A total of 77,375 small farmers and fishers stand to benefit from the imposition of a one-year moratorium on the payment of loan amortization under the various agri-fishery credit programs of the Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Credit Policy Council (DA-ACPC).

The temporary suspension of payments was implemented to aid farmers and fishers affected by marketing restrictions following President Rodrigo Duterte’s declaration that the country is under a State of Calamity for a period of six months and that Luzon will be under an enhanced community quarantine due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The moratorium, which started on March 16, 2020 up to March 16, 2021, will cover outstanding loans amounting to P2.03 billion under different DA-ACPC credit programs. The amount due during the moratorium shall be added to back-end of loan of the farmer- and fisher-borrowers.

“Given this crisis situation, the DA-ACPC anticipates that the ability of many borrowers to pay their loans may be affected,” said DA Secretary William Dar.

“Therefore, we will allow all our partner lending conduits to grant a one-year loan payment moratorium to borrowers who may request for such loan payment relief,” added Sec. Dar.

Correspondingly, the outstanding liabilities of ACPC’s existing partner conduits was also granted one-year moratorium equivalent to the total amount of sub-loans to individual farmer- and fisherfolk-borrowers who availed the loan moratorium.

(DA-ACPC Communications & Public Affairs Division)