The Barangay Integrated Development Approach for Nutrition Improvement (BIDANI) program being implemented by Central Luzon State University (CLSU) is aimed at improving the quality of life of the targeted sectors through the establishment of income-generating livelihood projects. The program is envisioned to mobilize people through village development-oriented organizations or people’s organizations (POs). To bolster the productivity of these POs the CLSU BIDANI together with the Central Luzon State University Foundation, Inc. (CLSUFI) and the Nueva Ecija BIDANI Foundation, Inc (NEBFI), exerted efforts in providing credits to small farmer groups or POs to support their priority livelihood projects as means of increasing their income.
The study determined the credit repayment performance of selected CLSU BIDANI POs and the impact of the credit assistance to its members, their family, their organization and their community. A total of 19 POs from Muñoz, Lupao, Rizal, Gen. Natividad, Llanera, Licab and Cabanatuan City were included in the study. These POs have availed of the credit assistance provided under the NLSF and SEAP since 1989.
Results revealed that the credit assistance provided by the CLSU BIDANI to these POs have helped the respondents escape from the usurious interest rates of loan sharks just to realize their specific livelihood projects. The respondents also claimed that the credit assistance helped them a lot to acquire additional knowledge, technologies and values which taught them to be more responsible and savings-conscious individuals. As to the impact of the credit facilities to their families and communities, the study also revealed that the respondent families were provided with additional sources of income that augmented their meager income derived mostly from farming. Their communities have likewise benefited from the credit assistance as it paved the way for beneficiaries to engage in income-generating livelihood projects. Likewise, the respondents claimed that such opportunity have created positive impact to other non-beneficiaries in their communities by influencing them to spend time wisely and productively by engaging in income-generating livelihood projects.
More importantly, results of the study indicated that the credit assistance provided to the POs imbided group cohesiveness and cooperation and that such group recognized the importance of these livelihood projects to realize their basic needs in life.
