6 Eastern Visayas provinces among 31 recipients of AKBay fund for country’s poor farmers, fisherfolk

By Philippine Information Agency (PIA 8)
February 28, 2012

TACLOBAN CITY  –  All six provinces of Eastern Visayas have been identified as among the 31 provinces chosen as priority recipients of the AKBay program which provides funds for the poorest households in the farming and fishing communities.

DA-8 Regional Executive Director Antonio Gerundio informed that the Department of Agriculture (DA), through the National Agricultural and Fishery Council (NAFC), is providing funds for the poorest households in the farming and fishing communities in 31 priority provinces in the country through the AKBay Program.

RED Gerundio said that AKBay stands for “Agrikultura: Kaagapay ng Bayang Pinoy,” a poverty-reduction program funded by the Japanese Government, under the Japan Grant Assistance for the Food Security Project.

The program is primarily intended for marginalized households that are engaged in farming, fishing and related livelihood based on the data provided by the provincial planning and development office.

Recently, three Eastern Visayas provinces, namely Biliran, Samar and Eastern Samar, have each received the first tranche of AKBay financial assistance amounting to P2.09 million at P10,000 per household-recipient.

The turnover of checks proceeded with a simple ceremony graced by representatives from the DA-8, Provincial Government through the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPA), and the Regional, Provincial, and Municipal Agriculture and Fishery Councils (R/P/MAFCs).

Mr. Benedict E. Montera, DA-8’s AKBay Program and RAFC Coordinator said that the turnover of the second half of fund assistance amounting to P2.310 million will soon be released to complete the P4.4 million allocations for each province-recipient, with additional budget for administrative expenditures.

In the meantime, DA is still processing the AKBay funds slated for Northern Samar, Southern Leyte and Leyte, Mr. Montera said.

DA-8 Information Chief, Francis Rosaroso said that the province-recipients were identified in the government’s Accelerated Hunger Mitigation Program and in the 2006 Family Income and Expenditure Survey as having the most number of subsistence poor or food-poor families. Only the 4th, 5th and 6th class municipalities in the priority provinces are covered by the program, Mr. Rosaroso said.

On the other hand, the household-beneficiaries are pre-identified in the priority provinces through the Office of the Municipal Agriculturist (OMA) and the MAFC based on available credible OMA records. It is guided by the results of the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s (DSWD) National Household Targeting System.

RED Gerundio stressed that the fund assistance given to the farm households, is not a dole-out and shall be paid back. The schedule of repayment is based on the projected income statement of the project. It is expected that the farm-household will be able to return the assistance fund starting from the 2nd to the 3rd year after the project has started.

The DA Director said that AKBay funds short-gestating, micro-scale and resource-based livelihood projects in or related to agriculture and fisheries such as crop production, animal raising, aquaculture, capture fishing involving acquisition of fishing paraphernalia, acquisition of small farm implements, small scale processing and handicraft making.