State-owned Myanmar Agricultural Development Bank (MADB) is now arranging to increase its K20,000 loan to K50,000 per acre to farmers, Agriculture ministry deputy permanent secretary U Myo Tint Tun told to The Myanmar Times on April 20.

The bank is currently lending K20,000 per acre to farmers who plant various kinds of beans, maize and sesame, but new information is coming out that the department will increase loans to K50,000 in the upcoming season.

“The news [concerning the increase of loans] is correct, the MADB submitted their plans to increase [loans] to Ministry of Planning and Finance. I heard that it would make the matter more convenient,” said U Myo Tint Tun.

The MADB does not have enough of its own capital to lend money to farmers. The bank, instead, borrows money from Myanmar Economic Bank, which is under the Ministry of Planning and Finance. The MADB then lends the borrowed capital to the farmers. Work is often delayed due to the arrangements with the Ministry of Planning and Finance.

There was information concerning the increase of loans for farming crops, but there hasn’t yet any details about loans for paddy as well as other crops.

According to the submitted documents from Union Minister Dr Aung Thu to the Hluttaw in May 2016, an estimated total of more than K1700 billion and more than K200 billion loans are reserved for farming crops.

The government prioritised paddy above all other crops as paddy is the national crop of the country. As a result, loans for paddy were increased but other crops were not given the same level of financial support. Farmers have voiced their dissatisfaction to Hluttaw representatives.

Loan money from the agriculture bank is not enough for mung beans and maize and therefore loans need to be increased, said U Sein Win, Hluttaw representative of Maubin township, Ayeyarwady Region during the third regular Pyithu Hluttaw meeting.

K20,000 per acre is not enough for the crop planting system, told by farmer U Myint Thein from Lewe, Nay Pyi Taw.

“Nowadays, we have to use fertiliser and insecticide for beans and maize. Mung bean per acre costs more than K100,000 when we take into account the chemicals, insecticides and plant growth substances.

“The loan money is very little and we do not use it. We do not pay the firms immediately after getting chemicals from them,” he said on April 19.

Another farmer Ko Myo Lin Aung, from Pyinmana, said that the K20,000 is very little compared to the costs in the business.

– Translation by Khine Thazin Han

Ref: http://www.mmtimes.com/index.php/business/25736-madb-increases-loan-from-k20-000-to-k50-000.html

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