Agri dep’t launches infra monitoring office

THE Department of Agriculture (DA) said it established a compliance unit to oversee its newly assumed infrastructure responsibilities, particularly for farm-to-market roads (FMRs), which the DA is taking over from the Department of Public Works and Highways next year.

The Social and Environmental Safeguards (SES) Unit, created through Department Order 22, series of 2025, will ensure that DA infrastructure projects are compliant with national regulations and development-partner requirements.

“The recent controversy surrounding flood control projects underscores why we need a strong safeguards system. 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,” Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel, Jr. said in a statement.

The SES will deploy safeguard officers to oversee both central-government and regional projects, according to the DA.

The unit will also work with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples, as well as development partners like the World Bank and the International Fund for Agricultural Development.

The DA’s national FMR roadmap identifies the need for 131,000 kilometers of rural roads, more than 60,000 kilometers of which remain unbuilt. The DA said the FMRs are needed to lower transport costs and reduce post-harvest losses.

Beyond FMRs, the DA said it aims to improve agricultural infrastructure like food hubs, cold storage facilities and rice mills. It said France has pledged support for around 300 steel bridges in 52 provinces to improve connectivity to remote farms. — Vonn Andrei E. Villamiel