The Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) distributed certificates Wednesday to 20 farmers in Mexico, Pampanga, effectively condoning more than P1.6 million in debt.

The Certificates of Condonation with Release of Mortgage were awarded at the agency’s provincial office in the City of San Fernando. The move covers approximately 14 hectares of agricultural land and frees the beneficiaries from a total debt of P1,678,712.

Provincial Agrarian Reform officer Emmanuel Aguinaldo led the distribution, which is part of the government’s effort to help agrarian reform beneficiaries gain full ownership of their land without the burden of unpaid loans.

According to data from DAR-Pampanga, recipients from Barangay San Jose Malino saw P1.45 million in debt erased, while farmers from Barangay Culubasa benefited from a condonation of P223,273.

The debt release was annotated on the farmers’ existing land titles, including Emancipation Patents and Certificates of Land Ownership Award. The provincial office noted that the Registry of Deeds has registered the updated titles in compliance with national agrarian reform laws.

Following the ceremony, the agency held a briefing on the Support to Parcelization of Lands for Individual Titling Project. The session educated the farmers on the processes and benefits of the program, which focuses on converting collective land titles into individual ones to provide clearer security for landholders.