TUGUEGARAO CITY, Cagayan – Sixty million pesos will be distributed to 4,000 rice farmers from Cagayan Valley affected by the sudden price drop on rice caused by the rice import liberalization law.
The Expanded Survival and Recovery (E-SURE) aid program is a one-time cash subsidy to the rice farmers and an immediate response to address the needs of the farmers following the continuous decline in the price of palay.
According to the Department of Agriculture Region 02, the E-SURE aid program will provide a P15,000 loan with no interest to rice farmers payable for up to eight years.
The agriculture department, along with their credit arm, Agricultural Credit and Policy Council have started validation for the 4,000 possible beneficiaries from the region who can avail the loan last September 22, and is expected to be finished until the last week of this month.
After the validation process, the department will submit its master list to Land Bank of the Philippines to get the funds needed for the lending program.
By the end of October, the processing and release of loans to the rice farmers are expected to be finished.
