Credit Needs and Access of Tiger Grass Farmers in San Agustin, Romblon, 2019

Date

1-2020

Degree

Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Economics

College

College of Economics and Management (CEM)

Adviser/Committee Chair

Marilyn M. Elauria

Committee Member

Marilyn M. Elauria, Antonio Jesus A. Quilloy, Agham C. Cuevas

Abstract

In the municipality of San Agustin, Romblon, agriculture remains the main source of livelihood of its residents. Tiger grass farming is a major industry in the locality by which production of tiger grass brooms ranges from 200,000 to 250,000 pieces annually. According to the Municipal Agriculturist of San Agustin, tiger grass farmers in the municipality are facing issues in financing due to the increasing cost of production and limited financing sources for the farm operations. In the municipality, there is only one rural bank, Manor Bank and few formal lending institutions (ASA, CARD, St. Vincent Ferrer and Agra Progreso). This study assessed the credit needs and access of tiger grass farmers in San Agustin, Romblon.

The specific objectives of the study were to: (1) describe the socio-economic characteristics of the tiger grass farmers; (2) determine the net income in tiger grass production; (3) determine the financial requirement in tiger grass production and credit needs of the tiger grass farmers; (4) identify the current credit sources and reasons for choice of the tiger grass farmer borrowers; (5) determine the relationship between loan availment and socio-economic characteristics; and (6) identify problems encountered by the tiger grass farmers in production and meeting the financial requirement and make recommendations. The study was conducted in Barangay Dona Juana and San Agustin, Romblon, since these barangays are top producers of tiger grass in the municipality. With the aid of pre-tested questionnaires, a face-to-face interview with 60 tiger grass farmers was done to collect primary data. Descriptive analysis, cost and return analysis, cash flow budget analysis, and chi-square test of association were employed in the study.

Out of the 60 tiger grass farmer respondents, only 16 of them availed loan from formal and informal lending institutions. But, only few of the tiger grass farmers availed credit because of uncertainty in loan repayment and some farmers do not know where to avail credit. Problems encountered by the tiger grass farmers were the following: lack of capital, pests (rats, monkeys, weeds), weather and landslide. In meeting the financial requirement, farmers responded that they have a problem in the availability of credit. Based on the findings of the study, it is recommended for the tiger grass farmers to properly allocate the generated income and secure a portion for the next production since majority of them do not avail credit because of uncertainty in loan repayment. Since tiger grass farming is laborious in nature, it requires a large capital amount to sustain the farm operations for planting, clearing, and harvesting. For the Municipality of San Agustin, it is recommended to spread information about the existing cooperative namely, Samahang Magluluway ng San Agustin. Because there are tiger grass farmers that do not know such a cooperative exists. And for the credit lenders, promotion and awareness must be done since there were tiger grass farmers who do not know where to avail credit.

Language

English

LC Subject

Agriculture

Location

UPLB College of Economics and Management (CEM)

Call Number

LG 993.5 2020 A14 M36

Document Type

Thesis

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