The Philippine Crop Insurance Corporation (PCIC) in Cagayan Valley region has crossed regional boundaries just to offer insurance subsidy to farmers in eastern towns of the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR). Rodelia Pagaddu, PCIC’s head-marketing and sales division, stated on Friday, May 8, that there are more than eight thousand (8,000) farmers in Kalinga, Apayao and Ifugao municipalities who availed of the PCIC’s Subsidized Agricultural Insurance Program for Priority Provinces (SAIP-PP). “The three provinces were among the top 20 priority provinces nationwide to be given crop insurance subsidy. This is an effort of the government to help poor farmers insure their agricultural crops which are very vulnerable to natural calamities and pest infestations.” The SAIP-PP, according to Pagaddu, offers subsidy for less-fortunate farmers, who could not afford to sustain the payment of the insurance program, and whose crops were damaged by plants fest, diseases, and as well as natural calamities (like flood, drought and tropical storms). Moreover, the Department of Agriculture (DA) has allotted P25 million to subsidize the payment of the insurance of the identified beneficiaries in the said provinces. Given that Region 2 is not covered by the aforemnetioned program, the PCIC Cagayan Valley extends the initiative to include the farmer-beneficiaries in the three towns in CAR. Source - http://www.centriotimes.com