The Land Bank of the Philippines (Landbank) has lent P229.38 billion to the agriculture sector as of January, achieving 86.5 percent of its loan target of P265 billion for the entire year, the Department of Finance (DOF) said in a statement yesterday.
Cecilia Borromeo, Landbank president and chief executive officer, said that one month into the year, the bank has already assisted 17,681 small farmers and fishers in accessing its various lending programs, bringing the total number to 1,050,663 assisted farmers and fishers as of end-January.
With this, Landbank is on track to achieving its target of assisting two million small farmers and fishers by yearend, she said in her report to Carlos Dominguez, DOF secretary and Landbank chairman.
Of the P229.38 billion loaned out by Landbank to the agriculture sector, P1.36 billion were released through direct lending to farmers and fishers, while P38.53 billion were given through conduits such as cooperatives, farmers’ associations and rural financial institutions, Borromeo said.
A total of P136.18 billion in loans were extended to small, medium and large agribusiness enterprises, while P53.31 billion were released to help finance agri-aqua related projects of local government units and government-owned and -controlled corporations.
On Landbank programs administered for the Department of Agriculture (DA), Borromeo said cumulative releases as of January 31 from the Agricultural Competitiveness Enhancement Fund amounted to P1.42 billion.
For the DA’s Socialized Credit Program under the Sugarcane Industry Development Act, cumulative releases as of January 31 reached P130 million; for the Expanded Rice Credit Assistance-Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (ERCA-RCEF), P410 million; and the Survival and Recovery Assistance Program (SURE-Aid), P2.28 billion.
Of these programs, the ERCA-RCEF and SURE-Aid, which were implemented to provide support to farmers following the implementation of the Rice Tariffication Law, have the highest utilization rates of 82 percent and 91.2 percent, respectively.
The cumulative releases as of January under the Credit Assistance Program-Program Beneficiaries Development administered for the Department of Agrarian Reform amounted to P580 million, Borromeo said.
Earlier, Borromeo reported to Dominguez that Landbank exceeded its target of providing agricultural credit worth P231.25 billion in 2019, with P236.31 billion of loans extended to the farm and fisheries sector as of end-December last year, representing a 102 percent accomplishment rate.
Borromeo said Landbank also exceeded its target of assisting one million farmers in 2019 by 32,982, which represent a 103-percent accomplishment rate for 2019.
Under Republic Act No. 10000 or the Agri-Agra Reform Credit Act, banks are required to allot at least 15 percent of their total loanable funds to farmers and fisherfolk, and 10 percent to agrarian reform beneficiaries.
