Preamble
WHEREAS, a large majority, including domestic and international agencies and institutions assisting the Government in the implementation of the structural economic adjustment program for the country have unanimously recommended that the Government restart the coconut replanting program throughout the country; WHEREAS, these recommendations recognize that, unless replanting program is implemented, the coconut industry must be reduced to a domestic industry rather than a major export industry as most of the coconut tree population of the country are senile and the coconut trees in major coconut producing areas in the country were destroyed by natural calamities in 1982-1984; WHEREAS, even international financial institutions had offered to finance the restart of the replanting program by way of assisting the country to overcome and survive the economic crisis and to preserve the role of the coconut industry as a major export industry; WHEREAS, in its comprehensive report on the coconut industry, the National Economic Development Authority ("NEDA") studied different sources of financing and recommended that, in accordance with the self-reliance program of the country, financing for the replanting program be internally generated and that for this purpose, the export duty and the additional export duty on coconut products be utilized as the initial source of financing; WHEREAS, in accordance with the self-reliance program the country, there is a need to enlist the resources of the private sector in the efforts to increase the coconut sector production of the country and to encourage the private sector to devise and implement its own new area planting and/or replanting program throughout the country; NOW, THEREFORE, I FERDINAND E. MARCOS, by virtue of the powers vested in me by the Constitution and the laws, particularly Sections 514 and 515 of Presidential Decree No. 1464, as amended,President of the Philippines, do hereby decreed and order the following: