By Paulo Loreto Lim

According to a press release, the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) clarified the elimination of the irrigation service fee (ISF) only applies to farmers being served by national irrigation systems and not communal systems.
In communal systems, farmers are expected to be assessed of operation and maintenance fees, which go towards the respective irrigators’ association.
According to NIA-Negros Island Region (NIR) Information Officer Shemei Ramos, the elimination of the fee, a policy of the President Rodrigo Duterte administration, results in a P2 million loss for the agency. The revenue was previously used to fund salaries and services for personnel.
It was recently reported, around 50 local irrigators’ associations are set to sign the Irrigation Management Transfer (IMT) contract, which will align the associations with the ISF policy and, at the same time, will not impact their operation and maintenance fees.
The contract is expected to cover farmland across Negros Occidental, through the Bago River Irrigation System (BRIS) and Pangiplan River Irrigation System (PRIS)./WDJ