Abstract:
To supposedly cushion the relentless liberalization brought about by the Rice
Tariffication Law (RTL), the government enacted a complementary Rice Competitiveness
Enhancement Fund (RCEF) to alleviate farmer income loss and maintain competitiveness.
However, almost six years into the law’s implementation, consumer and producer gains continue
to be insubstantial. Through a holistic qualitative assessment, such as qualitative interviews and
data analysis, this study critically assesses the RCEF’s implementation in Sta. Cruz, the
top-performing beneficiary of Laguna, and delves into its multifaceted effects on local rice
farmers and their communities. Findings revealed a complex web of dynamics, wherein the
RCEF's implementation has both positive and negative repercussions. On one hand, the RCEF
has provided valuable support to the farmer association, enhancing their competitiveness.
Conversely, challenges such as bureaucratic hurdles and uneven distribution of resources have
resulted in exclusionary practices that marginalize landless farmers and farmworkers,
exacerbating pre-existing inequalities. Using Bennett's Hierarchy of Program Outcomes, the
study found that impacts in practices and end results were all negative, indicating RCEF’s failure
to achieve its espoused goals. It also laid bare the disparities and disproportionality in access to
and distribution of benefits, borne out of the community’s power dynamics community. This
study underscores the importance of understanding neoliberal-backed agricultural policies and
their inevitably inequitable impacts. It calls for greater attention to issues of social equity and
inclusion in the design and implementation of agricultural interventions, urging policymakers to
address both structural and systemic barriers and prioritize the needs of farmers to strengthen
local production.
