By Manny Piñol
Two agencies under the Department of Agriculture, the Agricultural Credit Policy Council (ACPC) and the Agricultural Training Institute (ATI), will be tasked to play important roles in the implementation of the shift from subsidies to easy access financing of agricultural and fisheries production support programs.
Under the policy shift which I proposed to President Rody Duterte April 5, the DA’s support for seeds, fertilizers, machinery, production facilities and post-harvest equipment which were given through grants in the past will now be made available to the farmers and fishermen under an Easy Access Credit Program.
The Credit Program will not require collaterals and will only charge an interest rate of as low as 2% and as high as 6% per year.
This will allow the agriculture and fisheries stakeholders to exercise flexibility and greater freedom in their choice of seeds and equipment they need for their production.
The ACPC, which will handle the credit facility, will be asked to form Loan Facilitation Teams in every province all over the country to help farmers and fishermen comply with the requirements and guide them on how to avail of the loans.
The ATI, on the other hand, will be asked to conduct Financial Literacy Classes for farmers and fishermen’s groups, including individuals to help them manage their farms financially.
On Friday, directors of the ATI, officials of ACPC and the Regional Directors of the DA will gather in Baguio City for a one-day workshop on how to synchronize all of their efforts to implement the new credit programs of the department.
After this, ACPC will establish provincial coordination centers for its Loan Facilitation Teams while ATI will conduct Financial Literacy Classes in every province all over the country.
(Photos were downloaded from public websites.)
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