P3.7-B financial aid set aside for farmers in typhoon-stricken areas

LIBON, Albay — Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol said on Thursday that the agency has earmarked some P3.7 billion this year in financial assistance to to farmers affected by calamities, particularly Tropical Depression “Usman.”

He said thousands of farmers whose agricultural crops were destroyed by flooding and landslides spawned by heavy rains brought by Usman would be given financial assistance by the agency.

Piñol said some 28,714 farmers tilling 12,000 hectares of agricultural land that were totally destroyed by the floods and landslide that hit the Bicol region during the weekend would benefit from the P25,000 soft loan and P5,000 aid under the Survival and Recovery Assistance Program (SURE) of the Department of Agriculture (DA).

Aside from the financial assistance, farmers would be given free farm seeds to replace those destroyed by floods and landslides.

Piñol held a farmers forum dubbed “Biyaheng Bukid” Tapatan: Gobierno at Mamamayan” at the Libon town Gymnasium where he turned over P3.2 million worth of farm materials and agriculture machinery to 1,000 members of organized farmers group in the town. /ee