LINGAYEN, Pangasinan – A total of Php 3.345 million worth of livelihood assistance checks were distributed by Governor Amado “Pogi” I. Espino, III to 26 recipient entities in a program last November 28 at Urduja House, Capitol Compound here.
Gov. Espino said that his administration is sustaining the Livelihood Assistance Program (LAP), the flagship poverty-reduction program initiated by former governor and now Congressman Amado T. Espino, Jr. of the 5th district, to bolster economy by aiding the local entrepreneurs.
This distribution marks the 6th batch of distribution for 2016 and the 2nd for the incumbent provincial chief executive.
Among the recipient entities of this batch were 23 multi-purpose cooperatives (MPC) and 3 micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME), comprising 913 individual beneficiaries.
Loan grants amount varies per beneficiary in a six-month cycle, ranging from Php 50,000 to Php 180,000. Some of the recipients are availing the loan for the first time while others are renewing for up to the fifth time.
Ellsworth Gonzales, Provincial Population Office officer in charge, said that the supervised credit program enjoys a high loan repayment rate of 94 percent due to the considerate early payment rebate system they are employing for the borrowers.
“It is our way of encouraging them to pay their commitment. So that when they pay, others can also be given the opportunity to avail the assistance,” he said.
Gonzales bared that paying at least a day ahead of the cycle deadline can ensure beneficiaries a downsized interest rate of 1.5 percent from the regular 4 percent, which could save them a huge chunk that they can use for additional operative capital.
Though a “non-collateral loan” policy, LAP participating MPC or MSME must be duly registered to the Department of Trade and Industry, an existing business in operation and a current market.
Aside from consistent monitoring of the recipients, LAP also provides trainings on organizational and financial management for the beneficiaries, to name a few.
“We are capacitating them to help them become as transparent as possible to ensure sustainability of the program. From the start, the former and the present governors want the beneficiaries to be self-sustaining and be independent of assistance,” Gonzales said.
LAP started during the first term of the elder Espino in October 2008 to develop entrepreneurship among women at the grassroots level but has since grown into a credit facility designed to aid Pangasinenses on their livelihood ventures and entrepreneurial activities.
At present, total amount of livelihood assistance distributed since LAP’s inception has reached almost Php 78 million.
By Dexter A. See
