At least 22 farm dams built after Marcos ouster

At least 22 agricultural dams have been built in the country since Ferdinand Marcos Sr. was toppled in 1986, contrary to the claim of his daughter and presidential sister, Sen. Imee Marcos, that none have been constructed.

Marcos, a reelectionist in this May’s elections, said no new irrigation infrastructure has been developed since her father's time during the Pandesal Forum in Quezon City on March 22: 

Mula pa noong panahon ng tatay ko, we never invested in agricultural infrastructure. Hindi naman tayo nagpalawak ng irigasyon. Wala nang bagong irrigation, 'yan ang problema. So, noon pa, 'yung irigasyon natin, kung ano 'yung natira noong time ng tatay ko, siya pa rin ang natitira (Since my father’s time, we never invested in agricultural infrastructure. We didn’t expand irrigation. There’s no new irrigation and that’s the problem. So, whatever irrigation was left from my father’s time is still all there is). [35:20 mark]

Three reservoirs built during the Marcos regime — Angat, Magat and Pantabangan — remain major water sources in the Philippines. However, construction of no fewer than 22 new large irrigation dams was completed between 1995 and 2022, based on data from the National Irrigation Administration, National Power Corp., Japan International Cooperation Agency and the Asian Development Bank.

These dams span 12 provinces in six regions across the country. 

Nueva Ecija and Bohol each have four. Negros Oriental has three. Pangasinan and Misamis Oriental have two each, while Bataan, Bulacan, Iloilo, Negros Occidental, Cebu, Agusan del Norte, and Davao del Sur each have one.

The International Commission on Large Dams defines a “large” dam as one that is more than 15 meters tall, or between 5 and 15 meters if it can store over three million cu. m. of water. All 22 built dams stand at least 16 meters high.

Meanwhile, NIA has begun constructing 23 “national irrigation projects” worth P85.66 billion, according to its 2023 annual report. It is investing in 17 smaller “multi-oriented” dams totaling P21.36 billion for irrigating farms, controlling floods, generating electricity and boosting local tourism.

These ongoing projects are expected to benefit at least 64,000 farmers, 11 municipalities and 12 barangays, the report said.  

By 2021, the total irrigated land in the country had increased from 49.36% in 1989 to 65.28% of 3.12 million hectares of agricultural land nationwide, according to NIA and the Philippine Statistics Authority. 

NIA attributes the growth not only to dams but also to diversion projects that redirect river flow to farms and pump systems that deliver water to upland areas.

Senator Marcos has been doubling down on irrigation and agricultural messaging as the 2025 midterm polls draw closer.

As of press time, her Pandesal Forum appearance has garnered over 39,000 views and 6,100 shares on Kamuning Bakery Cafe’s Facebook page. She reposted the video on her own Facebook account, generating more than 5,800 reactions and 2,000 shares. (AE)