina locality;

b. Foster information sharing between farmers and potential buyers of
agricultural and fisheries products;

c. Secure a market for agricultural and fisheries products and ensure
appropriate return of investment for farmers and fisheries
stakeholders;


d. Allow local government units (LGUs) to manage a secure and
independent platform that creates linkages for farmers and fisheries
stakeholders;

e. Provide data on specific commodities that are readily available in a
particular locality for purposes of production monitoring in order to
meet the demands of the market;

f. Provide a secure, transparent, and independent modern web
application that may be accessed anytime by the public through a
multi-platform support or cross-platform support devices which can be
linked to existing systems in the Department of Agriculture (DA);

g. Streamline training and seminars in the management of the
operations;

h, Monitor the use of inputs given by producers, buyers, and other
segments of the value-chain including information during post-harvest
and processing; and

i. Ensure that all forms of assistance given to local government units
(LGUs), registered cooperatives, and other qualified individuals and
organizations are monitored.

SECTION 4. Integrated Agriculture Information System. ~ All cities
and municipalities are hereby mandated to establish an Integrated Agriculture
Information System (AIS), hereinafter referred to as Integrated formation
System. The IAIS shall serve as a dynamic online computer database where
information on the demand for specific agricultural and fisheries commodities
is gathered and uploaded simultaneously with the production data from
farmers in every barangay. The LAIS shall merge and synchronize agricultural
data from different sources into a cohesive database designed to facilitate
linkages from place of origin or the farm to local, and ultimately, global
markets. The IAIS shall also be integrated with the existing systems of the DA.

The Integrated formation System shall have the following features and
contents:

a. Municipal and city-wide identification of individual farmers, fish
breeders, and fisherfolk, as well as qualified organizations which
produce specific farm and fisheries products, regardless of quantity;

b. Crop harvest, volume, and type forecasting;

¢. Inventory of specific classification of crop varieties planted, livestock,
and type of fish raised in a particular LGU;

d. Farmers’ and fisherfolk demographics, including age group, gender,
ethnic group, income, seminars and trainings attended, and assistance
received;


._ Selected reports presented in both tabular and graphical form;

Registry of farmers’ contact details and farm location to facilitate
market linkages;

Search engine which allows farmers, fish breeders, and fisherfolk to
look for potential and actual buyers and for such buyers to search for
farms, farmers, and available agricultural and fisheries products; and

. Customizable dashboard accessible only to registered farmers and

fisherfolk clients, which contains the farmers’ and fisherfolks’ profile,
such as the area of the farm or fishpond, crops planted, livestock, and
type of fish raised.

SECTION 5. Registration. — All cities and municipalities shall encourage
and facilitate the free registration of all farmers, fisherfolk, as well as buyers
transacting within their respective areas in the Integrated formation System.

SECTION 6. Functions and Responsibilities of Cities and
Municipalities. — The LGU shall exercise the following functions and
responsibilities:

a.

The Municipal Agricultural Office (MAO), in coordination with the
Municipal Agrarian Reform Office (MARO), shall gather, encode, and
consolidate all pertinent data on the profile and demographics of
farmers, fisherfolk, as well as buyers;

. Monitor and control farm inputs, including machineries and

equipment;

. For municipalities and component cities, prepare and submit

real-time data under (a) and (b) to the provincial agricultural office
and to the respective regional offices of the DA;

. For highly urbanized cities, submit real-time data to the respective

regional offices of the DA;

. Establish farmer and buyer linkages and act as a gatekeeper at the city

or municipal level in the nationwide marketing of agricultural
products; and

Serve as the web administrator at the municipal or city level and be
responsible for integrating farm and fisheries locations into the
geographic integration system map.

SECTION 7. Functions and Responsibilities of the Province. - The
provincial government shall have the following functions and responsibilities:

a.

The Provincial Planning and Development Office (PPDO) is the web
administrator at the provincial level and is responsible for integrating
farm and fisheries data into the geographic integration system maps


for agriculture and fisheries;

b. The Local Economic and Investment Promotion Office (LEIPO) acts as
the lead administrator of the IAIS in the provincial level and ensures
the balance between supply and demand;

¢. The Provincial Agricultural Office (PAO) monitors the submission of
reports from municipalities and component cities, and ensures the
completeness, accuracy, and validity of the data submitted by the
MAOs and the MAROs; and

d. Except for highly urbanized cities, prepare and submit such data to the
regional office of the DA.

SECTION 8. Functions and Responsibilities of the Regional Office of the
DA. ~ The regional office of the DA shall have the following functions and
responsibilities:

a. Integrate the data provided by the provinces and highly urbanized
cities in the existing information systems of the DA, such as the
National Farmers and Fisheries Information System (NFFIS), a
web-based data collection system that serves as a platform for
updating the Registry System for Basic Sectors in Agriculture (RSBSA);

b. Collaborate with the regional offices of the Department of Trade and
Industry (DTI) in order to facilitate the availment of the various
programs of the DTI, as well as to strengthen market linkages through
such programs;

c. Recommend to the central office of the DA appropriate interventions
in the form of marketing, importation, and training assistance, as may
be needed;

d. Validate the data from the LGUs acting as the system administrator at
the regional level and provide real-time report to the central office of
the DA; and

e. Endorse for financial assistance the qualified fifth (5") and sixth (6")
class municipalities that can be given assistance in establishing and
maintaining their respective LAIS.

SECTION 9. Functions and Responsibilities of the Central Office of the
DA. - The central office of the DA shall have the following functions and
responsibilities:

a. Allocate funding for the integration of the AIS with existing
information systems;

b. Coordinate with the Department of Information and Communications
Technology (DICT) to upgrade, expand, and integrate its information


systems;

c. Ensure that the implementation, appropriate verification processes
and information safeguards are in place pursuant to existing laws and
regulations, in coordination with the DICT, Philippine Statistics
Authority (PSA), National Privacy Commission (NPC), Department of
Interior and Local Government (DILG), and the Department of
Science and Technology (DOST);

. Approve the prioritized interventions by the regional offices and
allocate corresponding funding;

e. Collaborate with other agencies for the creation of market linkages in
the domestic and international markets; and

f. Provide safety nets in the import and export of agricultural products in
order to support farmers.

SECTION 10. Duties of the Secretary of Agriculture. - The Secretary of
the DA shall monitor and ensure the compliance of all cities and
municipalities as provided for under this Act, and shall, as soon as practicable,
establish a centralized IAIS that shall integrate and link all existing
information systems in the country.

SECTION 11. Reports. — The Secretary of the DA shall prepare and
submit to the President and both Houses of Congress an annual report on the
implementation of the program which shall contain the list of
accomplishments and recommendations for improvement.

SECTION 12. Implementing Rules and Regulations. — Within ninety
(90) days after the effectivity of this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture shall
promulgate the necessary rules and regulations for the effective
implementation of this Act.

SECTION 13. Appropriations. ~ The Secretary of the DA shall include in
the Department's programs the establishment of the integrated and
centralized IAIS, the funding of which shall be included in the annual General
Appropriations Act (GAA). The LGUs shall provide the necessary funds for the
establishment of an AIS in their respective annual budgets.

SECTION 14. Separability Clause. ~ If any provision of this Act shall be
held unconstitutional or invalid, the remaining provisions which are not
affected thereby shall continue to be in full force and effect.

SECTION 15. Repealing Clause. - Any provision of law, decree, order,
rule or regulation inconsistent with this Act is hereby repealed and/or
modified accordingly.


SECTION 16. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days
after its publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general
circulation.

Approved,