Incomes of Filipino farmers and fisherfolk have climbed, thanks to a World Bank-financed project of the Department of Agriculture (DA).

In an Oct. 16 implementation status and results report, the Washington-based multilateral lender said the DA's Rural Development Project has so far jacked up the real household income of beneficiary farmers and fisherfolk by 26 percent, although below the target of 30-percent increase.

Still, the World Bank said this project "remains on track" to meet its development objective of hiking rural incomes as well enhancing farm and fishery productivity in targeted areas.

Another progress made by this DA project included the 46-percent income rise of its beneficiaries involved in enterprise development, above the 30-percent goal.

While the project targeted a 41-percent hike in yearly marketed output value, actual results yielded an 118-percent jump, the World Bank said.

Also, "farmers reached with agricultural assets or services is at 1,305,800 (target is 760,000) of whom 39 percent were women (target is 40 percent)," it added.

Thus far, 478 infrastructure sub-projects, or nearly four-fifths of the total 603 worth P41.97 billion, are finished.

Another 650 enterprise sub-projects, or 87 percent of the approved 746 totaling P4.37 billion, are already operational.

The World Bank initially extended a $280-million loan to the Philippine Rural Development Project in 2014, and restructured this financing three times to ultimately extend its closing date to 2025 from 2021 originally.

Loan disbursement has been high, ranging between 85.83 percent and 100 percent across the effective and restructured or already closed portions, the World Bank report showed.