Even before the whole City of Marawi could be cleared of the extremists, the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries has already started its rehabilitation program with the release of an initial financial assistance to registered farmers and fishermen.
Yesterday, while Congress was debating on the proposal to extend Martial Law, DAF Undersecretary for Special Concerns Atty. Ranibai Dilangalen and the Agricultural Credit Policy Council (ACPC) headed by Executive Director Jocelyn Badiola released P10-M to a local conduit bank so that the initial assistance of P5,000 for each registered farming and fishing household affected by the conflict.
The first batch of 80 farmers from Marawi City and Lanao del Sur received P5,000 each while the other beneficiaries are still being validated.
The qualified beneficiaries are based on the listing of the Registry System of Basic Sectors in Agriculture (RSBSA) handled previously by the Department of Budget and Management.
The RSBSA will be turned over to the DAF next year and there will be a revalidation of the listing.
The P5,000 is the grant part of the P25,000 Survival and Recovery Loan Program of the DAF designed to assist farmers and fishermen affected by disasters and calamities.
The SURE Loan Program was started under the administration of President Rody Duterte and was designed after the massive flooding in Agusan and Davao Provinces early this year.
As soon as the conflict ends, the DAF will proceed with the implementation of the Agricultural and Fisheries Rehabilitation Plan in Marawi City and Lanao del Sur.
It will include the seeding of Lake Lanao with about 5 million fingerlings of non-invasive and indigenous fish species to make food available to the people of the province in just four months.
(Photos show Usec Ranibai Dilangalen and ACPC Executive Director Jocelyn Badiola with the first recipients of the SURE Loans from the Dept. of Agriculture and Fisheries. Photos provided by Office of USEC for Special Concerns.)
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