“Star Treatment” Of William Dar, Secretary Of Agriculture: How Do I Rate Mr Dar’s Performance As “Father Of One DA” With Its Complicated Family Membership & Long History Of Starless Performance?

oday, Monday, 20 June 2022, I publicly announce my “Star Treatment” of the accomplishments, or lack thereof, of the complex Department of Agriculture (DA) & agencies under & attached to it (dubbed “One DA”) with the headship of Secretary of Agriculture William Dar. Yesterday, “Father’s Day,” I was thinking of Mr Dar as “Father of One DA” – so, shall we love him or leave him!?

This essay is literally for star-gazing at the accomplishments of the complex of the agencies under PH DA under Mr Dar. The guide for my ratings:

1 Star – Running Along
2 Stars – Some Improvements Seen
3 Stars – Great Visibility
4 Stars – Beautiful Sights
5 Stars – Glory Be To The Father!
(Images: “One DA” from da.gov.ph; “5 Stars” from Alamy, alamy.com; 18 numbered images from da.gov.ph,

One DA’s star-way to heaven – or hell. From 1 Star to 5 Stars, how do I rate the performance of One DA in the last 35 months, from 05 August 2019, under Mr Dar?

What is initially much encouraging here is that with Mr Dar, the DA has designed previously what anybody can use to congratulate and/or criticize this bureaucratic behemoth – as I see it today, we can measure the performance of One DA using what Mr Dar brought in when he was appointed by PRRD as Secretary of Agriculture, what he called:

The New Thinking For Agriculture, with 8 Paradigms that contribute to it:

1.     Modernization

2.     Industrialization

3.     Promotion of export

4.     Consolidation of small- and medium-sized farms

5.     Infrastructure development

6.     Higher budget & investment

7.     Legislative support

8.     Roadmap development

With that package, we can see that The New Thinking (TNT) is very broad, difficult to measure!

I am glad One DA has come up with what it now calls “One DA Reform Agenda” with “18 Key Strategies,” as follows (Department of Agriculture, da.gov.ph):

1.     Bayanihan Clusters

2.     Collective Action/Cooperatives Development

3.     Province-Led Agriculture & Fisheries Extension System

4.     Mobilization & Empowerment Of Partners

5.     Diversification

6.     Credit Support

7.     Technology & Innovation Including Digital Agriculture

8.     Farm Mechanization & Infrastructure Investments

9.     Climate Change Adaptation & Mitigation Measures

10. Food Safety & Regulations

11. Agri-Industrial Business Corridors

12. Global Trade, Export Development & Promotion

13. Post-Harvest, Processing, Logistics & Marketing Support

14. Agriculture Career System

15. Education & Training: Agribusiness Management

16. Youth && Women Engagement

17. Ease Of Doing Business & Transparent Procurement

18. Strategic Communications

Above, the 8 Paradigms are very broad, the 18 Strategies are more specific, which is one intelligent way to look at the DA if you want to rate it and not simply criticize DA with a single item or factor that you dislike!

Even as I have been reading about DA’ aims and accomplishments, I will use gut feel today for my Star Treatment of One DA!

My personal rating of One DA with Father William? 3&½ stars: “Great Visibility, A Few Beautiful Sights!”@517