The Antique provincial board on Monday approved a resolution seeking rural credit grants to marginalized farmers and fisherfolk to enhance productivity.

The board would seek the support of the Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Support Service Unit (DA-ASSU) to provide rural credit to marginalized farmers and fishermen in the province of Antique, who are getting a hard time availing loans from the banks as they require collateral.

“The farmers and fisherfolks, because of their lack of the required collateral could not be given priority in a bank credit facility and so if the DA-ASSU could provide a rural credit then it would be a big help for them,” Board member Rony Molina, who sponsored the resolution, said.

Under the Rural Credit Law, all banking institutions, whether government or private, are mandated to set aside at least 25 percent of their total loanable funds for agriculture and fisheries in general; at least 10 percent of the loanable funds shall be made available for agrarian reform.

But in the case of many Antiqueño farmers and fisherfolk, Molina said, they are usually being left out or have a hard time availing of loans from the banks because of the required collateral.

Thus, the need for rural credit which DA could provide to the farmers and fisherfolk as their capital alternative to enhance and improve their production.

He also underscored the need for rural credit because the growth period between sowing crops and gaining income from agricultural produce, sale, and recovery takes a long time.

The credit can be used to buy their needed machinery, fertilizers and pesticides, or for fishing gears, or as capital for small sari-sari stores.

“The reason why fisher folks are forced to still venture out to the sea despite the inclement weather since they have no money to sustain their families,” the official said.

Molina also said they would seek DA support to provide the farmers and fishermen “cropping knowledge and skills to increase productivity and give better access to market information, agricultural support service, including rural credit services to help the agricultural sectors in the country. (PNA)