THE Department of Agriculture (DA) said on Monday that it consolidated its existing lending programs in order to provide a more convenient and less complex lending schemes to farmers and fishermen.
“The absence of financing for farmers created a monumental problem in agriculture in the past,” Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol said in a statement.
“Time is essential, especially for farmers,” Piñol added. “A two-week delay in planting means they may not be able to harvest on time, especially before the typhoon season.”
Piñol, who also serves as the chairman of the Governing Council of the Agriculture Credit Policy Council (ACPC), convened a meeting together with ACPC Executive Director Jocelyn Alma R. Badiola and other members of the ACPC Governing Council on January 31 to discuss the means on how to make loan programs more accessible and available to farmers.
The ACPC Governing Council is comprised of the heads of the DA, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, the departments of Finance and of Department of Budget and Management, and the National Economic and Development Authority.
The ACPC Governing Council agreed to trim down the seven existing loan programs of the ACPC to two to three credit facilities under the Program for Unified Lending in Agriculture (Punla), the DA said.
With an initial funding of P200 million, Punla targets to boost the respective agri-fishery industries of the 10 poorest provinces in the country, according to the DA.
“The program provides lending for farmers and [fisherman] groups with less stringent requirements, faster fund-releasing time and low interest rates,” the DA’s statement read.