FAO recently held a distribution activity in the municipality of Tuao, Cagayan, which was attended by New Zealand Embassy Deputy Head of Mission Tim Stewardson (center) and FAO Representative in the Philippines José Luis Fernandez (3rd from right).

Farmers in the provinces of Cagayan and Ilocos Norte who were affected by Typhoon Mangkhut (Ompong) are receiving support from the New Zealand Government through the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) to help them recover their livelihoods after the typhoon.

Typhoon Mangkhut battered northern Luzon in September 2018, damaging agricultural lands and farms a few weeks before harvest season. Farmers and fisherfolk bore the brunt of the typhoon, with foregone incomes from missed harvest.

Immediately following the typhoon, the New Zealand Government provided emergency assistance of Php18 million (NZD 500,000) to help address food security and nutrition needs of 3,550 farmers with agricultural inputs packages through FAO.

Through the New Zealand assistance, FAO has distributed fertilizers to the farming families to complement the Department of Agriculture’s (DA) provision of rice seeds, and also held damage assessment and reporting system-related trainings for the partners from DA, provincial and municipal agriculture offices.

FAO recently held a distribution activity for packages of fertilizers for more than 700 farmers in the municipality of Tuao in Cagayan. The event was attended by New Zealand Embassy Deputy Head of Mission Tim Stewardson, FAO Representative in the Philippines José Luis Fernandez, DA Senior Special Technical Assistant for National Corn Program Lorenzo Caranguian, DA Region II - Regional Director Narciso Edillo, and local government officials.

“The New Zealand Government is a long-standing partner of FAO, particularly in enabling immediate support to help farmers resume their income-generating activities and gradually recover from losses following a disaster,” FAO Representative in the Philippines José Luis Fernandez said.

“New Zealand is pleased to be able to support the farming families who were most affected Typhoon Mangkhut or Ompong. We are doing what we can to help farmers to recuperate from the losses incurred. We hope this support will help ease food security in the region,” said New Zealand Deputy Head of Mission Tim Stewardson.