MANILA – The Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) in the Philippines, backed by the World Bank, is set to distribute 396,430 electronic land titles to agrarian reform beneficiaries by 2025, covering 400,000 hectares nationwide. This ambitious goal is part of the Support to Parcelization of Lands for Individual Titling (SPLIT) Project, aimed at granting legal land ownership to farmers and enhancing their access to government support.
Agrarian Reform Secretary Conrado Estrella III announced this target during the CY 2024 SPLIT Project National Assessment and CY 2025 Direction-Setting Conference, which took place in Quezon City from February 10 to 14. The DAR has been actively working on converting collective Certificates of Land Ownership Award into individual titles, with significant achievements reported by the end of 2024, including the validation of 1,322,379 hectares, redocumentation of 312,421 hectares, and the distribution of titles for 174,111 hectares to beneficiaries.
The transition to individual land ownership is expected to empower farmers, increase agricultural productivity, and open up new economic opportunities, including access to credit and government programs. The World Bank’s confidence in the project was demonstrated by extending financial support in December 2024, with the project’s completion now scheduled for December 31, 2027. This extension will provide ongoing funding and technical assistance, helping DAR to streamline its processes for more effective implementation.
Undersecretary for Finance, Management, and Administration Office Lani De Leon emphasized the significance of the World Bank’s continued financial support. She stated that this extension aligns with the President’s directive to speed up land title distribution and serves as a renewed impetus for the DAR team, particularly those directly involved in the SPLIT Project, to refine their strategies through to the project’s completion in 2027.