Landbank expands center for farmers, fisherfolk

MANILA  -State-owned Land Bank of the Philippines recently unveiled its newest agricultural hub in Cagayan, the first such center in the province, in an effort to extend financial assistance to more farmers and fishers.

The latest Landbank agri-hub in Baggao town offers banking, lending and agrarian services to 48 barangays, including more than 17,500 rice and corn farmers.

This hub allows Baggao residents to perform their banking transactions without having to travel all the way to Tuguegarao City, which is more than an hour away from the municipality.

Local customers include over 11,000 conditional and unconditional cash transfer beneficiaries of the Department of Social Welfare and Development.

“We look forward to more years of progressive partnership with the Baggao local government as we explore more avenues for collaboration, in the service of Baggaoeños and the nation at large,” said Landbank president and CEO Cecilia Borromeo.

Baggao, Cagayan local gov’t

“The Baggao local government will always be ready to support your undertakings, as we mutually fulfill our vision of providing responsive public service,” said Baggao Mayor Leonardo Pattung.

To date, Landbank operates 16 agri-hub nationwide in the provinces of Pangasinan, Ilocos Sur, Isabela, Pampanga, Nueva Ecija, Oriental Mindoro, Camarines Sur, Negros Occidental, Iloilo, Bohol, Misamis Occidental, Misamis Oriental, Bukidnon, Sarangani and Davao del Norte.

Agri-hub offerings

Such agri-hubs provide banking services including account opening, withdrawals and check encashments, and lending services such as processing loan applications.

It also offers agrarian services such as processing agrarian reform bonds and handling agrarian-related concerns from landowners, bondholders and agrarian reform beneficiaries.

The Cagayan agri-hub forms part of Landbank’s physical network in the province, consisting of 10 branches and branch-lite units, 54 automated teller machines, seven cash deposit machines and one mobile ATM.

Landbank has been extending financial support and technical assistance to the country’s agriculture sector.

Outstanding loans to the essential sector have reached P271.8 billion as of March this year, an increase of 14.8 percent from P236.8 billion in the same period a year prior.

Of these, P181.2 billion went to finance the requirements of small, medium and large agribusinesses to support other agri-value chain players.

Another P48.3 billion in loans supported agri- and aqua-related projects of local government units and government-owned and controlled corporations.

The remaining P42.3 billion benefitted small farmers and fishers, including those which were channeled through cooperatives and farmers’ associations, rural financial institutions and other conduits. INQ