ILOILO – To help small farmers cope with the adverse effects of the Rice Tariffication Law, the provincial government plans to offer zero-interest loans to accredited farmers’ cooperatives.
Those tilling below one hectare of land are considered small farmers.
Accredited farmers’ cooperatives availing themselves of loan are expected to buy palay (unhusked rice) from small farmers at premium prices, according to Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr.
Out of 114,000 farmers in the province, 7,953 are classified as small farmers, he added.
The amount of loan will depend on the cooperatives’ “absorptive capacity”, said Defensor.
The provincial government is proposing a P100-million budget for the zero-interest loan program.
The budget will be included in the P1.3-billion supplemental Annual Investment Program (AIP) No. 3 which will be the basis for a supplemental budget to be asked from the Sangguniang Panlalawigan.
Defensor initially planned to source the P100 million from Land Bank of the Philippines. However, a review of the plan showed this was not viable.
Recently, the provincial government asked the National Food Authority to set up mobile buying stations in municipalities to reduce the transport cost of farmers.
The Rice Tariffication Law, signed by President Rodrigo Duterte in February this year, aims to address rice supply shortage and soaring inflation. Now, it is being blamed for the deluge of imported rice that is slowly killing the local farming industry.
July farm-gate prices of palay (unhusked rice) were at P17.78 per kilogram, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority or P14.1 in 11 provinces, according to the Department of Agriculture. (With a report from LHC, Capitol News/PN)
