MANILA, Philippines — State-run Land Bank of the Philippines has released P6.74 billion in subsidies to support more than 1.33 million poor Filipino households suffering due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
In a statement, Landbank president and chief executive officer Cecilia Borromeo said the bank has completed on Thursday the distribution of cash aid to beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) under the second tranche of the Social Amelioration Program (SAP).
“Through the Landbank Cash Cards, we already delivered the second wave of cash grants to 1.3 million beneficiaries in an immediate, safe and secure manner,” Borromeo said.
“Rest assured that Landbank will continuously work with the national government to ensure that future beneficiaries will receive their emergency subsidies quickly, while strictly adhering to the quarantine measures in place,” she added.
She said the beneficiaries may withdraw their cash aids from more than 2,000 Landbank automated teller machines and 20,000 ATMs of BancNet-member banks nationwide.
They may also use their cash cards for cashless purchases in groceries, supermarkets and drugstores through the point-of-sale machines at the cashier or check-out counters, Borromeo added.
Landbank has been designated as the disbursement arm of the government’s Social Amelioration Program (SAP) under Republic Act 11469 or the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act.
The bank is also assisting the Department of Labor and Employment in distributing cash aids under the COVID-19 Adjustment Measures Program and the Abot Kamay ang Pagtulong for overseas Filipino workers program.
It is likewise supporting the Department of Agriculture in the implementation of its Rice Farmer Financial Assistance and Financial Subsidy to Rice Farmers programs.
In addition, Landbank has also launched various lending programs to assist sectors affected by the COVID-19 crisis.
These include the P3 billion Access to Academic Development to Empower the Masses towards Endless Opportunities (ACADEME) program, which provides credit to private schools and enables them to implement a “study now, pay later” scheme for their students.
Landbank also opened the Interim Rehabilitation Support to Cushion Unfavorably Affected Enterprises by COVID-19 (I-RESCUE) program to support the recovery of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), microfinance institutions (MFIs) and cooperatives from the impact of the pandemic.