DAR exceeds land title registration target in Caraga
By Nora C. Lanuza
The Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) in the Caraga region exceeded its target for the registration of land titles to farmers under Project SPLIT for the year 2023.
DAR Caraga director Merlita S. Capinpuyan welcomed the new year with this significant milestone, stating, “Caraga region ended the year at 102 percent against the annual target for the indicator of e-titles registered. As it stands, this feat of exceeding 100 percent of the annual target has only been achieved by two other regions nationwide, making this all the more special for Project SPLIT implementers in Caraga.”
“The Support to Parcelization of Lands for Individual Titling (Project SPLIT) delivered a total of 6, 757 e-titles registered, covering 9,639 hectares of land all across Caraga for fiscal year 2023. This means more farmers became landowners in the region because of the government’s hard work and determination to serve them,” Dir. Capinpuyan added.
Norma Martin, a farmer-beneficiary from Barangay Sta. Ana in Nasipit, Agusan del Norte, said, “Kinse ka tuig nako nag-uma sa yuta ug mas ganado nako karon motrabaho nga ako na ang tag-iya sa yuta nga akong ginatrabaho. Salamat sa gobyerno (I have been tilling this land for 15 years, and I am more motivated to work now that I am already the owner of the land. Thank you to the government).”
“Ako na gyud naangkon ang titulo sa yuta, salamat sa DAR, sa ilang pagkugi nga maproseso ang among pagpanag-iya sa yuta (I now have the land title. Thank you, DAR, for their efforts in processing our land ownership),” she said.
According to Christian Lafuente, DAR information officer, Project SPLIT is a joint venture between the Philippines and the World Bank, a multi-billion dollar special project that aims to subdivide Collective Certificate of Land Ownership Awards (CCLOAs) and individually issue titles, in the form of e-titles, to the annotated agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) within said CCLOAs.
“And with the recent approval for extension of Project SPLIT implementation by the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) – Regional Development Council (RDC) Caraga and with recognized support from the Senate, the team is confident that 2024 will reign in even more amazing developments and milestones for the DAR’s Project SPLIT, and most importantly, for the farmer beneficiaries,” Lafuente underscored. (NCLM/PIA-Caraga)
