Manny Piñol
The Philippines is a country endowed with so many natural resources to make it rich and the people prosperous but our leaders are just too busy fighting over power and money that we have remained poor all of these years.
We have the 5th longest coastline in the world but we import fish; we have the richest mineral deposits but we import construction round bars and most of all, we have so many rivers and we host the top rice research institutions yet we are the Number 1 Rice Importer in the world.
Bamboo which is endemic to the Philippines has a potential market of P5-Trillion but we are now just starting to come top with a national program.
The latest tragic story involves one of the most expensive trees in the world, the Agarwood or Aquilaria Malaccensis, known locally as “Lapnisan” which grows wild in the Philippine forests.
Agarwood is a natural growing tree which when infected with fungus, reacts by producing a black resin which is the raw material of the “Oud Perfume,” a very expensive perfume because of the rarity of the source.
Other Asian countries where the Agarwood grows naturally have already developed plantations using an inoculation technique to stimulate the tree in producing the Agarwood resin.
In the Philippines, it is the private sector which is leading the way in the development of the Agarwood Industry while the government’s Department of Environment and Natural Resources has maintained the role of the watchdog.
Government should change this regulatory and restrictive posture and act as the facilitator and motivator.
In my farm, I have proven that Aquilaria Malaccensis grows as the 10 seedlings I got from a brother, Rey Quisumbing, of Kumalarang, Zamboanga del Sur, are growing well.
Government should now craft an Agarwood Industry Development Program and provide incentives to tree farmers who will join the program.
It is virtually hitting multiple targets with just one bullet: Re-Greening the mountains, addressing Rural Poverty and earning dollars for the country. (Manny Pinol)