Rubber trees title deeds project expected to boost farmers’ incomes

Initiated by the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC), and the Rubber Authority of Thailand (RAT), the project aims to evaluate crops with high economic value and issue corresponding title deeds to farmers, Agriculture Minister Captain Thamanat Prompow said on Friday.

The title deeds then can be used as collateral when applying for loans at the BAAC and participating financial institutions, he added.

Under the project, the RAT will be responsible for evaluating rubber trees and issuing the title deeds. More commercial banks are expected to join the campaign later.

“The title deeds would make it easier for farmers to access financial sources for their business expansion,” said Thamanat. “The project will also pave the way for carbon credit trading among rubber plantations, a move that would generate additional income to improve their quality of life, while helping the environment by cutting down greenhouse gas emissions.”

Thamanat said that after receiving the title deeds, rubber farmers can sign up for the Thailand Voluntary Emission Reduction programme (T-VER) and the BAAC’s Carbon Credit programme, which will officially launch next month.

Thamanat added that the ministry was considering adding more economic plants to the title deeds project, including Siamese rosewood trees, Hopea odorata, durians, and mangoes.

The Agriculture Ministry will hand out 25,000 land title deeds to farmers nationwide on Monday (January 15). This move is a part of the policy to change Sor Por Kor 4-01 documents into agricultural land title deeds to offer more benefits to farmers who have the rights to government land.

Agricultural land title deeds have a green Garuda seal on top of the document, compared to the red Garuda seal on normal land title deeds.