A study of the Masagana 99 Rice Production Program in the Philippines

Abstract

The multiple objectives of boosting food production, generating employment, raising incomes and improving welfare could naturally be achieved by small farmers in the Philippines if all the resources required - including manpower, material and capital - were made available to them. In practice, unlimited support for the agricultural sector is not available from the government, so effective agricultural production programs need to be devised. This thesis reviews some agricultural credit schemes in developing countries - including the Philippines - that have been introduced to promote agricultural development, particularly increased production and improved welfare. This study then attempts to evaluate the Masagana 99 Rice Production Program in the Philippines and examines some of the problems that have affected program implementation. The results indicate that the Masagana 99 Rice Production Program did have some positive effects on production and has been moderately successful. It is still rather early to draw firm conclusions at this stage, but it appears that the M-99 program not only contributed to increased production but also generated employment thus improving small farmers' income in general.