MANILA – The Department of Agriculture’s (DA) partner financial institutions have listed P5.62 billion worth of loans which are awaiting approval to fund the country’s hog repopulation and rehabilitation activities.
The LandBank of the Philippines has written the largest chunk of the total figure with 25 applicants worth P3.287 billion, according to National Livestock Program director Ruth Miclat-Sonaco on Tuesday.
“These are applications nationwide, two of these are already approved,” she added.
Twenty-three applications came from Tarlac, Isabela, Pampanga, Zambales, Cavite, Rizal, Occidental Mindoro, Iloilo, Negros Occidental, Cebu, Misamis Oriental, Bukidnon, and South Cotabato.
Furthermore, LandBank and Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) allocated P15 billion and P12 billion, respectively, for lending to commercial raisers.
The DBP has so far processed for approval seven accounts that applied for financial backing in their breeder farms and one wean to finish farm with an estimated amount of P2.3 billion.
The DA, meanwhile, through the Agricultural Credit and Policy Council (ACPC), offers zero-interest loans, payable in three to five years.
The ACPC has so far pre-approved 365 loan applications of individual small backyard hog raisers worth P32.33 million, based on the data showed by Miclat-Sonaco.
A P500 million worth of initial budget has been set aside by DA-ACPC for this financing program.
DA’s biggest investments, the national hog repopulation and “Bantay sa ASF sa Barangay” (BaBAy) twin programs, have a combined public and private investments of P29.6 billion.
Miclat-Sonaco said the key to preventing the further spread of African swine fever is improving the raisers’ biosecurity measures as she cited these efforts through the BaBAy Program.PNA/PN
