Reply #12: however, they could produce enough; the fact that they don't has more to do with their US satellite [View All]

[Hannah Bell]

status than anything else.

Marcos' 'Masagana 99' made RP rice exporter, self-sufficient

By Amy R. Remo
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 00:56:00 04/26/2008

MANILA, Philippines--For a brief spell during Ferdinand Marcos' dictatorship, the Philippines became self-sufficient in rice, reversing a trend of buying overseas to fill in shortages in the staple since colonial times.

The country exported rice from 1977 to 1978 following the success of Marcos' "Masagana 99" program--a blueprint to harvest a "bountiful" 99 cavans of rice (4,900 kilos)--per hectare.

Rep. Salvador "Sonny" Escudero, the last agriculture minister during the Marcos dictatorship, recalled that during this period, the Philippines had exported to Indonesia and even contributed to the regional buffer stockpile.

"The secret with Masagana 99 was the very liberal credit and extension work. We provided farmers with full credit support. We were in full control of our agricultural technicians, whom we regularly educated," he said.

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20080426-132782/Marcos-Masagana-99-made-RP-rice-exporter-self-sufficient.