World Bank OKs $100 million loan to spur Mindanao agriculture productivity

MANILA, Philippines — The World Bank has approved a $100-million project that seeks to help increase agricultural productivity in Mindanao.

In a statement, the multilateral lender said the Mindanao Inclusive Agriculture Development Project (MIADP), approved by the World Bank’s board of executive directors, is aimed at boosting agricultural productivity, resilience and services, as well as protecting natural resources in ancestral domains.

The project, which will be implemented in 26 ancestral domains including those in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), will benefit 120,000 farmers and fisherfolks.

It will be managed and implemented by the Department of Agriculture with the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples, and the relevant BARMM ministries.

“Mindanao is home to about 25 percent of the Philippines’ population but accounts for 35 percent of the country’s poor,” said Ndiamé Diop, World Bank country director for Brunei, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand.

“Poverty in indigenous cultural communities is even higher, with 68 percent living below the poverty line. Initiatives that aim to improve people’s living conditions, while actively involving them, are vital for strengthening inclusive growth in the country,” he said.

While Mindanao has the second biggest contribution to the country’s total agricultural output at 33.4 percent, next to Luzon’s 39.2 percent, a considerable amount of agricultural land in ancestral domains is unused or under subsistence cultivation by indigenous peoples.

To help address some of the barriers to the development of ancestral domains like inadequate road infrastructure, frequent landslides and limited access to services, the World Bank said the MIADP would fund infrastructure investments including the rehabilitation of roads and bridges, the installation of agricultural tramline systems, and the construction of small-scale and solar-powered irrigation systems.

It will also involve providing potable water systems and post-harvest facilities such as storage units and trading posts.

“Investments in infrastructure would improve access to all-weather roads which is expected to facilitate women’s access to health care, childbirth facilities and hospitals, social services, and education,” World Bank senior agriculturist Mio Takada said.

The project will support the development of agriculture and fishery enterprises through natural resource management and climate-smart agriculture practices, as well as use of indigenous knowledge, systems, and practices to ensure sustainability and build climate resilience.