Palace tells LANDBANK to ease lending requirements for farmers

MALACAÑANG said Thursday that President Rodrigo R. Duterte wants the Land Bank of the Philippines (LANDBANK) to reduce the hurdles for obtaining farm loans.

According to the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO), Mr. Duterte met with Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol, Land Bank of the Philippines President and CEO Alex V. Buenaventura, and Development Bank of the Philippines Chairman Alberto G. Romulo at the Palace on Wednesday.

In a press briefing, Presidential Spokesperson Herminio L. Roque, Jr. said Mr. Duterte, during the meeting, expressed his desire for the LANDBANK to fulfill its mandate to help farmers.

“It isn’t right for a government bank formed to help farmers to be unapproachable by small farmers because they are unable to comply with lending requirements,” he said.

He said LANDBANK, currently a universal bank, needs to go back to the basics and help even farmers who cannot meet lending requirements, and to work around the need for project loan applicants to submit feasibility studies, among others.

He said the bank needs “to provide instant credit” for farmers, including “victims of natural calamities.”

“That was the president’s message - to provide quick assistance during times of calamity… and not to insist on a long list of requirements,” Mr. Roque said.

Asked for comment, Mr. Buenaventura, the LANDBANK President and CEO, had not responded at deadline time.

According to its Web site, LANDBANK has partnered with the Departments of Agriculture (DA), Agrarian Reform (DAR), and Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to provide “credit assistance to Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries (ARBs) through their respective organizations and support their on-farm and off-farm activities whether individual or communal projects.”

Criteria for Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Organizations (ARBOs), Farmers Organizations (FOs) other than ARBOs, and Peoples Organizations (POs) include: legal personality, registration with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Cooperative Development Authority (CDA); the ARB membership list; a core management team (i.e. manager, cashier, bookkeeper); and a track record of operations in the preceding six months, among others. —