Agri-loans available to rice farmers

WITH the monsoon rain season in Myanmar, the Agricultural Development Bank has begun disbursing agricultural loans to rice farmers nationwide through its bank branches.

Agricultural loans for cultivating rice in rain-fed fields are disbursed no later than September, and those farmers who have land use Form-7 are eligible to receive loans at an interest rate of 8% per year.

According to statistics, the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation issued form-7 to over 6 million farmers.

Until last year, farmers who inherited farmland from their ancestors, but did not have Form-7 which documents land use rights for cultivation, faced challenges in receiving agricultural loans.

“The old farmland law did not allow for the changing of ownership names of farmland when farmers sold their land to others. But, the new Farmland Law allows farmers to change the ownership name beginning from 1st June. The situation is okay now,” said U Min Sein, Manager of the Agricultural Development Bank of Thanlyin Township.

His bank will disburse loans of K150,000 per acre to over 4,800 farmers in 28 village-tracts in the township.

Paddy was planted on 7,137 acres of farmland last year and yielded over 5.8 million baskets of paddy.

Farmers obtained loans at an interest rate of K8. However, farmers who failed to pay back their loans within the set time frame are required to pay one kyat per month as a fine.

GNLM

(Translated by Kyaw Zin Lin)

PHOTO: Kyaw ZEYA

Ref; The Global New Light of Myanmar