DAR targets complete land acquisition and distribution by 2022
Land acquisition and distribution (LAD) free by 2022. This is the target of the Department of Agrarian Reform, following President Rodrigo Roa Duterte’s directive to complete the distribution of agricultural lands to landless farmers before the end of his term.
A three-day national conference was recently held for the proper accounting of the remaining workable balance for distribution to agrarian reform beneficiaries.
“The objective of this conference is to ensure that we will achieve the President’s mandate of a LAD Free Philippines by 2022,” DAR Secretary John R. Castriciones said.
During meeting strategies and recommendations were formulated to speed up the acquisition and distribution of lands in the country.
The crafted implementation plan will be presented to the President on the next Cabinet meeting on June 6.
“At present, we have already done initial steps in streamlining the land conversion process. The Inter-Agency Task Force on land use conversion has already drafted its implementing rules and regulations. If approved by the Cabinet and President Duterte, then it will be implemented immediately,” Castriciones said.
The task force was formed to further expedite the processing of requests to convert agricultural lands for residential, commercial and industrial use, and submit a report on the anomalies in the conversion processes.
Castriciones also directed the DAR field operations office to come up with proposals for the streamlining of LAD processes.
Further, the DAR is hard at work in realizing Executive Order 75 where it is ordered to acquire all government-owned lands devoted to or suitable for agriculture but are no longer actually, directly and exclusively used for the purpose for which they have been reserved.
“This E.O. will help us. This will be a boost to the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program. This will fast-track the distribution of lands, particularly government-owned lands, to qualified beneficiaries,” Castriciones said.
The DAR is also challenging itself this year to achieve a zero backlog in the resolution of cases related to agrarian justice delivery.
“Our major target is to address the needs of our primary clients—the farmer-beneficiaries, the landless farmers, and the farmworkers with due regard to the rights of landowners,” said Castriciones.
“We have set our targets starting this year until 2022 to achieve a zero backlog for both the Department of Agrarian Reform Adjudication Board and Agrarian Legal Implementation cases,” he added.
“We are incorporating all of this into a cohesive and strategic program. We hope a favorable response from the President and the Cabinet. If all goes well, immediate implementation will follow.”
#AgrarianReformPH #LandTenureSecurity #AgrarianJusticeDelivery
