P1-B credit line for poor provinces OKd

About a million farmers and fishers in the country’s 20 poorest provinces now have access to a P1-billion credit facility being made available by the Agricultural Credit and Policy Council (ACPC).

The ACPC, which is supervised by the Department of Agriculture, on Friday formally turned over the fund to the state-owned Land Bank of the Philippines and state microfinance provider People’s Credit and Finance Corp. (PCFC).

During turnover rites held in Quezon City, ACPC executive director Jovita M. Corpus said the fund was meant to establish a flexible credit facility that would serve as an alternative to “the rigid and stringent credit facilities usually provided by banks.”

The fund, dubbed Agriculture and Fisheries Financing Program, was officially released by Landbank and PCFC last Dec. 27 because it was allocated to the ACPC in the national budget for 2013. The former received P550 million and the latter, P450 million.

Corpuz said the qualified borrowers were small-scale farmers and fishermen listed in the Registry System of Basic Sectors in Agriculture, a census meant to provide assurance that those who would avail themselves of loans are qualified.

She added that agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) were not eligible borrowers “to prevent an overlapping of program beneficiaries with other credit programs that are … exclusively for” ARBs.

“Implementation of the AFFP intends to enhance financial inclusion among the rural poor, particularly those in the agriculture sector,” Corpuz explained.

“Although the local banking sector is known to have more than sufficient funds for lending, access to these funds by smallholders in the agriculture sector remains constrained,” she added.

Based on the implementing guidelines of the AFFP, it will be implemented initially in the 20 poorest provinces that include Abra, Agusan del Sur, Apayao, Camarines sur, Davao Oriental, Eastern Samar, Ifugao, Kalinga, Masbate, Mountain Province, North Cotabato, Northern Samar, Romblon, Sarangani, Siguijor, Sultan Kudarat, Surigao del Norte, Surigao del Sur, Western Samar and Zamboanga del Norte.

The ACPC counts 1,080,420 potential borrowers who are engaged in the production of priority commodities identified by the agriculture department.

These include 252,063 palay grower, 200,195 coconut farmers and 134,043 corn farmers. There are also 355,749 producers of high-value crops,  21,002 goat raisers and 99,651 marine municipal fishing.

Other beneficiaries are 9,229 vegetable farmers, 7,900 aquaculture fishers and 588 sugarcane farmers.

According to the ACPC, a borrower can take a loan of as much as P300,000 or funding that is good for a maximum farm area of five hectares.