Agriculture VS Manufacturing

There is a debate whether the government should prioritize agriculture rather than manufacturing. In a way, this is true. But in the long run, the development of manufacturing must go hand in hand with agricultural modernization.

Think about this. To modernize agriculture, you must have post-harvest facilities, packing or repacking plants, cold storage plants, low-cost fertilizer, feeds, and farm implements. And of course, farm products must be transported to the nearest market as soon as possible because they are perishables. So we need trucks and modern roads. Why are we not building and producing all of these? This question must be addressed before we can have a modern agriculture. In short, develop industries related to agriculture. Would that remove the debate?

This is where the government, big business, and cooperative should focus in. If agriculture is modernized through the development of agri-related industries, farmers and fishermen will have more income which will lead to a more robust domestic economy. And why not produce high value added crops for export? Less dependence on traditional crops such as coconut, sugar, and pineapple will shield our economy from the seasonal ups and downs of the world economy.