LandBank, LGU ink deal for disaster preparedness
Credit to Author: MAYVELIN U. CARABALLO, TMT| Date: Mon, 30 Sep 2019 16:27:57 +0000
State-run Land Bank of the Philippines has entered a term loan agreement with the Municipality of Lutayan in Sultan Kudarat to construct a two-storey municipal hall building that will also be used for its disaster preparedness program.
In a statement, the LandBank said the building will house the disaster management headquarters for planning, response, recovery and mitigation, including a Manpower Development Center of the local government.
It cited that a recent study by professors from the Notre Dame University in Cotabato City titled “Disaster Preparedness and Response of Local Government Units in Flood-Prone Communities in Central Mindanao,” identified Lutayan as one of the most disaster-prone areas in Central Mindanao, because its flat-lands turn into natural catch basins for floods during heavy rains, worsened by heavily silted rivers, creeks, and canals.
The lender also pointed out that flooding has been a perennial problem in Lutayan where the main sources of livelihood and employment for its estimated 70,000 residents are farming and fishing, with more than 2,000 fisherfolk and close to 13,000 farmers.
It added that 70 percent of the 27,000 hectares of land in the municipality yields various kinds of crops including rice, corn, cotton, coconut, vegetables, fruit trees, and other plantation crops.
For his part, Mayor Prince Raden Sakaluran of Lutayan thanked LandBank for the loan it extended.
“With this kind of development, the construction of the new two-storey municipal hall building will serve as disaster management center and at the same time as an evacuation center. This is to cater to the needs of the displaced families, senior citizens, indigenous people, and differently abled persons affected by the calamities,” Sakaluran was quoted as saying.
Meanwhile, the bank highlighted that besides disaster preparedness, the new municipal hall of Lutayan is also expected to provide more efficient services to the constituents of the municipality.
“It has always been a priority for LandBank to expand in areas not served by other commercial banks in order to reach more Filipinos,” said LandBank President and Chief Executive Officer Cecilia Borromeo.
The lender said the loan extended to Lutayan increases LandBank’s penetration rate to local governments in Sultan Kudarat to 83 percent.
It mentioned that Lutayan is one of the unbanked local governments in the country identified by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.