PHP1.83-B Agrarian Debt Condoned for Negros Farmers

By Glazyl M. Jopson

BACOLOD CITY—The Department of Agrarian Reform has written off PHP1.834 billion in land amortization debts for agrarian reform beneficiaries in the Negros Island Region, benefiting more than 11,000 farmers and covering 8,860.15 hectares of land.

A total of 19,244 Certificates of Condonation with Release of Mortgage were distributed, officially freeing 11,179 beneficiaries from decades of unpaid agrarian debt.

DAR Secretary Conrado Estrella III led the awarding ceremony Thursday at the Manuel Y. Torres Memorial Coliseum and Cultural Center in Bago City, Negros Occidental.

The event also included the distribution of land titles under the New Lands Program and Project SPLIT, or Support to Parcelization of Lands for Individual Titling.

Alongside debt relief, DAR awarded 6,923 Certificates of Land Ownership Award covering 4,683.84 hectares to 3,784 beneficiaries across Negros Occidental 1 and 2, and Negros Oriental.

Under the New Lands Program, DAR issued 1,681 CLOAs to 1,059 beneficiaries for 1,032.21 hectares.

Under Project SPLIT, 4,071 electronic titles were awarded to 2,039 beneficiaries for 3,651.48 hectares.

Estrella reaffirmed DAR’s commitment to accelerating land distribution in line with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s directive.

To further support beneficiaries, DAR turned over PHP5.6 million worth of assistance to 10 agrarian reform beneficiary organizations in Negros Occidental.

This included farm machinery, equipment, and materials for muscovado sugar processing.

Estrella said both Project SPLIT and the New Lands Program aim to strengthen property rights by converting collective land titles into individual ones, securing farmers’ future and empowering them economically.