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Alden Monzon - The Philippine Star
December 9, 2025 | 12:00am
Local tourists enjoy the fresh air as farmers cultivate various crops at the St. Raphael Organic Farming site within the SVD Laudato Si’ Farm in Tagaytay City, Cavite on February 1, 2025.
STAR / Miguel de Guzman
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Agriculture (DA) has launched a new watchdog unit to ensure proper implementation of its infrastructure programs, particularly farm-to-market roads, amid the massive ongoing audit of its projects.
In a statement, the DA said the unit will strengthen oversight and embed social and environmental safeguards in all its infrastructure initiatives, including roads, food hubs, cold storage facilities and rice mills.
“The recent controversy surrounding flood control projects underscores why we need a strong safeguards system,” Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said.
“We cannot afford gray areas or blind spots. This watchdog unit ensures that every DA project is transparent, accountable and fully aligned with environmental and social standards.”
The DA said that oversight will be handled by their newly formed Interim Social and Environmental Safeguards (SES) Unit, which was established through an administrative directive.
It said the body will institutionalize safeguards tools developed under the World Bank-supported Philippine Rural Development Project, including environmental assessments, social risk reviews and stakeholder engagement protocols.
The SES Unit will coordinate with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples, the Department of Economy, Planning and Development and financing partners such as the World Bank and the International Fund for Agricultural Development.
A nationwide network of trained safeguards officers will also monitor projects at central and regional levels, ensuring compliance with national regulations and development partner requirements.
With billions of pesos allocated for rural infrastructure, the DA aims to minimize environmental risks, protect communities and close compliance gaps that have historically slowed projects.
The DA said the national FMR roadmap aims for 131,000 kilometers of rural roads, with over 60,000 kilometers remaining unbuilt to date.
These roads are seen as vital for lowering transport costs, reducing post-harvest losses and moving produce efficiently from farms to markets.
The DA has identified eight “ghost” projects so far in its latest audit, with a total contract value of these unfinished or missing infrastructure contracts amounting to P100 million.
DA Assistant Secretary and spokesperson Arnel De Mesa said these anomalous projects were uncovered in Davao Occidental and cover the years 2020 to 2023.
