BUTUAN CITY – The Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) 13 (Caraga) is set to distribute certificates of land ownership award (CLOAs) to farmers in the province of Surigao del Sur next week.
DAR-13 Director Leomides R. Villareal told the Philippine News Agency (PNA) on Friday that the distribution of the land titles on December 9 is "part of the continuing efforts of DAR-Caraga to free the farmers from the bondage of landlessness and poverty."
A total of 336 farmers from the town of Tagbina will receive their respective individual CLOAs during the distribution activity, Villareal added.
The CLOAs will cover 11 towns in Tagbina with a total area of 576.6793 hectares, he said.
“Ownership of the land they till is very important for the farmers,” he said.
Villareal noted that the productivity and income of farmers are affected if they do not have control over the land they till.
“They cannot decide how to improve their production to augment their income because the land is not owned by them,” he said.
With the ownership through CLOA, farmers will have security over the land that they own and can fully develop it with the support programs of DAR and other government line agencies, Villareal said.
He added that DAR is not only giving land titles to farmers but is also implementing support programs, projects, and services to aid the farmers in the development of their landholdings.
“Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries or ARBs are formed into ARBOs or Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Organizations. It is through these organizations that support programs and services of DAR are coursed through,” Villareal said.
Last September, four cooperatives of ARBOs in Surigao del Sur were provided with common service facilities worth PHP1.3 million by DAR, through its Agrarian Reform Community Connectivity and Economic Support Services (ARCCESS).
The facilities include four coffee dehullers and a coffee roaster, Villareal said, adding that DAR also provides infrastructure support to its beneficiaries, such as the construction of farm-to-market roads.
Last October, DAR-13 handed over a 4.1-km. road to farmers of Barangay Concepcion in Sta. Josefa, Agusan del Sur.
DAR Secretary John Castriciones led the turnover of the project worth PHP24.8 million that benefited some 805 ARBs in the area.
Villareal also commended Provincial Agrarian Reform Officer Leoncio Bautista of Surigao del Sur; Chief Agrarian Reform Program Officer Jorge Quijada; and Tagbina Municipal Agrarian Reform Officer Joy Malabanan for the scheduled CLOA distribution. (PNA)
