The Department of Agriculture (DA) and Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) on Tuesday agreed in principle to include minimum wage earners in the ongoing pilot run of the P20 rice program—an expansion that follows President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s directive to sustain and scale the program through 2028.
Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma, who met with Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel Jr. at the DA offices in Quezon City, expressed his gratitude to his fellow Cabinet member for supporting his proposal for the inclusion of minimum wage earners in the subsidized rice program.
“We had a very good and fruitful discussion in our shared goal of helping our workers, particularly minimum wage earners. By including them in this rice program, we aim to improve their purchasing power,” Laguesma said.
“We are looking forward to a very successful implementation of this convergence of the DA and the Department of Labor and Employment.”
Secretary Tiu Laurel reaffirmed the Department of Agriculture’s commitment to President Marcos’ directive, emphasizing that strong inter-agency collaboration is essential to sustaining and expanding the impact of this vital social responsibility program.
“This initiative stems from the President’s promise to extend the P20 rice program to those who need it most,” he said. “ For now, participation is limited to workers from companies that have expressed interest in the pilot program.”
The DA expects that eligible workers from participating companies to start having access to P20 rice program next month. This program allows NFA the storage space to buy more palay from local farmers at higher prices, ranging from P18 to P24 per kilo.
These rates ensure farmers earn a fair return above their average production cost of P12 to P14 per kilo. President Marcos envisions the P20 rice program to benefit an even larger number of Filipino households by the end of his six-year term in June 2028.
