Policies needed to boost agri productivity 鈥� PIDS

The Philippine Institute of Development Studies (PIDS) has underscored the need for evidence-based policies to boost agricultural productivity and help reduce the ranks of the poor. A new SA国际传媒study showed that with tepid output growth over the years, the agricultural sector now accounts for just above a tenth of gross domestic product. About 32 percent of the ranks of the employed work in agriculture, forestry and hunting, and fishing. The study noted that the poor can mostly be found in the rural areas working in these low-skilled, low-productivity, and low-income jobs. SA国际传媒has done extensive work in agricultural policy research, in support of the government鈥檚 goal of making growth more inclusive. A recent paper by SA国际传媒Senior Research Fellow Roehlano Briones argues that the agricultural and rural economy should be at the "forefront, rather than periphery, of the country鈥檚 strategy for quality employment generation.鈥�