State-owned Land Bank of the Philippines is negotiating with the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the Kreditanstalt Fur Wiederaufbau (KfW) of Germany for a loan of $102.98 million, its chief executive said.

Land Bank president Gilda Pico said $64.84 million of the loan would be used in renewable energy and climate change mitigation projects of cooperatives, local government units, government-owned or -controlled corporations and private enterprises.

About $25.93 million (20 million euros) will be for climate change and energy efficiency projects under the KfW-Credit Line for Energy Efficiency and Climate Protection, and $3.13 million (2.4 million euros), under the Community-Based Forest Management Program of KfW in the islands of Panay and Negros, for sustainable development projects, protection of forest resources in select watersheds and to reduce poverty.

A supplemental loan of $9.08 million (7 million euros) is also being negotiated under the KfW-LGU Investment Program, which aims to improve services and infrastructure facilities of local government units, Pico added.

Pico said that in the period from January to October, Land Bank loans to priority sectors grew 21 percent to P102.3 billion from P84.3 billion in the same period last year.

The bank’s priority sectors include small farmers and fisherfolk, micro, small and medium-scale enterprises, agro-infrastructure, agro-related projects, agribusiness, environment-related projects, and livelihood projects.

Its loans to priority sectors accounted for 67 percent of its regular loan portfolio during the period, Pico said.

Loans to small farmers and fisherfolk grew 16 percent to P18.9 billion from P16.3 billion. Loans for agro-infrastructure projects of local government units rose 15 percent to P19.3 billion from P16.8 billion, and loans for agro-related projects of government-owned or controlled corporations grew 43 percent to P18.6 billion from P13.0 billion, she said.

Loans for agribusiness projects rose 14.6 percent to P16.5 billion from P14.4 billion.

Loans to micro, small and medium-scale enterprises dropped 6.2 percent to P18.1 billion from P19.3 billion. Edited by INQUIRER.net