The Department of Agriculture (DA), through the Philippine Crop Insurance Corp. (PCIC), has partnered with GCash for a program aimed at delivering faster, safer and more efficient indemnity payments to insured farmers.
The DA said in a statement Sunday a memorandum of agreement, signed Jan. 24 by PCIC president Jovy Bernabe and G-Xchange Inc. president and chief executive officer Oscar Enrico Reyes Jr. in Taguig City, formalizes the streamlining of PCIC’s payout system to financially empower farmers and advance financial inclusion in rural areas.
The contract also includes the introduction of GCash’s Funds Disbursement Service that enables indemnity payments to be deposited directly into farmers’ GCash wallet accounts in real time, the DA added.
“This innovation not only aligns with the government’s goal of financial inclusivity but also supports PCIC’s push for digitalization and process efficiency,” Bernabe said.
PCIC said farmers will also benefit with GCash’s digital ecosystem, empowering them to save, invest and access microfinancing tools for resilience and financial growth, even in remote areas.
Prior to this partnership, PCIC also teamed up with the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) for the financial insurance program for deputized Bantay Dagat volunteers this year.
BFAR, through the Information and Fisherfolk Coordination Unit, has enrolled 6,800 additional volunteers, increasing the number of insured individuals by 47 percent from last year’s 3,545 beneficiaries.
The Bantay Dagat Insurance Program falls under the Agricultural Producers Protection Plan of the PCIC, which covers death insurance for enrolled agricultural producers, farmers, fisherfolk and other stakeholders due to accident, natural causes and murder or assault.
PCIC provides insurance protection to farmers, fishermen and livestock raisers against natural calamities, diseases, pest infestations and other risks.