The government and the World Bank signed the agreement for a $600-million (roughly P33.3 billion) loan for a project to modernize the agriculture and fisheries sector in the country.
The World Bank and the Department of Finance, on behalf of the government, signed the deal on July 7, 2023.
The Philippine Rural Development Project (PRDP) Scale-Up aims to transform the agriculture sector into a modernized and industrialized sector through public infrastructure interventions and strengthening the commodity value chain.
Meanwhile, House Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez said hundreds of thousands of farmers will now have extra resources to spend on food, education, shelter, wellness, and other family expenses after the New Agrarian Emancipation Act gave them a clean slate by condoning their debts worth P57.56 billion.
Romualdez said more than 600,000 agrarian reform beneficiaries can now focus on “living their lives to the fullest” and work to realize their dreams and aspirations for their families with the signing of RA 11953 into law.
PRDP Scale-Up, a major Department of Agriculture (DA) initiative, is an expanded response to the persistent challenges confronting the agriculture and fisheries sector and rural communities.
In particular, the project will boost farmer and fisher access to markets, increase income from selected agri-fishery value chains, and improve efficiency in the food supply chain.
The project will cover 16 regions composed of 82 provinces.
It will entail direct investments in rural infrastructure and enterprise sub-projects, which will directly benefit about 450,000 farmers and fishers and generate about 42,000 new jobs.
Amounting to $818 million (P45.01 billion) in total, the remaining $218 million will be funded by the national government and will involve local government units.
The World Bank has been supporting the project since 2014 and has provided two additional loans in 2018 and 2021.
Upon the completion of the project, the DA aims to facilitate its transition into a regular locally-funded program to ensure the continuity and sustainability of the project’s interventions.
In a stakeholder meeting on June 6, President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. emphasized the need to develop the agriculture sector not only in terms of production but also in ensuring the welfare of farmers and fishers.
The President’s thrust for a modernized agriculture and agribusiness sector is envisioned to spur social and economic transformation, as detailed in the Philippine Development Plan (PDP) 2023-2028.
As of July 2023, the total official development assistance loan and grant commitments from the World Bank amount to an estimated $7.94 billion.
“Before, our farmers have been restrained by the crippling thought of losing the land they till to huge and unpaid debts. They can now put all their efforts into cultivating their lands and providing for their families’ needs instead of being immobilized by debt,” Romualdez said.
Rep. Elizaldy Co of Ako Bicol said the New Agrarian Emancipation Act will provide a fresh start for local farmers and uplift the agricultural sector.
Co, who chairs the House Committee on Appropriations, lauded the President for approving the measure, which, he noted, promises to improve the lives of farmers across the country significantly.
“By condoning the debts of our farmers, the New Agrarian Emancipation Act provides them with a fresh start and the opportunity to improve their livelihoods,” said Co.
Under the new law, the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) will issue certificates of condonation in favor of agrarian reform beneficiaries, which shall be annotated on the Emancipation Patent (EP) or Certificate of Land Ownership Award (CLOA), as the case may be.
Then the condonation takes effect, and the appropriate Registry of Deeds will register the EP, CLOA, or any other title pursuant to the applicable agrarian reform law, along with the annotation of the notice of condonation.
“For me, this is the true intent of agrarian reform, for our farmers to own the land they till and for them to cultivate it without the burden of debt. It has now become a reality for more than 600,000 of our farmers with the signing of the law,” Romualdez said.
The New Agrarian Emancipation Act is among the 33 measures the House has approved to date out of the original 42 priority bills of the Marcos administration identified through the Legislative-Executive Advisory Council.