The Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) will step up the distribution of land covered by the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP), as it gears up for the implementation of the program’s second phase under the Duterte administration.
The DAR still needs to distribute at least 500,000 hectares of CARP-covered public and private agricultural land.
According to DAR’s official record, the land acquisition and distribution balance (LAD) as of January 2018 was 561,000 hectares. This is down by 20,000 hectares as of June 2018, given the pace of land distribution.
At 50,000 hectares per year, the DAR needs at least 10 years to complete the distribution, but with President Duterte’s order, the DAR is now gearing up for more workloads with the distribution of more land to landless farmers under CARP Phase 2.
To do this, Agrarian Reform Secretary John R. Castriciones urged officials and employees of the agency to be more proactive not only in the distribution of land, but in providing the much-needed support services to agrarian reform beneficiaries.
The DAR has recently concluded its 2018 midyear performance review and planning conference held at the Development Academy of the Philippines in Tagaytay City. The activity was conducted to ensure that targets are met, and that the development thrusts of the current administration are integrated into the programs and services of the DAR, the lead implementing agency of CARP under Republic Act 6657 and its amendatory law, Republic Act 9700, or the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program Extension with Reform (CARPer).
Castriciones noted that as the DAR implements the Phase 2, or second phase, of the agrarian-reform program, the DAR will endeavor to cover more private and public agricultural lands for distribution to landless farmers.
Castriciones said foremost in his directive for the department is to increase issuance of certificates of land ownership award (CLOAs) and to speed-up giving various support services to farmer-beneficiaries.
“It’s foolishness to ever state that farmers or farm workers do not want to own land. There is no such reason for the slow distribution of land for this year. That’s why we are streamlining procedures on land distribution to hasten the processes in acquisition and distribution of lands,” Castriciones said in a news statement issued on Monday.
Join Arbos
Meanwhile, the DAR chief emphasized the importance of forming agrarian reform beneficiaries’ organizations (Arbos) and enjoining agrarian-reform beneficiaries to be part of these organizations.
It is through Arbos that the DAR courses through its various support services, he said.
To date, there are a total 5,451 Arbos nationwide. Of these, 4,923, or 90.3, percent are operational.
He ordered Municipal Agrarian Reform Provincial Officers (Marpos) to look for all CLOA and non-CLOA holders even in far-flung barangays, to visit them and encourage them to become members of Arbos.
“The fastest and easiest way for farmers to get support services and assistance is if they are members of Arbos,” Castriciones said.
During the performance review, the participants identified the internal and external drivers and barriers of the DAR, which either helped or hindered in the achievements of its targets.
The DAR regional directors also identified opportunities for improvements to further enhance the implementation of DAR’s projects, priority programs and management accountability.
To meet department targets, Castriciones ordered each DAR offices to draw up a contract stating their targets for the year.
“I want this done to ensure that we properly implement our mandate and deliver the support services to our farmer-beneficiaries,” Castriciones said.
For his final message, the DAR chief directed his officials to implement agrarian reform laws to aid in fighting for farmers’ rights and expediting agrarian legal cases.
“With these directives, the workforce of the department would do its best to implement programs and projects that would intensify land distribution, delivery of judicious agrarian justice and provision of support services,” Castriciones said.