YFP okays 22 agribusiness projects

Twenty two agribusiness projects proposed by young agriculture graduates and entrepreneurs with capitalization ranging from P60,000 to P500,000 have been approved to become recipients of financial assistance under the Young Farmers program (YFP), Sen. Ramon Magsaysay Jr. said.

These projects include cattle fattening, goat raising, duck raising, organic fertilizer production, tilapia culture, mud crab fattening and coco coir decorticating. Proponents of these projects, together with 16 volunteers, are scheduled to undergo classroom training on various aspects of business management on July 8 to 28 at the UP Los Baños.

Magsaysay, chairman of the Senate committee on agriculture and concurrent chairman of the Congressional Oversight Committee on agricultural and Fisheries Modernization (COCAFM), said an initial amount of P10 million is available under the YFP to be allocated to project proponents to augment their capital for their business activities.

He explained that under the YFP, the government is committed to help participating entrepreneurs secure loans representing 60 percent of the total capital needed for their proposed agriculture-relate business. The 25 percent of their needed capital would be awarded as grant by the program, while the remaining 15 percent has to be raised by the proponent as equity.

Magsaysay said he would urged the incoming administration and the next Congress to support the funding needs of the program so that it would be able to assist more entrepreneurs as he noted the growing number of unemployed in the country.

"With this program, we could encourage more young people to venture into agribusiness which would eventually generate more jobs especially in the countryside," he said.