Press Release
April 27, 2008

EXTEND LOW-INTEREST CREDIT TO RICE FARMERS - ANGARA

Senator Edgardo J. Angara called for extending credit at lower interest rates to rice and corn farmers to boost production in order to fill the country's rice shortage.

"There is woefully inadequate credit for rice and corn producers in the country, which creates an unhealthy situation and makes for minimal production," he said.

"Landbank and government financial institutions must provide credit, and at the same time we must harness all rural and development banks of all rice growing provinces. Government must support them by lending directly to rice and corn growers at a lower interest rate compared to market rates," Angara said.

Angara said that farmers lack the credit support to upgrade their farm equipment, and in many rural areas it's still the carabao that does the plowing. This is exacerbated by the lack of infrastructure development and irrigation.

Our national irrigation systems cover only 33% (or 1.4 million hectares) of the 4.2 million hectares of rice harvest area . Worse, of the 1.4 million hectares of irrigated land, 700,000 hectares have fully functional irrigation systems, while 400,000 hectares require immediate repair and rehabilitation.

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