By Michelle Ducut
The Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) distributed 1,700 electronic titles (e-titles) to 885 agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) in Ilocos Norte and Ilocos Sur on Friday, covering over 1,027 hectares of agricultural land.
The distribution, held at the Bacarra auditorium, is part of the Support to Parcelization of Lands for Individual Titling (SPLIT) project, which is funded by the World Bank. The program aims to subdivide around 1.38 million hectares of Collective Certificates of Land Ownership Awards nationwide, providing ARBs with clear property rights and enhancing their agricultural productivity.
DAR Regional Director Maria Ana Francisco emphasized the significance of the project, stating, “This project aims to provide ARBs with clear, defined property rights, empowering them to enhance agricultural productivity on their individually titled lands.”
Guest of honor Senator Francis Tolentino lauded the beneficiaries for their years of dedication to cultivating the land, saying, “These certificates are a testament to the decades of hard work that you have put in to cultivate and make your farmlands productive.”
DAR Secretary Conrado Estrella III encouraged beneficiaries to maximize the potential of their newly titled lands for their future and that of their families.
One of the beneficiaries, Imelda Comahig, 68, from Banna, Ilocos Norte, expressed gratitude for the program. “I am so grateful to President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. for having this program. The individual titling is free, and we no longer need to spend much. It took us so long to wait, but finally, the long wait is over,” she said in Ilokano.
Aside from the e-title distribution, DAR also turned over agricultural production loans amounting to PHP3.5 million to seven agrarian reform beneficiary organizations (ARBOs) in Ilocos Norte and Ilocos Sur.
The loans, under a collaborative initiative with the Landbank of the Philippines and the Agricultural Credit Policy Council, aim to support the production of rice, corn, and high-value crops, as well as the acquisition of small farm implements to enhance agricultural productivity.