Young Farmers and Fisherfolk Challenge Act

1901 TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE ) 25 JUL 14 A11:45 REPUBLIC OF THE PHTLIPPINES First Regular Session SENATE RECEIVED BY: s. No. 518 Introduced by Senator Loren Legarda AN ACT ESTABLISHING THE YOUNG FARMERS AND FISHERFOLK CHALLENGE PROGRAM, CREATING FOR THE PURPOSE THE YOUNG FARMERS AND FISHERFOLK CHALLENGE COUNCIL, AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR EXPLANATORY NOTE Under Article XIII, Sections 1 and 2 of the 1987 Constitution, the State must "give highest priority to the enactment of measures that protect and enhance the right of all the people to human dignity, reduce social, economic, and political inequalities, and remove cultural inequities by equitably diffusing wealth and political power for the common good." It must also foster "economic opportunities based on freedom of initiative and self-reliance." Despite the Philippines being predominantly agricultural, with roughly 30 million hectares of land, nearly 47% dedicated to farming and forestry — the Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries (AFF) sectors only accounted for about 8.3% of GDP in the first quarter of 2025.2 In 2025, the AFF sector accounted for 21.1% of the country's 1 Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). (2021, May 20). Supporting youth engagement in family farming to advance agriculture and enhance food security in the Bangsamoro region. https://www.fao.org/philippines/news/detail/en/c/1393437/ 2 Philippine Statistics Authority. (2025). Agriculture, forestry and fishing accelerates in the first quarter of 2025 (National Accounts of the Philippines). Retrieved from https://psa.gov.ph/statistics/national- accounts/sector/Agriculture%2C%20Forestry%20and%20Fishing

total employment. 3 Yet, these sectors yield perpetually low profitability and livelihood insecurity for their primary producers. The poverty incidence among farmers and fisherfolk remains alarmingly high: in 2023, around 27.0% of farmers and 27.4% of fisherfolk lived below the poverty line— significantly above the national rate of 15.5%. These figures translate to roughly 3 in 10 individuals in these basic sectors experiencing poverty, highlighting persistent rural deprivation. The agricultural labor force is rapidly aging-average farmer age is now around 53 years, with projections signaling a potential "critical shortage of farmers" in the next decade. Meanwhile, youth labor force participation (ages 15-24) rose to 33.6% in May 2025, up from 32.2% in May 2024, but few are entering the AFF sectors.6 Persistent poverty among farmers and fisherfolk threatens both food security and rural stability. With nearly half the population facing moderate or severe food insecurity between 2021-2023—including high rates of child stunting and malnutrition - there is a pressing need to revitalize these sectors. Declining farm employment, aging demographics, and youth outmigration from agriculture further exacerbate the issue. To address these challenges, the policy must aim to: • Modernize agriculture and fisheries through investments in infrastructure, technology, and climate-resilient practices, including smart farming, agroecological methods, and early warning systems. 3 Philippine Statistics Authority. (2025, July 8). Participation in the labor force in May 2025 increased to 52.32 million Filipinos aged 15years and over [Press release]. Retrieved from the PSA website https://psa.gov.ph/statistics/labor-force-survey/press-release/node/1684077662 4 Philippine Statistics Authority. (2025, March 31). Poverty incidence declined from 2021 to 2023 in ten basic sectors [Press release]. Retrieved from https://psa.gov.ph/statistics/poverty#:~:text=In%202023%2C%20the%20sectors%20with,Figure% 201) Balisacan, A. M. (2024, August 15). Statement on the 2023 full year official poverty statistics. Department of Economy, Planning, and Development. Retrieved from the DEPDev website https://depdev.gov.ph/statement-on-the-2023-full-year-official-poverty-statistics/ 5 Congress of the Philippines, Congressional Planning & Budget Research Department. (2024, July). Securing the future: Recommendations of the Secretariat for Legislation in the 19th Congress Retrieved from (V. T. Veloso & M. P. Aquino, https://cpbrd.congress.gov.ph/wp- content/uploads/2024/07/HSP-05-SECURING-THE-FUTURE_-RECOMMENDATIONS-FOR- LEGISLATION-IN-THE-19TH-CONGRESS.pdf 6 Same as Item 3,

• Enhance income, access to finance, and social protection for young farmers and fisherfolk by optimizing loan guarantees, providing start-up capital, and linking them to voluntary health, retirement, and calamity insurance systems. • Engage and empower youth by providing access to land, inclusive education pathways, technical and entrepreneurial training, digital agriculture tools, and meaningful participation in governance and policy-making. • Strengthen value chains and market linkages through improved branding, access to trade fairs, product development, cooperative development, and partnerships with agritourism, food, and business sectors. • Support innovation and agri-enterprise development through a dedicated Innovation Fund and harmonization with programs like KAYA, YEP, and TESDA's Agricultural Qualifications Framework. • Ensure equitable and inclusive participation, with a minimum of 30% of beneficiaries being young women, and meaningful inclusion of Indigenous youth, those in coastal barangays, and conflict-affected areas. This initiative seeks to uplift the socioeconomic condition of farmers and fisherfolk, equip them with modern tools and knowledge, and engage youth as equal partners in achieving national food security, agricultural competitiveness, and rural development. Given the constitutional mandate and the current socioeconomic realities, the urgent enactment of this measure is essential. It is a strategic investment in human dignity, equitable growth, and national resilience one that must not be delayed. In view of the foregoing considerations, the immediate passage of this measure is sought. LOREN LEGARDA

TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE ) REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES) JUL 14 A11:45 First Regular Session SENATE RECEIVED BY: S. No. 518 Introduced by Senator Loren Legarda AN ACT ESTABLISHING THE YOUNG FARMERS AND FISHERFOLK CHALLENGE PROGRAM, CREATING FOR THE PURPOSE THE YOUNG FARMERS AND FISHERFOLK CHALLENGE COUNCIL, AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Republic of the Philippines in Congress assembled:

Section 1. Short title. - This Act shall be known as the "Young Farmers and

2 Fisherfolk Challenge Act".

Sec. 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is hereby declared the policy of the State to

4 ensure that the rights of young farmers and fisherfolk are recognized, protected, and 5 promoted. Pursuant to this, the State shall engage the youth in nation building and 6 rural development, providing for this purpose access to knowledge, information and 7 education, access to land, new sources of financial services and capital, green jobs, 8 access to new and niche markets, and participation in policy dialogue.

Sec. 3. Establishment of the Young Farmers and Fisherfolk Challenge Program

and Pilot Implementation Strategy. - There is hereby established a Young Farmers and Fisherfolk Challenge Program, hereinafter referred to as the Program, that shall support and empower the young farmers and fisherfolk to be active partners in food security and agricultural development and modernization. The Program shall encourage the youth to pursue a career or engage in activities related to agriculture, ensure young farmers and fisherfolk participation in policy formulation and program implementation relative to the agriculture sector, and provide institutional support for

1 agri-business and agri-entrepreneurship initiatives of the youth to fully realize their role as agents and partners for development. The Program shall be implemented using a pilot-and-scale approach, with 4 selected provinces or regions prioritized based on youth poverty incidence, food 5 insecurity, and agricultural potential, to allow for adaptive learning before nationwide rollout.

Sec. 4. Beneficiaries of the Program. - The Program is intended to support

8 young farmers and fisherfolk between fifteen (15) to forty (40) years of age, who are 9 engaged in farming and fisheries activities, and are included in the Registry System 10 for Basic Sectors in Agriculture (RSBSA). The Department of Agriculture (DA) shall update its existing database to reflect these indicators.

Sec. 5. Creation of a Young Farmers and Fisherfolk Challenge Council. - There

is hereby created the Young Farmers and Fisherfolk Challenge Council, hereinafter referred to as the Council, to properly oversee the implementation of the Program. The Council shall be composed of the following: a. Secretary of the Department of Agriculture (DA) or a duly authorized representative who is at least an Undersecretary, who shall be the Chair; b. Representative of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) who shall likewise be an Undersecretary; c. Representative of the Department of Education (DepEd) who shall likewise be an Undersecretary; d. Representative of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST); e. Representative of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED); f. Representative of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR); g. Representative of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA); h. Representative of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG); i. Representative of a national organization of young farmers' cooperative or association, provided that the representative shall be between fifteen (15) to forty (40) years of age;

j. Representative of a national organization of fisherfolk's cooperative or association, provided that the representative shall be between fifteen (15) to forty (40) years of age; k. Representative of a farmers' women organization or cooperative, provided that the representative shall be between fifteen (15) to forty (40) years of age; I. Representative of a national organization for agritourism; and m. Representative of a national organization for food, restaurant, and business sectors. The Philippine Council for Agriculture and Fisheries shall serve as its Secretariat.

Sec. 6. Powers and Functions of the Council. - The Council shall have the

following powers and functions: a. Formulate the Program, in consultation with research institutions such as the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA), Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCAARRD), University of the Philippines - Los Baños (UPLB) and other relevant state universities and colleges (SUCs); b. Identify and streamline access to relevant capacity-building and livelihood programs across the different departments and agencies of government, including on-the-job trainings, job fairs, employment in farm tourism and agro-industrial zones, and other employment- bridging initiatives; c. Identify and streamline access to possible sources of credit across the different departments, agencies, and instrumentalities, including access to start-up capital; d. Monitor initiatives in emerging best practices in agriculture such as smart farming, farm tourism in compliance with RA 10816, or the "Farm Tourism Development Act of 2016," agroponics, aquaponics, hydroponics, and organic and boutique vegetables; e. Improve and facilitate access to marketing services such as through product packaging, promotions including branding and advertising,

I networking events, provision of subsidies to enable participation in trade fairs and exhibits, and linkage with media; f. Coordinate with local government units (LGUs) in providing subsidized rental rates for public retail areas and public markets to farmers and fisherfolk; g. Serve as a conduit between stakeholders and national and international leaders including Congress and the private sector in formulating policies directly addressing the concerns of young farmers and fisherfolk; h. Propose subjects related to agriculture and agribusiness such as gardening, backyard farming, urban farming, reforestation, agricultural appreciation, agricultural entrepreneurship, smart farming, farm tourism, and coastal management in all pertinent levels of the DepEd's K-12 system with the end goal of increasing enrollment in the technical- vocational track in Senior High School in courses related to agriculture, CHED, including the National Service Training Program (NSTP) and TESDA; i. Ensure scholarships and subsidized tuition fees for young farmers and fisherfolk in SUCs; j. Provide on-the-job training programs for young farmers and fisherfolk in areas such as "green jobs", reforestation, coastal management, fisheries, and other rural-based jobs, through the DOLEs Special Program for Employment of Students (SPES) and other livelihood and training programs; k. Explore and facilitate the extension of short-term leases for public land to young farmers and fisherfolk, providing free or subsidized land for cultivation and for aquaculture, and developing other packages such as, lease-to-buy schemes that would allow young farmers and fisherfolk to use available or unutilized agricultural land or fishing ground for the purposes of said Program; I. Expedite the leasing, distribution, and award of agrarian reform land to qualified beneficiaries;

m. Facilitate the use of excess land holdings of SUCs and PEls for agricultural training and developmental processes; n. Foster the formation of new ideas and technologies by assisting agricultural enterprises of qualified young farmers and fisherfolk entrepreneurs, pursuant to Republic Act No. 11337, otherwise known as the "Innovative Start-up Act of 2018"; o. Initiate social partnerships and rural development initiatives in partnership with the private sector; p. Optimize existing loan guarantee funds administered by various government entities to increase the credit worthiness of young farmers and fisherfolk experiencing difficulty in obtaining loans from banks due to lack of acceptable collaterals, credit knowledge and credit track record; q. Promote digital agriculture by facilitating access to ICT tools, mobile applications, e-commerce platforms, geospatial tools, and precision agriculture technologies. Partnerships with the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), private tech innovators, and LGUs shall be pursued. r. Ensure LGU participation, particularly Municipal Agriculture Offices and Barangay Agricultural and Fisheries Extension Workers (BAFEWs), in identifying beneficiaries, co-implementing training programs, and providing local support to beneficiaries. s. Coordinate with the Social Security System (SSS), Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth), and Pag-IBIG Fund to facilitate voluntary social protection coverage of young farmers and fisherfolk, ensuring access to health insurance, retirement savings, and calamity support. t. Integrate climate-resilient agriculture and fisheries practices into the Program, including crop diversification, early warning systems, post- disaster recovery protocols, and promotion of climate-smart agri- technologies, in coordination with the Climate Change Commission and the DA's Adaptation and Mitigation Initiative in Agriculture (AMIA); and

u. Accept donations, contributions, grants, bequests or gifts, in cash or in kind, from various sources, domestic or foreign, for purposes relevant to the functions of the Council. Said donations shall be deemed automatically appropriated for purposes specified by the donor or in the absence thereof, for the programs and projects as may be approved by the Council subject to the usual accounting and auditing rules and regulations: Provided, That, cash donations shall not be used to fund the personal services requirements of the Council.

Sec. 7. Tax Exemption on Donations. - All grants, bequests, endowments,

donations, and contributions made to and used actually, directly, and exclusively by the Council shall be exempt from donor's tax and the same shall be considered as allowable deduction from gross income for purposes of computing the taxable income of the donor, in accordance with the provisions of the National Internal Revenue Code of 1997, as amended.

Sec. 8. Waiver of Government Fees and Charges. - Subject to the exceptions

provided in Section 8 of Republic Act No. 11261, otherwise known as the "First-Time Jobseekers Assistance Act", all government agencies and instrumentalities, including government-owned and controlled corporations, LGUs, and government hospitals shall not collect fees or charges from young farmers and fisherfolks who are first-time job seekers: Provided, That such fee or charge is in connection with the application for and the granting of licenses, proofs of identification, clearances, certificates or other documents usually required in the course of employment locally or abroad: Provided further, that the benefit provided shall only be availed of once.

Sec. 9. Monitoring and Evaluation.- The Council shall establish a results-based

monitoring and evaluation (RBME) system with clear, measurable indicators to assess the outputs, outcomes, and impacts of the Program. The RBME framework shall include periodic performance reviews, tracking of beneficiaries and enterprise development, knowledge sharing mechanisms, and independent evaluations to ensure accountability and learning. Results generated from the RBME system shall inform the Council's annual reports, budget proposals, policy adjustments, and program design. To support these functions, at least three percent (3%) of the total annual appropriation for the Program shall be allocated for the development, implementation,

1 and operation of the RBME system, including the commissioning of third-party 2 evaluations and publication of findings. The results shall be incorporated in the annual 3 report required under Section 12.

Sec. 10. Harmonization with Existing Youth and Agri-Programs. - The Council

5 shall ensure alignment of the Program with existing initiatives such as the DA's Kapital 6 Access for Young Agripreneurs (KAYA), Agri-Negosyo Loan Program, Department of 7 Trade and Industry's Youth Entrepreneurship Program (YEP), and TESDA's Agricultural 8 Qualifications Framework. Duplication of functions and funds shall be avoided.

Sec. 11. Inclusivity and Gender Balance in Beneficiary Selection. - A minimum

10 of thirty percent (30%) of beneficiaries shall be young women farmers and fisherfolk. 11 The Council shall also ensure meaningful participation of youth from Indigenous 12 communities, coastal barangays, and conflict-affected areas.

Sec. 12. Annual Report. - The Council shall submit to the President and to both

Houses of Congress, not later than the 30th of March of every year following the effectivity of this Act, a report giving a detailed account of the effective implementation of this Act, and recommended legislation where applicable and necessary.

Sec. 13. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - Within ninety (90) days from

the effectivity of this Act, the DA and DAR shall, in coordination with the DOST, DOLE, DENR, DepEd, CHED, Land Bank of the Philippines, and National Youth Commission shall, issue the necessary rules and regulations for the implementation of this Act. The Implementing Rules and Regulations shall be published on the official website of the DA and relevant agencies, and disseminated to LGUs and youth organizations through official circulars.

Sec. 14. Appropriations. - The funds necessary to carry out the initial

implementation of this Act shall be charged against the current year's budget of the Department of Agriculture. Thereafter, such sums as may be necessary for the continued implementation of this Act shall be included in the annual General Appropriations Act.

Sec. 15. Young Farmers and Fisherfolk Innovation Fund. - There shall be

established a Young Farmers and Fisherfolk Innovation Fund, administered by the DA, to support start-ups, research and development, and community-led innovations in

1 agriculture and fisheries. The Fund may be sourced from public appropriations, private sector co-financing, and Official Development Assistance (ODA).

Sec. 16. Separability Clause. - If any provision of this Act is declared invalid or

unconstitutional, the other provisions not affected by such declaration shall remain in full force and effect.

Sec. 17. Repealing Clause. - All laws, executive orders, administrative orders,

and rules and regulations inconsistent with this act are hereby repealed or amended accordingly.

Sec. 18. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its

publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation. Approved,