ANN/THE NATION – Thailand’s Ministry of Agriculture is set to introduce a new initiative involving the issuance of “tree deeds” which would allow farmers, particularly those in the rubber industry, to utilise their trees as collateral for loans from state banks.
Deputy Government Spokesperson Kanika Aunjit announced the initiative on a Wednesday, presenting it as a valuable contribution from the ministry to farmers nationwide.
Under the scheme, rubber trees will be appraised at THB500 each, serving as collateral for farmers seeking loans from state banks, with a focus on institutions such as the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives.
This pragmatic approach aims to address the financial needs of farmers while recognising the economic value of their environmental assets
The implementation of the tree deeds will follow the ongoing project to upgrade Sor Por Kor 4-01 farm landholding documents into “land deeds for farming” nationwide.
Currently, the Sor Por Kor 4-01 document farmers’ rights to cultivate on specific plots of land that cannot be sold. Upon upgrade, these documents can be used as collaterals for loans, Kanika said.
She said the document upgrade will be done as soon as possible and is set to be a New Year’s present for farmers.
Agriculture Minister Thamanat Prompow initiated both projects intending to provide farmers access to funds for developing their farms and boosting their income, she said.
In a parallel effort to help rubber farmers, Thamanat has instructed the Cooperative Promotion Department and Rubber Authority of Thailand to collaborate in establishing cooperatives for processing rubber sheets into products.
The aim of this project is to bolster latex prices, Kanika said. Furthermore, Thamanat has instructed the rubber authority to prevent the smuggling of rubber sheets from neighbouring countries, identified as a major factor contributing to the drop in local prices.
