DAVAO CITY—Sarangani has sealed with Land Bank of the Philippines (LandBank) a P1-billion loan to fund the acquisition of heavy machinery and hospital equipment for the province.
The deal was signed on February 2 in the capital town of Alabel, with LandBank principal signatories Charlotte Conde, senior vice president and Mindanao lending group head and Eden Japitana, vice president and General Santos City Lending Center head.
Governor Rogelio D. Pacquiao and Provincial Administrator Atty. Ryan Jay Ramos signed on behalf of the province.
The loan will fund the province’s developmental projects, particularly the P500-million acquisition of several heavy equipment, P200-million for hospital and medical equipment, and P300 million to establish the proposed Provincial Agri-Fisheries Complex.
“This will capacitate the provincial government and the current administration to provide and deliver more public services and expand the government’s efforts, especially to the Sarangani residents who live in the margins,” the provincial government said.
Conde said the P500-million for heavy equipment acquisition would pave the way for reliable road connections and disaster-resilient structures.
The P200 million for the hospital equipment would scale up the capacity of the Sarangani Provincial Hospital to operate as a medical center, while the P300-million agri-fisheries complex would help in expanding small and medium scale fisherfolk and consumer markets, he explained.
Conde said the LandBank was “so far the shortest approval that we ever got for the provincial government of Sarangani.” The loan was approved in one week.
“This agreement is a milestone in LandBank’s continuous assistance to Sarangani province and it is my pleasure to formalize this renewed partnership that will help address the major constraints concerning basic and social-economic infrastructure,” Conde said.
Pacquiao thanked LandBank “for the resounding hope of confidence.”
“This will inspire us to keep serving in excellence knowing that we have reliable partners in our local endeavors,” he said.
“Our collective dream of having our own fishport facility will soon come to completion, and this will promote the agri-fishery industry, especially in our coastal towns. It will also fast track our infrastructure projects in order to deliver reliable and modern health services to those in need,” he added.
“This is not just a loan contract; this is an investment for the future of our people. This agreement signals the dawn of a modern and progressive Sarangani province,” Pacquiao said.