P95-M loan for coco farmers out

The UCPB-CIIF Finance and Development Corp. has released P94.89 million in new loans to small coconut farmers in the three months of 2006. That should bring total loans provided to the sector to P2.2 billion.

UCPB-CIIF Finance and Development Corp. president Edgardo Amistad said the new loans financed the on-farm and off-farm livelihood activities of 11,161 more small coconut farmers, raising the number households that have benefited from the company’s credit programs to 238,990.

The UCPB-CIIF Finance and Development Corp. was organized by United Coconut Planters Bank (UCPB) in 1994 as a specialized unit separate from the bank to focus and speed up delivery of credit intended to create additional income opportunities in the coconut-producing communities.

It currently implements six credit programs in 62 of the country’s 64 coconut-producing provinces, including a Grameen-type microfinance lending program for families of coconut farmers launched in 2001. It accounts for 16 percent of total loans.

"The credit experience has been very good with 93 percent of outstanding loans in current status," Amistad said, stressing that the small coconut farmers are able to generate sufficient additional income from their livelihood activities to repay their loans.

Amistad explained that the key to the credit programs’ success has been the continuing institutional capability building activities. "It strengthens the organizational, technical, financial and marketing management capabilities of the beneficiaries."

The UCPB-CIIF Finance and Development Corp. conducted a total of 851 training activities for 18,235 members and officers of coconut farmer cooperatives including courses in basic management, project development and management, SWOT analysis, credit and financial management, and various technology transfer modules such as, copra trading, cattle breeding and fattening, and swine, crab and coffee production.

It also tied up with Gawad Kalinga through Couples for Christ-Tekton Foundation Inc. for the conduct of values formation seminars. Some 3,646 coconut farmers have attended these seminars.