Banana Export Promotion Act

TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE ) JUL 15 P3:23 REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES ) First Regular Session RECEIVED SA SENATE S.B. No. 0üo Introduced by SENATOR IMEE R. MARCOS AN ACT URGING THE COMPREHENSIVE PLANNING, DEVELOPMENT, AND EXPORT PROMOTION OF BANANA, AND PROVIDING FUNDS THEREFOR EXPLANATORY NOTE Bananas are one of the primary agricultural exports of the Philippines. The Philippines started exporting bananas in 1968, with Japan being the primary destination. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) recently noted that the Philippines had been dislodged as the third-largest banana exporter, with Colombia overtaking the Southeast Asian nation. Philippine banana exports last year fell by 3.1 percent to 2.28 million metric tons, compared to the 2.35 million metric tons it shipped in 2023. The country's largest export markets are China, Japan, and Korea. The decrease in production can be attributed to the prevalence of the Panama disease or Fusarium wilt. According to Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr., the spread of Banana Fusarium Wilt Tropical Race 4 (TR4) disease and black sigatoka caused local smallholder farms, pegged at 90,000 hectares, to shrink by 50 percent. Smallholder farmers account for about 40 percent of the country's banana growers. As such, there is a need for government to provide assistance to the sector in order to address the Panama disease outbreak in the country. The banana export sector of the country has several disadvantages. On the processed sector, the lack of processing equipment for the production of banana chips and other processed products hinder the growth of the sector. There is a need for the Department of Agriculture to organize the small farmers, provide them with access to processing facilities, and link them with exporters. The Philippines also has difficulties complying on the stringent regulations of the major markets in the region. In particular, complying with Sanitary and

Phytosanitary (SPS) permit and Good Agricultural Practice (GAP) remains problematic. There is a need for the Department of Agriculture to provide the farmers with the necessary training and assistance needed to comply with SPS and GAP standards. The Department of Foreign Affairs also need to negotiate with our trade partners in order to facilitate the process of granting of the said permits. The biggest disadvantage of the banana export sector Is the Free Trade Agreements that the other exporters are signing with our trade partners. Japan already offers zero tariff rates on bananas imported from Viet Nam, Peru, Ecuador, and Indonesia. While the Philippines has just concluded the negotiation of a trade deal with Korea to reduce the 30-percent tariff levied on banana imports, there is still a need to negotiate additional free trade deals with our trade partners to preserve the competitiveness of Philippine Banana exports in the region. For the abovementioned reasons, the immediate passage of this bill is earnestly sought. Free h. Marca IMEE R. MARCOS Y

TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE ) 25 JUL 15 P3:23 First Regular Session RECESO LA SENATE S.B. No. 658 Introduced by SENATOR IMEE R. MARCOS AN ACT URGING THE COMPREHENSIVE PLANNING, DEVELOPMENT, AND EXPORT PROMOTION OF BANANA, AND PROVIDING FUNDS THEREFOR Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled:

Section 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the "Banana Export Promotion Act."

Sec. 2. Establishment of the Banana Export Promotion Council (BEPC). - A Council,

composed of the Secretary of the Department of Agriculture (DA) or his representative as the Chairperson, the Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) or his representative, the Secretary of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) or his representative, and one (1) each from the banana growers and commercial processors' sectors to be designated by the Secretary of the DA shall be created immediately upon the effectivity of this Act to ensure the government's, support, and assistance to banana exporters. The Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) under DA, through the office which implements the High-Value Crops Development Program, shall be designated as the BEPC'S Secretariat.

Sec. 3. Functions of the BEPC- The BEPC, in consultation with the Department of

Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Department of Science and Technology (DOST), state universities and colleges, banana growers' and processors cooperatives and organizations, local government units, and the private sector, shall formulate a ten (10) year framework to be validated and updated annually. Such Framework shall serve as guide to the formulation and implementation of plans, programs and projects for the production, processing and marketing of Philippine banana for export worldwide, as envisioned in this Act. The Framework shall likewise provide for the following: a) National Framework - The DA, DOST, state universities and colleges (SUCs), and other stakeholders shall strengthen the conduct of researches on banana particularly on areas of crop improvement, crop protection, harvesting and

postharvest handling, supply chain analysis, marketing and promotion; b) Investment Promotion and Facilitation - The DA and DTI shall develop programs establishing links between stakeholders in the Banana Industry and Government Financial Institutions (GFIs) and other financial cooperatives. The DA and DTI shall likewise develop and implement programs that would establish reasonable and innovative investment incentives to attract more players in the Banana Industry; c) Export Promotion Support - An integrated and strategic export promotion program for Banana Industry shall be created. The export promotion program shall be responsive to market conditions, needs of the exporters, and possibilities offered by new products and technologies. It shall likewise provide foreign trade and export promotion activities through trainings, technical assistance, capacity building, generating awareness on export opportunities, and export planning assistance; d) Strengthen Trade Policies and Support Network. - The DA shall be responsible in coordinating a consultative approach for the various stages of the trade policy making process. The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) shall lead the negotiation of Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) to provide a competitive environment for banana exports abroad; and e) Monitoring and Evaluation. - The DA shall continuously monitor, track, and analyze the progress and outcomes of the programs to be implemented to determine over-all effectiveness.

Sec. 4. Appropriations. - The amount necessary to implement this Act shall be included

in the annual General Appropriations Act (GAA). Thereafter, such funds as may be necessary for the continued Implementation of this Act shall be included in the succeeding annual GAA.

Sec. 5. Separability Clause. - If any provision, or part hereof, is held invalid or

unconstitutional, the remainder of the law or the provision not otherwise affected shall remain valid and subsisting.

Sec. 6. Repealing Clause. - Any law, presidential decree or issuance, executive order,

letter of instruction, administrative order, rule or regulation contrary to or inconsistent with, the provisions of this Act is hereby repealed, modified, or amended accordingly.

Sec. 7. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its

publication in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation. Approved,