The National Food Authority Council (NFAC) has recently approved the terms of reference for the bidding of rice imports under the government-to-private sector (G2P) scheme.
In a text message to the BusinessMirror, Office of the Cabinet Secretary Spokesman Jonas George S. Soriano said the NFAC has green lighted the terms of reference (TOR) for the G2P, which is scheduled to deliver rice imports on the last week of July.
“The TOR was already approved. It is just awaiting publication in at least three newspapers,” Soriano said.
Soriano added the NFAC has divided the 250,000 metric tons (MT) of rice imports into 10 lots. “The target is to ensure shipment starts arriving by the end of July in batches of 25,000 MT.”
However, Soriano said he cannot yet determine when the bidding will begin, owing to the difficulty of getting the private sector to participate in the process.
“The shipments will really depend on the process and I know the NFA [National Food Authority] is moving heaven and earth to make sure the deadline is met,” he added.
According to government officials, the country’s buffer stock is now down to six days, lower than the 15-day requirement of the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (Ledac). The NFA is mandated to maintain a buffer stock of 15 days at any given time and 30 days at the onset of the lean months in July. NFA Spokesman Marietta J. Ablaza confirmed to the BusinessMirror the NFA’s rice stockpile is short of the Ledac requirement. “Yes, the buffer stock is six days to last.”
On top of this, Ablaza said the NFA has yet to receive the TOR for the bidding of the rice imports under the G2P, which will beef up the buffer stock in time for the lean months. “We are still waiting for the [NFAC] resolution approving the terms of reference for the bidding of the 250,000 MT NFA importation,” she said.
In May President Duterte, in a policy shift, has adhered to the recommendation of the NFAC to import rice following the depletion of the NFA’s rice stockpile.
The NFAC has approved the importation under the G2P and minimum access volume schemes to augment the buffer stock for the lean months of July to September, when rice harvest is significantly lower.
The NFAC has opted to veer away from the traditional government-to-government (G2G) scheme, as it is prone to corruption since it is exempt from government procurement. The council said it has decided to import rice under the G2P, which it deemed to be “more competitive, least corrupt and transparent”.