CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, October 12, 2023 – To guarantee the safety and security of the information published and data managed, the Department of Agriculture – Special Area for Agricultural Development (DA-SAAD) Program will implement measures and procedures through creation of its Data Privacy Manual. This is in compliance with the international standards for personal data protection set by the National Privacy Commission through Republic Act 10173 or the Data Privacy Act.

On October 2-6, the SAAD National Program Management Office (NPMO) facilitated the Data Privacy and Management workshop which was participated by the DA and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) IT and Database Development (IDD) and Public Relations and Development Communication (PRDC) staff from 15 regional operating units. Representatives from the Agriculture and Fisheries Information Division (AFID), Office of the DA Secretary, and the Regional Agriculture and Fisheries Information Section (RAFIS) also joined in the activity. 

National Program Director Ulysses J. Lustria, Jr. said the activity is reflective of the program’s intent to train its personnel on the Data Privacy Act (DPA) and its Implementing Rules and Regulations to protect farmers and fishers’ information housed in the program’s database system. 

“The training workshop helps improve our implementation of SAAD. [Moving onward], we will know how to collect, store, process, and dispose of data properly,” he said, stressing the importance of proper data handling to protect SAAD’s data subjects and clients – the farmers and fisherfolk. 

Dir Lustria stressed that after SAAD Phase 2 implementation in 2028, others can use the data for research, policy-making, and [implementation] of other projects similar to SAAD. 

Atty. Willie Ann Angsiy, DA Legal Service Director who concurrently serves as the agency’s Data Protection Officer, apprised the participants of the salient features of DPA and protocols for responsible and accountable data management. 

The workshop specifically emphasized proactive measures in preventing, managing, and responding to data breach incidents to avoid unlawful and harmful data leaks, as discussed by Data Privacy Expert Atty. Jose Angelo Tiglao.

Significantly, the training enables SAAD’s IT and Communication personnel to foster DPA-compliant procedures in collecting, storing, processing, using, and publishing farmers’ and fishers’ data in carrying out their respective functions in consonance with the SAAD mandate. 

For his part, DA-10 Regional Executive Director and SAAD-Northern Mindanao Focal Person Carlene C. Collado, enjoined SAAD personnel in the region to be receptive to their duty not only to help the farmers and fisherfolk but also to protect them from any harm such as data breach. 

He also urged ways to improve SAAD-10’s data management protocol to better protect the farmers’ information under its care. 

The SAAD data privacy manual will be released next year. ###  

Writer: Azbie Talib, DA-RAFIS 10 Information Officer