The amount of loans extended to rural agriculture finance reached P5.39 billion in 2021, benefitting 95,943 small farmers and fisherfolk and 396 agri-fishery-based micro and small enterprises (MSEs) and farmer/fisher organizations (FFOs), the Department of Agriculture–Agricultural Credit Policy Council (DA-ACPC) said.
Agriculture Secretary William Dar lauded this development of promoting effective and sustainable delivery of financial services to the countryside last year amid the continuing challenges from the Covid-19 pandemic.
“The DA-ACPC’s credit programs, such as the Kapital Access for Young Agripreneurs (KAYA), Agrinegosyo (ANYO), and SURE Covid-19, have helped beneficiaries across the country to recover from the damaging effects of the pandemic and other calamities,” Dar said, who serves as the chairperson of the ACPC Governing Council.
The said credit programs offer interest- and collateral-free loans to small farmers and fisherfolks, MSEs and FFOs.
“We salute our farmers and fisherfolk who play a vital role in boosting food production to attain higher levels of food sufficiency for the country. It is crucial to provide them with accessible, timely and affordable assistance to finance their agri and fishery ventures,” Dar said.
The DA-ACPC reported that it was able to provide financial service access to an additional 73 unbanked municipalities, increasing its reach to 436 out of the 496 total unbanked municipalities in the country and contributing to financial inclusion.
As a support component for the agency’s credit programs, numerous loan applicants, especially young agripreneurs and start-up businesses, underwent capacity building programs including business plan preparation, financial literacy, simple bookkeeping, entrepreneurship, effective sales and marketing, and other relevant training to help make their projects feasible and successful.
“Under the astute and skillful leadership of its Governing Council and the Management Committee, we, at the DA-ACPC, are committed to work harder this year to do our part in achieving the common goal of a food secure and resilient Philippines with empowered and prosperous farmers and fisherfolk,” DA-ACPC Executive Director Jocelyn Alma Badiola said.
SOURCE: https://www.manilatimes.net
