The Department of Agrarian Reform in Negros Oriental is preparing to distribute 1,465 hectares of land to agrarian reform beneficiaries on Dec. 22, officials said Thursday.

This follows the recent distribution of individual land titles to 1,566 farmers from the province during a Negros Island Region ceremony in Bago City, Negros Occidental on Dec. 4.

Manuel Galon, DAR-Negros Oriental provincial director said the agency is still consolidating data on the total number of beneficiaries and titles for the upcoming Dec. 22 distribution. The move aligns with a directive to expedite individual land title distribution before year-end.

During the Bago City event, graced by DAR Secretary Conrado Estrella III, the department distributed 127 Certificates of Land Ownership Award and 3,066 e-titles covering over 2,559 hectares through Project SPLIT, an initiative to convert collective titles into individual ones.

Galon clarified that several beneficiaries received multiple titles corresponding to separate land parcels they now individually own. (PNA)