Government-owned Land Bank of the Philippines (Landbank) released P261.7 billion worth of loans to the agriculture sector in 2022, up by 5.5 percent from P247.9 billion in 2021.
Landbank President and CEO, Cecilia C. Borromeo said they continue to lend to all players in the agribusiness value chain.
She also said that Landbank, the country’s second largest universal and commercial bank with assets of P2.76 trillion, continued to be the agri-related industry’s biggest source of funding.
“We remain committed to delivering timely and accessible credit to boost economic activities in the countryside and the country’s overall food production,” said Borromeo in a statement on Tuesday, Feb. 21.
In terms of loans, the government bank is fourth biggest bank. Its outstanding loans to the agriculture sector as of end-2022 has been growing at an average rate of 10.4 percent in the last 10 years.
Of the total P261.7 billion agri loans, about P46.6 billion were loans to small farmers and fishers, including those which were channeled through cooperatives, farmers’ associations, rural financial institutions, and other conduits, said Landbank.
About P166.8 billion of loans were released to small, medium, and large agribusiness enterprises, while another P48.3 billion were for agri-aqua-related projects of local government units and government-owned and controlled corporations, it said.
Of the total agri loans, P107.4 billion financed agri-processing and trading while P87.8 billion funded other support services, including the construction and improvement of farm-to-market roads, public markets, irrigation systems, and cold storages. The bank allotted P66.5 billion for other economic activities such as livestock and crop production.
Landbank said its “intensified support” in 2022 to release more loans to the agriculture sector has benefitted 3.5 million farmers and fishers nationwide. For 2023, the target is to assist 3.6 million.
“More than 766,000 or 22% of these came from the 20 poorest provinces in the country, further advancing its efforts to promote inclusive and sustainable development,” it said.
The highest number of beneficiaries came from the provinces of Nueva Ecija, Maguindanao, Bohol, Leyte, Pangasinan, Cotabato, Isabela, Cagayan, South Cotabato, and Ilocos Sur.
Landbank said it has partnered with the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) to dispense more funding last year.
The cumulative loan releases under the programs with DA totalled P15.3 billion, released to 252,000 borrowers. The bank also financed 229 agrarian reform beneficiaries’ organizations under the programs with DAR worth P751.7 million.