MANILA, Philippines — Malacañang on Tuesday assured the public of the government’s readiness to mitigate the impact of El Niño, which may develop as early as June and persist until early 2027.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. convened concerned agencies in Malacañang on Monday to assess the situation and identify interventions to cushion the effects of the weather phenomenon.
In a chance interview in Pasay City, Executive Secretary Ralph Recto said preparations are underway to reduce the impact of El Niño on affected sectors.
“We are already studying the government’s response to El Niño,” Recto said.
He said the government is reviewing previous interventions to determine which measures effectively mitigated the effects of El Niño.
The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) earlier warned of a 79 percent chance that El Niño would emerge during the June-July-August season.
The latest El Niño episode, which lasted from July 2023 to June 2024, adversely affected the country’s agriculture sector.
Pagasa said drier-than-normal conditions may occur in areas vulnerable to dry spells and droughts.
