ILOILO City — More than 25,000 agrarian reform beneficiaries in Western Visayas are poised to gain stronger and more secure ownership of the lands they till as the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) targets the conversion of collective landholdings covering about 40,000 hectares into individual titles this year.
DAR-Western Visayas said 25,237 agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) are expected to benefit from the registration and distribution of 2,746 collective Certificates of Land Ownership Award (CCLOAs) under the Support to Parcelization of Lands for Individual Titling (SPLIT) Project.
The 2026 target represents a major step toward DAR Region 6’s broader goal of distributing individual titles covering 89,000 hectares in Western Visayas by December 2028.
About 90 percent of the landholdings targeted for parcelization in the region have already passed field validation, putting the agency closer to converting collective ownership into individual and legally secure property rights for farmers.
Iloilo accounts for the biggest portion of the regional target at 14,199.7323 hectares covered by 1,107 CCLOAs and involving 10,517 beneficiaries.
Antique follows with 13,394.2238 hectares under 127 CCLOAs for 5,647 beneficiaries, while Capiz has 6,951.5623 hectares involving 745 CCLOAs and 4,951 beneficiaries.
Aklan accounts for 3,337.6792 hectares under 512 CCLOAs benefiting 2,477 farmers, while Guimaras has 2,117.2905 hectares under 255 CCLOAs for 1,645 beneficiaries.
Acting DAR-6 regional director Anthony B. Arostique said succeeding distribution targets in 2027 and 2028 are expected to complete the region’s 89,000-hectare obligation.
The parcelization drive is being carried out through Project SPLIT, a World Bank-supported program designed to subdivide landholdings previously covered by collective titles and issue individual electronic titles to qualified agrarian reform beneficiaries.
The nationwide project was approved through a $370-million loan package in June 2020 and covers about 1.37 million hectares held under collective titles, with an estimated 1.14 million ARBs expected to benefit.
Collective CLOAs were widely issued beginning in the 1990s to accelerate land distribution. Under Project SPLIT, these collectively owned properties are subdivided so individual farmers can obtain legally defined and secure ownership of the specific parcels they cultivate.
Arostique also stressed compliance with Republic Act 6657, or the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law, as amended by Republic Act 9700, noting that eligible landholdings are drawn from notices of coverage issued through July 2014.
Beyond Project SPLIT, DAR-6 is targeting another 1,034 hectares for regular land distribution and 652 hectares for land valuation, with additional landholdings in the pipeline being processed by the Land Bank of the Philippines.
The agency is also expanding support for farmers under its Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Development and Sustainability Program.
A total of 10,525 beneficiaries are targeted for specialized training, while 5,910 are expected to gain access to credit and microfinance services. DAR-6 is likewise supporting 100 accredited agrarian reform organizations.
As part of its efforts to improve market opportunities for farmers, DAR-6 will hold an agrarian trade fair at West Visayas State University on October 6, featuring regional products, including processed goods from Aklan, calamansi and coconut products from Capiz, and mango-based products from Negros.
The regional office is also pursuing organizational reforms to address increasing legal and administrative workloads, including plans to increase lawyer positions. Vacancies covering Salary Grades 9 to 18 are scheduled to open in November.
Arostique said strengthening DAR’s institutional capacity remains important as Western Visayas continues to expand economically and agriculture remains a major component of regional development.
“Ang Region 6 is considered one of the fast-growing economies, and we cannot overlook the significance of the Department of Agrarian Reform in terms of the land component, agricultural productivity, and the aspects of the agricultural economy,” he stressed./PN
