ALMOST 1,493 hectares of farms in Negros Occidental damaged by the persisting dry spell are being assessed and validated by adjusters from the Philippine Crop Insurance Corp. (PCIC) to determine the amount of indemnity claim coverage. The farms belong to 1,178 farmers who are enrolled under the Negros First Crop Insurance Program (NFUCIP) of the Provincial Government and PCIC as its partner-agency, and have filed their respective notices of loss. Provincial Senior Agriculturist Dina Genzola said they are just part of the 7,041 affected farmers and fisherfolk in 6,122.38 hectares of farms and fish ponds in 134 barangays of 21 local government units (LGUs) in the province. Latest report of the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPA) showed that damage and production losses in rice, corn, high-value commercial crops (HVCC), and tilapia have already reached almost P214.94 million. The rice sector has the highest losses worth P209.94 million; corn, P3.09 million; HVCC, P916,086; and tilapia, P985, 250, the OPA report added. “The insurance program of the province provides claims worth P17, 000 per hectare of farm affected by calamities,” Genzola said, adding that insured farmers are expected to receive their respective claims 15 to 30 days after the validation made by the PCIC adjusters. Genzola said the amount of indemnity will be based on the value of agriculture inputs thus, damaged rice crops in the maturity stage may have higher claims than those in seedlings stage. “We continue to encourage local farmers to avail of the insurance program of the province to allay possible adverse effects of calamities like El Niño to crops,” she added. The enrolment premium per cropping season for NFUCIP is P840. Of which, only P340 is the counterpart of the farmer-enrollees while the remaining P500 is shouldered by the provincial government as loan. Source - sunstar.com.ph