The Department of Environment and Natural Resources Region 6 on Thursday reported the continuous issuance of residential and agricultural free patents to qualified beneficiaries and lays out accomplishments from July 2022 to October 2023.

It disclosed that during the period, DENR field offices in Western Visayas distributed 1,847 residential free patents with a total area of 55.4457 hectares which is part of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s programs.

In Aklan province, 375 patents were distributed covering a total land area of 13.516 hectares; Antique with 385 for 11.2582 hectares; Capiz with 125 for 3.6418 hectares; Guimaras with 97 for 5.024 hectares; Negros Occidental with 357 for 7.0739 hectares; and Iloilo had 508 issued residential free patents with a total land area of 14.9318 hectares.

For the agricultural free patents, Aklan had the greatest number of patents issued at 674 with a total area of 280.6157 hectares.

Iloilo was granted 452 patents with an area of 318.9385 hectares.; Antique with 273 covering 181.3425 hectares; Capiz with 178 patents for a total area of 216.724 hectares; Guimaras with 89 and an area of 83.9795 hectares; and, Negros Occidental with 103 patents for a span of 84.5889 hectares.

In total, 1,769 agricultural patents were issued in the region with a total area of 1166.1891 hectares in the same period.

Combining both residential and agricultural free patents issued, a total of 3,616 patents with a total area of 1221.6348 hectares were granted to applicants in Region 6 for the past one year and three months since President Marcos' term started.

"Granting of free patents for agricultural and residential lands is one of DENR's responsibilities in serving the people and giving them rights to own these spaces provided that they meet the requirements. We help empower our beneficiaries by making them landowners," said DENR-6 regional executive director Livino B. Duran.

Republic Act 11573, signed in 2021 by then President Rodrigo Duterte, is the new law that governs the grant of agricultural and residential free patents. It aims to improve the process of confirmation concerning imperfect land titles and amends Commonwealth Act 141, known as the "Public Land Act" and PD 1529 or the "Property Registration Decree."