DA releases P91.98-M loans to farmers
THE Department of Agriculture ( DA) on Wednesday said it has released P91.98 million in new loans to smallholder farmers to boost their competitiveness in rice production.
The loan assistance forms part of the DA’s P2.5- billion Expanded Survival and Recovery Assistance Program for Rice Farmers ( SURE Aid) program, which aims to support farmers adversely affected by the unimpeded entry of rice imports into the country.
So far, loan releases from the SURE Aid program, in coordination with the DA- Agricultural Credit Policy Council
( DA- ACPC) and the Land Bank of the Philippines ( LandBank), has reached P206.92 million.
Some 13,643 farmers had benefited from the loan assistance as of October 17, the DA said.
“Since the birth of the SURE Aid program, all we have in mind is to increase the farmers’ income by giving them the right tool to make their production sustainable in the process,” Agriculture Secretary William Dar said.
The latest round of loan releases reached 6,132 rice farmers based in Central Luzon, Southern Tagalog, Bicol, Western Visayas, Northern Mindanao and Davao regions.
Initially, about 1,000 farmer- beneficiaries from Zaragoza, Nueva Ecija availed of the credit program.
Dar said another batch of loan applications from 32,520 farmers totaling P1.14 billion is being processed and expecting release within the next few weeks. The DA — ACPC is encoding 43,166 new applications that will soon be transmitted to LandBank, he added.
Under the SURE Aid program, a one- time no- collateral, zero- interest loan amounting to P15,000 will be provided for each farmer tilling less than one hectare to enable the beneficiary to continue or improve rice production. The loan is payable in eight years.
An estimated 170,000 rice farmers in the country are seen to benefit from this loan project.
“The most important aspect of our mission at the Department of Agriculture is to build a food- secure nation and a stable and prosperous rural economy,” Dar said.
EIREENE JAIREE GOMEZ