DOF Secures Over P1-Billion Loan For Economy, Agriculture, and Fishery

The Department of Finance (DOF) and the World Bank (WB) signed four loan agreements last June 26, 2023.

The four loan agreement amounts to USD 1.14 billion and will be used to fund different government projects for economic recovery.

The funds will also be used to improve education, agriculture, and fishery.

The first loan agreement worth USD276 million will be allocated to the Department of Agriculture-Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (DA-BFAR).

The loan will support the Mindanao Inclusive Agriculture Development Project (MIADP) and the Philippine Fisheries and Coastal Resiliency (FishCoRe) Project.

“The MIADP aims to sustainably increase the agricultural productivity, resiliency, and accessibility to markets and services of organized farmers and fisherfolks in selected ancestral domains and for selected value chains in Mindanao,” DOF said in a press release.

Meanwhile, the second loan agreement worth USD110 million will be allocated to the education sector, specifically the Department of Education’s (DepEd) Teacher Effectiveness and Competencies Enhancement Project (TEACEP).

TEACEP is a program of DepEd that aims to improve equitable access to quality teaching in Kindergarten to Grade 6 (K-6) in project-supported areas, especially in Regions IX, Region XII, and Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).

The Philippines First Sustainable Recovery Development Policy Loan (DPL) amounting to USD750 million will be allocated for the development of environmental protection and climate resilience. (ASC)