The Department of Agrarian Reform targets to distribution 300,000 to 400,000 land titles to farmers by the end of 2025 in response to the directive of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. to the agency to further accelerate agrarian reform for the remaining three years of his term.
At the post-State of the Nation Address (SONA) conference held in San Juan City on Tuesday, Agrarian Reform Secretary Conrado Estrella III said the target seems ambitious but it is achievable as the agency heeded the marching order of the President to expedite government services to the people.
“This year I think our trajectory will be about 300,000 to 400,000 titles. Our farmers have been waiting to get their titles for a long time. Some have been waiting for 15, 20, or even 30 years; they will finally receive these titles,” the President said. He assured farmers of continuous land title distribution, as ell as the condonation of unpaid loans and mortgages of Filipino farmers.
“The DAR is currently expediting the distribution of CLOAs (Certificates of Land Ownership Award) and e-Titles, as well as COCROMs (Certificates of Condonation with Release of Mortgages) as proof that the beneficiary of the agrarian reform is no longer in debt,” he added.
Estrella said since the start of the Marcos administration, DAR has significantly increased its output and has in fact distributed over 26,000 land titles during the first six months of his term, matching the previous administration’s last year and a half term performance. In 2023, he said the number doubledto more than 50,000, and by 2024, DAR had already surpassedthe100,000 mark.
Aside from land distribution, Estrella said DAR is also issuing COCROMs under Republic Act 11953 or the New Agrarian Emancipation Act, which erases all unpaid amortization for awarded lands. He shared that Marcos was worried about how farmers could still pay their loans when they are already burdened by the rising costs of fertilizers, coupled with the impact of climate change that affects their production.
“Republic Act 11953 or the New Agrarian Emancipation Act condones all amortization loans, and that is one of the nicest accomplishment of this administration. Farmers will have nothing to worry about anymore,” he said, adding that aside from these benefits, DAR also extends other assistance and services to farmers and the agrarian reform communities, including construction of farm-to-market roads, irrigation projects, and distribution of farm machinery and equipment.
He also cited the latest groundbreaking of an irrigation project, in partnership with the National Irrigation Administration, that will benefit more than 12,000 hectares of farmland by ensuring a stable irrigation water supply, thus increasing farming output, contributing to national food security. He assured that DAR is effectively aligned with the Marcos administration’s Bagong Pilipinas vision, and they are working closely with concerned departments to uplift farmers’ lives and livelihood.
“This is in accordance with our oath that as Filipinos who love the Philippines, we will work together to improve the lives of agrarian reform beneficiaries and all our Filipino citizens,” he stressed. (With PNA)