Administrative Order No. 244

Section 1. Subject to existing laws, and the usual government accounting and auditing rules and regulation, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) is hereby authorized to release the amount of FOUR BILLION (P4.0B) PESOS from the Malampaya revenues (Service Contract No. 38) to the Department of Agriculture to be used in the rice self-sufficiency programs of government, as follows: Agricultural Guarantee Fund Pool (P2.0 Billion) - established under Administrative Order No. 225-A (s. 2008) and held in trust with the Land Bank of the Philippines (Account No. T.A. No. 05-206) shall be used to mitigate the risk involved in agriculture lending by providing guarantee-cover to unsecured loan financing extended by financial institutions and other parties to new small farmers engaged in rice and food production projects/activities, thereby facilitating the provision of credit in the sector; and Rice Self-Sufficiency & other Commodity Program (P2.0 Billion) - to augment DA funds to provide seeds and location specific interventions in addressing rice self-sufficiency targets and securing availability of food commodities at stable prices.

Section 2. The Department of Agriculture shall be accountable for the implementation of the rice self-sufficiency programs and the expenditures thereon, subject to applicable laws and existing budgeting, accounting and auditing rules and regulations.

This Order shall take effect immediately

Section 3. This Order shall take effect immediately. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the Republic of the Philippines to be affixed. Done in the City of Manila, this 23rd day of October, in the year of Our Lord Two Thousand and Eight. (Sgd.) GLORIA M. ARROYO By the President: (Sgd.) EDUARDO R. ERMITA Executive Secretary