By Othel V. Campos

The government will allow the private sector to import 300,000 metric tons of rice this year, the Agriculture Department said yesterday.

?It?s been open for two weeks now. They [private sector] can bring it in through the NFA?s [National Food Authority] tax expenditure fund program,? Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap told reporters at the sidelines of an economic briefing yesterday at the Dusit Hotel in Makati City.

He said the government would adopt the same steps last year when it opened up imports to private sector groups.

The volume is the last of the approved 1.8-million MT rice importation for the year.

The Agriculture Department earlier entered into a government transaction with Vietnam to bring in imported rice.

?That is close to 90 percent of our food security needs. We are confident that the private sector can take care of the slack. And if not, the government can always step in,? Yap said.

The private sector in 2008 purchased around 69,404 MT from an authorized importation volume of 300,000 MT. Private traders shipped in 22,060 MT from two separate auctions and another 47,244 MT in June.

Yap insisted that the rice importation was not a result of an impending rice production shortfall in the second semester.